Since his band Doctors of Madness was first unleashed on an uncomprehending public in 1975, Richard Strange has been a Zelig-like figure whose presence has been felt in every corner of London’s cultural life. Supported by The Sex Pistols, Joy Division and Simple Minds, the band were a huge influence on what was to become known as Punk and New Wave. He founded the hugely important performance art club, the mixed-media Cabaret Futura in 1980, and has subsequently worked as a musician, writer and actor.
As an actor, his numerous movie appearances include Batman by Tim Burton, Mona Lisa by Neil Jordan, and Gangs of New York by Martin Scorsese. He can be seen in the Harmony Korine movie Mr Lonely, playing the part of Abraham Lincoln, and he recently filmed the last episode of Harry Potter. Throughout 2004-7 Richard worked with Marianne Faithfull on the Tom Waits/William Burroughs/Robert Wilson collaboration The Black Rider, performing in theatres in London, San Francisco, Sydney and Los Angeles.
In 2009 he was part of Jarvis Cocker’s Meltdown Festival, in an evening of songs from Walt Disney movies, and he sang the baritone role in the British premiere of Frank Zappa’s opera 200 Motels at The Royal Festival Hall in 2013. In 2014 he produced and directed Language is a Virus from Outer Space, a tribute to William Burroughs on London’s South Bank, for which he co-wrote an opera with Gavin Bryars.
He frequently collaborates with the award-winning artist Haroon Mirza on multi-disciplinary projects…most recently in 2018 in Unknown Remembered, part of The Spitalfields Music Festival.
Richard’s memoir Strange- Punks and Drunks and Flicks and Kicks, was published to critical acclaim by Andre Deutsch in 2005. His audiobook version can be streamed or downloaded in its entirety free from https://www.richardstrange.com/strange-punks-and-drunks-and-flicks-and-kicks/
A new Doctors of Madness album, the critically-lauded Dark Times, (featured in The Guardian’s 2019 Album of The Year round-up), is released this week on vinyl for the Art Car Boot Fair. Available here: https://www.artcarbootfair.com/product/dark-times-doctors-of-madness-12-vinyl-album/
Ever restless and innovative, throughout the lockdown Richard has created and presented Dark Times Radio, a weekly online radio show featuring music that he has written, performed, produced, collaborated on or merely been inspired by, linked by stories and anecdotes spanning his 45 years in the creative arts. (www.Soundcloud.com/users-198290851). Dark Times Radio will be part of this year’s viral Art Car Boot Fair.