Kickstarter was launched to make Tony Wilson’s archives public

A fundraising campaign has been launched to make the archives of late Manchester dance music scene icon Tony Wilson available to the public.

The Kickstarter campaign was launched by the Tony Wilson Archive (TWA) and Manchester design studio DR.ME with the aim of sharing the art, memorabilia and music of the co-founder of The Haçienda and Factory Records with the public. The aim is to raise £5,000.

TWA highlights the importance of Wilson’s work to Manchester and Britain’s enduring musical legacy, but also as a journalist and presenter for the BBC, Channel 4 and Granada Television, and as a champion of local acts such as A Certain Ratio, Joy Division and Durutti Column. His reputation for promoting these artists led to him becoming known as Mr. Manchester.

TWA was previously housed in the Manchester Museum of Science and Industry and is currently in the British Pop Archive at the John Rylands Library. All profits are reinvested into Manchester’s music scene and emerging artists from the region.

The first TWA collections include flyers Wilson designed for Factory Records, documents from his time there, screen-printed posters of important artists such as Durutti Column, photographs and more.

Wilson died of kidney cancer in August 2007 at the age of 57. At the time of his death, New Order drummer Stephen Morris said: “When it started, everyone knew Tony because he was on TV and reading the news.

“He was the hippie guy who was kind of on your wavelength, and he did that What’s going on Program. He obviously listened to the same music as us. And then one evening Bernard (Sumner) spotted him at a concert. Ian (Curtis) scolded him mercilessly for not getting us on TV because he was in the Buzzcocks, and I remember Ian really got into him and said, “You’re a real jerk, Wilson.” that’s you,” and I think that impressed me Tony more than anything else.

“We gave him a copy of ‘An Ideal For Living’ (the band’s debut EP as Warsaw) and he played it on ‘What’s On.’ And the next thing you know, you can trace it all back to that one chaotic gig at Rafters. That’s where it all started.”

He continued: “We definitely wouldn’t have become what we became, definitely not,” he explained. “I can tell you that without the slightest doubt. So many other things would not have become what they are. Without him, Manchester wouldn’t have become what it is. It would have been completely different.

Wilson was also portrayed by Steve Coogan in the 2002 film 24 hour party peoplewhich chronicled Manchester’s music scene between the 70s and 90s with a particular focus on Factory Records.