Tomorrow I'll be interviewed by Irish journalist Michael McCaughan at Tower in Dublin.  We'll be talking about my book, The Rest Is Propaganda, and anything else that Michael wants to ask.  Also there will be a Q&A after so please come along and ask me anything you like.  I'll be around afterwards for a chat and to sign books if anyone wants one!

Hope to see you there.

Oh yeah - and in case you didn't know, we're playing the Button Factory in Dublin on Friday night (26th) and Belfast Empire on Saturday night (27th).  We're really looking forward to it.

Cheers

Steve

The nice folks at Rough Trade shops have asked me come down and do a talk about my book.  I'll be interviewed and then answer any questions from the audience, and I'll hang around afterwards to sign books and chat.   I hope some of you can come down and keep me company.

Rough Trade East is located at:  Dray Walk, Truman Brewery, 91 Brick Lane London E1 6QL

The talk starts at 6pm and will finish around 7pm.

Rough Trade shop event info

Facebook event info

Gizz, Steve, Beki, Spike, Bob. Click to enlarge.

Friday 24th September Bristol O2 Academy

• doors 7pm
• 7:30 Goldblade
• 8:30 The Last Supper
• curfew 10pm

Saturday 25th September Birmingham O2 Academy

• doors 7pm
• 7:30 Goldblade
• 8:30 The Last Supper
• curfew 10pm

Friday 1st October Manchester O2 Academy

• doors 7pm
• 7:55 Paranoid Visions
• 9:00 The Last Supper
• curfew 10:30pm

Saturday 2nd October Ediburgh Liquid Room

• doors 7pm
• 7:30 Goldblade
• 8:30 The Last Supper
• curfew 10pm

Working on the set list with the band.

We are full of nervous excitement and really looking forward to it. Finally got round to get the photos on the computer. After our last rehearsals at Southern on the 8th September we sat down to sort out the set, while munching on veggie hotdogs. As you can see from the photos it was a real team effort and I honestly couldn't have done it on my own. Thanks Bob, Gizz, Beki and Spike for all your hard work.  We now have a great set list and are ready to go. (Though we did make some minor adjustments again when we were in Peterborough).

So bring it on.

Steve.

Lots of chin scratching going on.

John Robb, Penny and me. Photo by Dod Morrison.

Right, I know it’s been a while as usual, but obviously as the tour gets closer everything round here starts getting really manic, so my apologies. Thanks to everyone who came to the Blackpool show, really nice to see you and have a bit of a laugh, it’s nice to have time out sometimes ain't it?

I must admit Blackpool for me was a little bit special – it’s the first time in years me and Penny have done anything like that and we both felt it went really well and hopefully has dispelled this stupid myth that was going about that me and him weren’t getting on. I think that’s partly why I was mucking about so much on stage – I was so pleased to be doing something with him again, and hopefully there’ll be more to come.

One thing that struck me was on the journey up. Jona booked the train tickets and got the cheapest deal she could, so we went Cambridge to Peterborough, changed trains to Leeds, then changed at Leeds to Blackpool. The thing was the train from Leeds went through Hebden Bridge, Halifax, Preston and places like that, following the route of many a Crass tour back in the day, and it really took me back.

Pen and me. Photo by Dod Morrison.

Arriving in Blackpool, it did look a bit run down, but it was brightened up by loads of  Punks strolling around with their kids and things, and no one taking a blind bit of notice, and no trouble going on. Bloody great. As it goes I think I was probably the worst culprit, because after me and Pen did our thing with John Robb, I settled myself in the bar upstairs and had a couple of drinks. Then Beki turned up with Steve and they bought me a beer which would have been rude to refuse, then Oddie come over and got me one, then Ben from Hard Skin come in and got me one, and I think I had a couple more, so by about six I was getting giggly and sloppy sentimental. Jona sensibly got me to leave ( I hadn’t eaten all day – nerves ) and we went back to our B&B.

Apparently I fell asleep for a couple of hours and when I woke up I insisted we go and watch the cabaret show the B&B was putting on. So we sat in this room with a group of Scottish people out for a good time and listened to this woman doing songs like Aga bloody doo doo doo and Viva Espania. But I have to admit there was something sort of heart – warming about it all – probably the beer – but something about the way people stoically insist on having a good time on a windy, rainy week – end in a run down seaside resort, and I’m not about to run that down, so I joined in as well. Just think: a pissed Ignorant singing along to ‘Your sex is on fire’. Twat.

