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Class of '88
Class of '88
Apr 20, 2025 8:01 PM

Author:Wayne Anthony

Class of '88

Organised crime puts on a smiley face.

When the Summer of Love hit Britain in ’88, Wayne embraced the bright new world of dance music, MDMA and all-night celebrations. But alongside the ecstasy, his natural East End entrepreneurial instincts kicked in, and he began to organise the infamous Genesis dance parties for thousands of kids. Wayne soon became a key figure in the high octane, technicolour rave scene.

But beneath the shiny, smiley surfaces, he quickly found himself in a vicious world of violence, police harassment and organised crime, for which he was totally unsuited and unprepared. He was beaten by ex-paratroopers, menaced by gangsters, kidnapped, confronted with sawn off shotguns and threatened with murder, all so Britain could party like never before.

When Class of ’88 was first published, it was so popular that Foyles dedicated an entire window to the book for a month. Now, re-issued for the 30th anniversary, this isWayne’s very lively, highly individual account of the two years he spent as an illegal party promoter, leading the rave revolution which was sweeping the UK, changing lives, music and popular culture forever.

Reviews

The most beautiful & furious book of all time

—— Olivia Laing

An essential – urgent – book for the 21st Century

—— Hans Ulrich Obrist, Artistic Director of the Serpentine Gallery

A marvellous, moving book

—— Sunday Telegraph

Jarman gave his garden a certain narrative; perhaps he treated it a bit like a film or theatre set. His films were visionary, eccentric, romantic and rebellious, all of which could also be said about his garden

—— Guardian

It's hard not to warm to the man who, in the face of all the personal and professional hardships described in this book, can still regard himself as 'the most fortunate film-maker of my generation

—— Guardian

An inspiring diary of a life well lived

—— BBC Gardeners’ World

Joy and life and more life and more joy and street corners and making a garden out of stones and making films and love

—— Tilda Swinton
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