Mark E. Smith 1957 – 2018

We are very sad to hear today of the passing of Mark E. Smith, the founder and front man of the legendary band The Fall.

Back in 2008, Mark E. Smith and The Fall played at DLWP on the night of the opening of one of our most popular exhibitions ever, Grayson Perry’s Unpopular Culture – a supposed clash of cultures which turned out to be a happy co-incidence.

Grayson Perry was thrilled we were hosting his favourite band on the opening of his exhibition and our previous director Alan Haydon and current director Stewart Drew (then Head of Development), both huge MES fans, joined the crowd near the front of the stage on a blisteringly hot night. It wasn’t until afterwards that our Live Programmer told us that she had lost Smith for hours before the show, only to find him drinking with the regulars in Traffers, the local pub down the road and had to drag him out to get on stage.  He gave a true to form  performance and went straight back to Traffers afterwards for a pint.  Bexhill clearly made an impression on him as he returned to perform a couple of years later in another memorable and sold-out gig.

Thank you Mark E. Smith for giving us and our audiences an unforgettable evening.

#bepartofourstory