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Hi, just a side-note to your story on the Mutants in the Isle of Man:

I was guitarist/vocalist in the band, Debris, who opened in the IOM that night the band member spoke of. I had done my set and gone upstairs to one of the dressing rooms and locked a then girlfriend and myself in with a bottle of drink. I think I had gone into one of your dressing rooms by mistake, there was definitely a band's kit in there. For some reason a feather boa comes to mind, though whether that's real or not I don't know. I heard the music stop and a commotion coming up the stairs, someone trying to get into the dressing room and asking why it was locked and saying, "...I didn't want to be in a punk band in the first place!!!"

After further arguments they went back down stairs and the music started again. Something they said led me to believe that the person trying to escape was the drummer.

Someone I spoke to recently was there at the gig and said that the second the Mutants came on it was like Agincourt, with non-stop volleys of glasses and spit aimed at the band. You were on the Island at a time when punk was a symbol of English thuggery and it was a handy excuse to kick off.

I went in to pick our stuff up the following morning, and there was spit on everything, all the speakers, the stage. You couldn't walk without sticking to the floor. Also, somebody found a round from a small caliber pistol on the dance floor too.

I now really wish I'd opened the door and we'd shared the bottle.:)

Best wishes,

Ian Harling