Legendary DJ Norman Cook (AKA Fatboy Slim) and indie quartet Peace have joined a growing list of musicians who have questioned the government’s plan to spend over £100bn on a new nuclear weapons system.
Posing in CND’s NHS Not Trident t-shirts, designed by Katharine Hamnett , at Bestival on the Isle of Wight over the weekend, the artists added their support to CND’s ‘Scrap Trident’ campaign.
The t-shirt was designed by iconic fashion designer Katharine Hamnett, who gained notoriety in the 1980s when she met Margaret Thatcher while wearing a t-shirt with the slogan ‘58% don’t want Pershing’. Thatcher was working with US President Ronald Reagan to bring cruise and Pershing nuclear missiles to Europe at the time.
At Glastonbury in June, Portishead used their headline set to challenge Trident replacement, producing a powerful film about CND’s campaigning and the cost of nuclear weapons, shown during their song ‘Machine Gun’. Meanwhile, Rou Reynolds of Enter Shikari donned his NHS Not Trident t-shirt during the band’s Pyramid Stage set at Glastonbury and headline slot at Download Festival.
Geoff Barrow of Portishead said: ‘I still cannot believe how many people are totally unaware about Trident. By redirecting the money saved we could potentially save thousands of lives and lead the poorest and most vulnerable people out of the downward spiral this Government and previous governments have created.’
Notes to Editors:
Images of artists wearing the NHS Not Trident t-shirt: http://on.fb.me/17UHMjJ
For more info on Katharine Hamnett’s designs for CND, see here: http://bit.ly/YZ0TsF
Guardian feature on Katharine Hamnett’s designs: http://bit.ly/17NG3AE
Portishead’s anti-Trident film at Glastonbury Festival: http://bit.ly/17nlPwM