The Wallys
Encyclopedia
Wally was a multiple-use name
anyone could use.
In 1974, a small Free Festival
was also organised alongside Stonehenge
, where an obscure electronic noise band named Zorch
gave a performance through a poor PA system. A group of around thirty people stayed on after the festival and pitched camp in a field next to the stone circle. They lived communally in tents, a rickety polythene-covered geodesic dome
and a small fluorescent painted tipi. It was an open camp, inspired by a diversity of eccentric ideas, but with the common purpose of discovering the relevance of this ancient mysterious place by the physical experience of spending a lot of time there. The Department of the Environment
and the National Trust
landowners set out to evict them. Such was the law in those days, the eviction process involved seeking a High Court injunction on named individuals. Aware of this potential legal loophole the occupants decided to exploit it and so they all adopted the multiple-use name
of `Wally'.
Largely through later publications by Penny Rimbaud
of the punk band Crass
, the name `Wally' became increasingly identified with one man, Wally Hope
aka Phil Russell who had written and published much of the promotional material for the 1974 Stonehenge festival.
Multiple-use name
A multiple-use name is a name used by many different people to protect anonymity. It is a strategy that has been adopted by many unconnected radical and cultural groups, where the construct of personal identity has been criticised...
anyone could use.
In 1974, a small Free Festival
Stonehenge Free Festival
The Stonehenge Free Festival was a British free festival from 1972 to 1984 held at Stonehenge in England during the month of June, and culminating on the summer solstice on June 21. The festival was a celebration of various alternative cultures...
was also organised alongside Stonehenge
Stonehenge
Stonehenge is a prehistoric monument located in the English county of Wiltshire, about west of Amesbury and north of Salisbury. One of the most famous sites in the world, Stonehenge is composed of a circular setting of large standing stones set within earthworks...
, where an obscure electronic noise band named Zorch
Zorch
Zorch, who formed in 1973, were England's first totally electronic band, pioneering integrated performances of synthesizers and lightshow. Originally a four piece, by 1975 Zorch were performing as a duo: Basil Brooks and Gwyo Zepix played three monophonic EMS analogue synthesizers, but were...
gave a performance through a poor PA system. A group of around thirty people stayed on after the festival and pitched camp in a field next to the stone circle. They lived communally in tents, a rickety polythene-covered geodesic dome
Geodesic dome
A geodesic dome is a spherical or partial-spherical shell structure or lattice shell based on a network of great circles on the surface of a sphere. The geodesics intersect to form triangular elements that have local triangular rigidity and also distribute the stress across the structure. When...
and a small fluorescent painted tipi. It was an open camp, inspired by a diversity of eccentric ideas, but with the common purpose of discovering the relevance of this ancient mysterious place by the physical experience of spending a lot of time there. The Department of the Environment
Secretary of State for the Environment
The Secretary of State for the Environment was a UK cabinet position, responsible for the Department of the Environment . This was created by Edward Heath as a combination of the Ministry of Housing and Local Government, the Ministry of Transport and the Ministry of Public Building and Works on 15...
and the National Trust
National Trust for Places of Historic Interest or Natural Beauty
The National Trust for Places of Historic Interest or Natural Beauty, usually known as the National Trust, is a conservation organisation in England, Wales and Northern Ireland...
landowners set out to evict them. Such was the law in those days, the eviction process involved seeking a High Court injunction on named individuals. Aware of this potential legal loophole the occupants decided to exploit it and so they all adopted the multiple-use name
Multiple-use name
A multiple-use name is a name used by many different people to protect anonymity. It is a strategy that has been adopted by many unconnected radical and cultural groups, where the construct of personal identity has been criticised...
of `Wally'.
Largely through later publications by Penny Rimbaud
Penny Rimbaud
Jeremy John Ratter , better known under his pseudonym of Penny Rimbaud, is a drummer, writer, poet, former member of performance art groups EXIT and Ceres Confusion, and co-founder of the anarchist punk band Crass with Steve Ignorant in 1977.-Biography:Rimbaud Jeremy John Ratter (born 8 June 1943,...
of the punk band Crass
Crass
Crass are an English punk rock band that was formed in 1977, which promoted anarchism as a political ideology, way of living, and as a resistance movement. Crass popularised the seminal anarcho-punk movement of the punk subculture, and advocated direct action, animal rights, and environmentalism...
, the name `Wally' became increasingly identified with one man, Wally Hope
Wally Hope
Wally Hope was a name by which Phillip Russell was known.Phil was a visionary and a free-thinker, whose life has had a profound influence on many in the culture of the UK Underground and beyond...
aka Phil Russell who had written and published much of the promotional material for the 1974 Stonehenge festival.
External links
- Where's Wally - The origins of the multiple identity Wally in 1970s pop festivals and underground culture
- Everyone's Wally - 1974 article in International TimesInternational TimesInternational Times was an underground newspaper founded in London in 1966. Editors included Hoppy, David Mairowitz, Pete Stansill, Barry Miles, Jim Haynes and playwright Tom McGrath...
.