The Edinburgh Fringe in 1980 was still in the hands of the inspired amateur, so along with another writer, I wrote a couple of plays, and delved into the acting fraternity.
Something that Mark Knopfler had seen I was capable off when I was writing the lyrics of the Dire Straits album. My co-author who was funding the project, decided to bring some glamour to the Fringe, by inviting Quentin Crisp to share our programme with his show, The Naked Civil Servant, something to behold in stuffy Edinburgh.
Having had a couple of short stories on Radio 4, and writing Features for the Edinburgh Evening News, I sort of stumbled upon the Unemployed Workers Assc, and was told about this talented artist Neil Clark. I’d been on a couple of Workers Rights to Work marches, and with Neil on guitar and myself belting out lyrics straight from my head, we took over a show in London, and of course became quite popular.
So it was not a surprise when Neil went to join Lloyd Cole in Glasgow, and became famous with his music on the Rattlesnake album with the Commotions, but as the way of things I was still in “Dire Straits”. I tried to contact Neil but it seems fame has to leave friends behind…
Dire Straits Story 