Call outs on the lifeboat have been coming in left right and centre, so that’s been taking time up too, sixteen so far this year I think, however no fatalities (touch wood) so that’s good.

My autobiography, The Rest Is Propaganda, is now finished and on its way to the printers, so hopefully it won't be long before you can all have a laugh at my expense. Getting it done was a bit of a nightmare but now it’s all done.

We had rehearsals on Tuesday and Wednesday, and again next Monday and Tuesday, and it’s all going really well, the only problem being that I’ve got the Crass lyrics back in my head and they won't go away, I’m gonna be singing ‘Mother Earth’ at the kitchen sink till I’m ninety, if I last that long. And so what, who cares, fuck the system.

Me and Hot Rod Hector on Future Radio Norwich. Photo by Jona.

Last week I did an interview with a community radio show in Norwich which I really enjoyed, you can listen to it on iPod or something, anyway if you go to my Facebook  page the details are on there, and I'll stick a link at the end of this.  I haven’t listened to it yet but I remember it being a laugh. Neil, the DJ wants me to do another one in October which I’m well up for and which is really nice of him, also he’s going to come to the lifeboat and do a little programme about it, so we get to take him out and chuck him in the sea. Of course we’ll pluck him out again. I’ll let you know when it’s happening nearer the time.

Right, that’s it for now, I’m off to cut the grass, I’ll really try not to leave it for so long before I write a blog again.

Later,
Steve.

Listen to me on Hot Rod Hector's Variety Show on the Future Radio website.

UK tour flyer

Here's the front of the flyer for our UK shows.  The photo was taken by my mate Mark Pickstone, in the dressing room of The Man in the Moon Theatre in the Kings Road, London in 1993 when I was performing in a play. I was the lead role in The Tooth of Crime by Sam Shepard which ran for four weeks. The gun was actually a starting pistol which was obviously used in the play.

We thought it made a good flyer, what do you reckon?

The announcement that we went to promoters is at the end of this post if you want a bit more info.

The shows that are definitely confirmed are listed below. We're working on new shows all the time so keep an eye out for new announcements. I’m really excited about the tour and I’m completely overwhelmed with all of the support that we’ve been getting. Thanks to everyone for that!

We've also set up an official Facebook page and a MySpace page, all the dates will be posted there - it would be great to see some of you there if you use those sites.
The Last Supper 2010

• 24 Sep  UK Bristol - O2 Academy
• 25 Sep  UK Birmingham - O2 Academy
• 01 Oct  UK Manchester - Academy
• 02 Oct  UK Edinburgh - Liquid Room
• 15 Oct  NL Amsterdam - Melkweg
• 16 Oct  DE Köln/Cologne – Underground
• 17 Oct  DE Frankfurt – Exzess
• 19 Oct  DE München/Munich - Feierwerk
• 20 Oct  DE Berlin - Festsaal
• 21 Oct  PL Lodz - Dekompresja
• 22 Oct  DE Hamburg - Hafenklang
• 23 Oct  DK Copenhagen – Loppen
• 24 Oct NL Groningen - Vera

Tickets for the UK shows are available from gigbox.co.uk and the usual suspects.
For European dates please contact the venue.

Tour Announcement:

“In 2007, Steve Ignorant gathered some friends together and put on two shows at Shepherd’s Bush Empire in London. Called The Feeding Of 5000, the show was a celebration of the Crass album of the same name, which was performed in its entirety.

It most certainly was not a Crass reunion, and never sought to be.

The Last Supper

This tour will answer the calls that have come from around the globe in response to the Shepherd’s Bush gigs. Steve will be celebrating the period of Crass’ work with which he feels most closely aligned – the period when he feels the band were at their strongest, most productive and most hopeful.

Steve will be performing with a full band. as well as featuring Crass songs (plus a few other favourites) there will be some rather special visuals.

Having started in London in 2007, this new expanded show will now visit other parts of the UK, Europe, Japan and the USA before a FINALE in London in 2011. At which point the door will be firmly closed. (Steve has some other plans, don’t you worry…)”

Thanks.
facebook.com/ignorant.steve
myspace.com/steveignorant

Steve Ignorant + special guests ( full band performance).
Cockney Rejects (30th anniversary), Angelic Upstarts (Mensi), Leatherface, UK Subs, Goldblade, Crashed Out, The Fiend, Gimp Fist, much more to follow.

12th September,Over 16's .Under 18's to be accompanied by an adult. Drink Promotions (3 bars in service), stalls, pass outs all day, smoking/food area. Doors 2p.m.-11p.m

Tickets available from www.gigbox.co.uk