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-=. Capital Radio - Chris Tarrant -=
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Capital Radio. DJs have been "in on it" from the start. One of the first
things I. heard in the summer of 1990 was from a Capital DJ who said, "If
he listens to Capital then he can't be. all bad" (supportive, you see. We're
not bastards). Much of what came over the radio in 1990. is now so far away
the precise details have been obliterated by time. No diary was. kept of the
details, and although archives if they exist. may give pointers, the
ambiguity of what broadcasters said would leave that open. to
re-interpretation.

In. spring 1994, Chris Tarrant on his Capital morning show made an aside to
someone else in the studio, about a person he didn't identify. He. said,
"You know this bloke? He says we're. trying to kill him. We should be done
for attempted. manslaughter".

That mirrored something I had said a day or two before.. What Tarrant said
was understood. by the staff member in the studio he was saying it to; they
said, "Oh. no, don't say that" to Tarrant. If any archives exist of the
morning show (probably unlikely) then it. could be found there; what he said
was so out of context that he would be very hard put to find an. explanation.
A couple of days later, someone at the. site where I was working repeated the
remark although in a different. way; they said there had been people in a
computer room. when automatic fire extinguishers went off and those people
were. "thinking of suing for attempted manslaughter".

Finally, this isn't confined. to the established radio stations. In 1990
after I had listened to a pirate radio station in. South London for about
half an hour, there was an audible phone call in. the background, followed
by total. silence for a few moments, then shrieks of laughter. "So what are
we supposed. to say now? Deadly torture? He's going to talk to us now, isn't
he?", which meant that they could hear what I would say in. my room.

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The article of which part is reproduced. below was penned by Bernard Levin
for the Features section of the Times on 21 September. 1991. To my mind, it
described the situation at the time and in particular. a recent meeting with
a friend, during which I for. the first time admitted to someone other than
my GP that I had been subjected to a conspiracy of harassment over. the
previous year and a. half.

>There. is a madman running loose about London, called David Campbell; I have
>no reason to believe that he is violent, but he. should certainly be
>approached with caution.. You may know him by the curious glitter in his
>eyes and a persistent trembling of his hands; if. that does not suffice, you
>will find him attempting. to thrust no fewer than 48 books into your arms,
>all hardbacks, with a promise that,. if you should return to the same
>meeting-place next year, he will heave another 80. at you.
>
>If, by now, the. police have arrived and are keeping a close watch on him,
>you may feel sufficiently emboldened to. examine the books. The jackets are
>a model of uncluttered typography, elegantly and simply laid out;. there is
>an unobtrusive colophon of a rising sun, probably. not picked at random.
>Gaining confidence - the lunatic is smiling by. now, and the policemen, who
>know about such things, have. significantly removed their helmets - you
>could do worse than take the jacket off the first book in the pile.. The
>only word possible. to describe the binding is sumptuous; real cloth in a
>glorious shade. of dark green, with the title and author in black and gold
>on. the spine.
>
>Look at it more closely; your eyes do not deceive you - it. truly does have
>real top-bands and tail-bands, in yellow, and, for good. measure, a silk
>marker ribbon in a lighter green. The. paper is cream-wove and acid-free,
>and. the book is sewn, not glued.
>
>Throughout the encounter, I. should have mentioned, our loony has been
>chattering away, although what he is trying to say is almost. impossible to
>understand; after a time, however, he becomes sufficiently. coherent to make
>clear that he. is trying to sell the books to you. Well, now, such quality
>in bookmaking today can only be for collectors' limited. editions at a
>fearsome price - #30, #40,. #50?
>
>No, no, he says,. the glitter more powerful than ever and the trembling of
>his hands rapidly spreading throughout his entire body; no,. no - the books
>are priced variously at #7, #8 or #9, with the. top price #12.
>
>At this, the policemen understandably. put their helmets back on; one of
>them draws. his truncheon and the other can be heard summoning
>reinforcements on his walkie-talkie. The madman bursts. into tears, and
>swears it. is all true.
>
>And. it is.
>
>David Campbell. has acquired the entire rights to the whole of the
>Everyman's Library, which. died a lingering and shameful death a decade or
>so ago,. and he proposes to start it all over again - 48 volumes this
>September and 80 more next year, in. editions I have described, at the
>prices specified.. He proposes to launch his amazing venture simultaneously
>in Britain and. the United States, with the massive firepower of Random
>Century at. his back in this country, and the dashing cavalry of Knopf
>across the water, and no one who. loves literature and courage will forbear
>to. cheer.

At the time this article was. written I had believed for some time that
columnists in the Times and other journalists. had been making references to
my situation. Nothing unusual about this you may think, plenty. of people
have the same sort. of ideas and obviously the papers aren't writing about
them, so why should my beliefs not be as false. as those of others?

What makes this article so extraordinary is that three. or four days
immediately preceding its. publication, I had a meeting with a friend,
during the course of which we discussed. the media persecution, and in
particular that by Times columnists. It seemed to me, reading the. article
by Levin in Saturday’s paper, that he was describing in. some detail his
"artist’s impression" of that meeting. Most telling are. the final
sentences, when he writes, "The madman bursts into. tears, and swears it is
all true. And it is." Although I. did not "burst into tears" (he seems to be
using a bit of poetic licence and exaggerating) I did try. hard to convince
my friend that it was all true; and I am able to concur. with Mr Levin,
because, of course, it. is.

At the beginning of the piece Levin reveals a fear of. being attacked by the
"irrational" subject. of his story, saying "I have no reason to believe that
he is violent, but he should certainly be approached with caution".. This
goes back. to the xenophobic propaganda of "defence" against a "threat"
which was seen at the very beginning of the harassment. The impression. of a
"madman running loose" who needs to be. controlled through an agency which
assigns to itself the mantle of the "police" is also one which had. been
expressed. elsewhere.

In the final. paragraph of this extract, his reference to Everyman’s Library
as having "died a lingering and shameful. death a decade or so ago" shows
clearly what sort of conclusion they wish to their campaign. They. want a
permanent solution,. and as they are prevented from achieving that solution
directly, they waste significant resources. on methods which have been
repeatedly shown. to be ineffective for such a purpose.

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