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Birthday
Neil Andrew Megson was born on 22 February 1950 in Victoria Park, Longsight, part of the northern English city of Manchester. Neil's father, Ronald Megson, was a travelling salesman who had worked in repertory theatre and who played the drums in local jazz and dance bands. Neil's mother, Muriel, was from Salford and first met Ronald after he had returned to England after being injured with the British Army at the Battle of Dunkirk in 1940. Throughout his childhood, Neil had a good relationshi -
1964–1968: Solihull School and Worm
After his father gained employment as the Midlands area manager of a cleaning and maintenance business, Neil was sent to the privately run Solihull School in Warwickshire from 1964 through to 1968; a period he would refer to as "basically four years of being mentally and physically tortured", but also a time when he developed an interest in art, occultism and the avant-garde. Unpopular with other students, Megson was bullied at the school, finding comfort in the art department at lunch-time a -
1968–1969: Hull University and Transmedia Explorations
In September 1968, Megson began studying for a degree in Social Administration and Philosophy at the University of Hull. He had chosen Hull in an attempt to study at "the most ordinary non-elitist, working-class, red brick university", but disliked the course and unsuccessfully tried to transfer to study English.[16] With a group of friends he founded a 'free-form' student magazine entitled Worm which waived all editorial control, publishing everything placed into the magazine's pigeonhole, incl -
1969–1970: Founding COUM Transmissions
Leaving London, Megson hitch-hiked across Britain before settling down in their parents' new home in Shrewsbury. Here he volunteered as an office clerk in his father's new business.[22] On one family trip to Wales, Megson was sitting in the back of the car when he "became disembodied and heard voices and saw the COUM symbol and heard the words 'COUM Transmissions'." Returning home that evening, he filled three notebooks with artistic thoughts and ideas, influenced by his time with Transmedia Exp -
Throbbing Gristle
Throbbing Gristle was formed in the autumn of 1975[56] as a four-piece band, consisting of P-Orridge, Cosey Fanni Tutti, Peter "Sleazy" Christopherson and Chris Carter.[56] The name "Throbbing Gristle" was adopted after a Northern English slang term for an erect penis.[57] The first Throbbing Gristle performance was held at the Air Gallery in London in July 1976.[53] At that point, Throbbing Gristle's headquarters was located at 10 Martello Street, Hackney, East London, the address of an artist -
Psychic TV and Thee Temple Ov Psychic Youth
Following the breakup of Throbbing Gristle, in 1981 P-Orridge founded a band with Peter Christopherson and Alex Fergusson that they named Psychic TV.[66] Involved in video art, they also performed psychedelic, punk, electronic and experimental music.[67] The decision to name the band "Psychic TV" stemmed from P-Orridge's belief that while mainstream television was a form of mass indoctrination and mind control, it could be used as an "esoterrorist" form of magick to combat the establishment's co
