Half Man Half Biscuit

**Half Man Half Biscuit** are a British indie band formed by two friends from Birkenhead, Neil Crossley and singer, guitarist and songwriter Nigel Blackwell who was (in his own words) at the time "still robbing cars and playing football like normal people do". In 1979, Blackwell was editing a football fanzine (Left For Wakeley Gage); he met Crossley when he went to see the latter's band play. In 1984, when Half Man Half Biscuit were formed, Crossley moved to bass and the two were joined by Nigel's brother Simon Blackwell (lead guitar) and his friend Paul Wright (drums), both previously with a group called Attempted Moustache. The quartet started to rehearse in the Liverpool-based Vulcan Studios, where they soon turned a five-piece, with David Lloyd now on keyboards.

Their debut album, 1985's Back in the DHSS, topped the UK Indie Chart and reached number 60 in the UK Album Chart. Its title was a play on The Beatles' "Back in the U.S.S.R." and also a reference to the DHSS, the government department that dealt with the unemployed, Nigel Blackwell having been on unemployment benefits since 1979. The band's first single, "The Trumpton Riots", topped the British independent chart in 1986, and they went on to perform at Glastonbury Festival. The second single, "Dickie Davies Eyes", also topped the indie chart. In late 1986, the band split up, giving as reason "musical similarities". The album Back Again in the DHSS, containing previously issued, unreleased and live tracks, followed.

The band reformed in 1990, with a performance at the Reading Festival following, and a new single, "Let's Not" issued before the year was out, followed in 1991 by a collaboration with Margi Clarke on a version of Edith Piaf's "No Regrets". The third album was McIntyre, Treadmore And Davitt, released in October 1991. By the time This Leaden Pall was released in 1993, Wright and Lloyd had left the band, with Carl Alty joining on drums. Simon Blackwell left the following year, with Ian S Jackson joining. Jackson (who later joined Rooney) and Alty (who joined Joyrider) departed in 1996, to be replaced by Ken Hancock (guitar) and Carl Henry (drums). Since reforming, the band have produced an album every two or three years.

## Links to Kershaw

Half Man Half Biscuit were championed by Andy Kershaw and his BBC Radio One colleague, John Peel, for whom they recorded twelve sessions, and it was on his programme in 1990 that the band announced their return. The group did two sessions for Kershaw's shows on BBC Radio 3 and were described by him as *'the most authentic British band since The Clash'* and *'England's greatest folk band'*.

## Sessions

1. Recorded: unknown. First Broadcast: 02 August 2002

* When the Evening Sun Goes Down / If I Had Possession Over Pancake Day / 27 Yards Of Dental Floss / 24 Hour Garage Party People / There Stands The Glass / Running Order Squabblefest

2. Recorded: unknown. First Broadcast: 26 September 2004

* Corgi Registered Friends / King Of Rome / Mate Of the Bloke / I'm Throwing Rice At The Girl I Love / Paintball's Coming Home

3. Recorded: unknown. First Broadcast: Andy Kershaw Podcast Episode 5

* What Made Colombia Famous / When I Look At My Baby / Totnes Bickering Fair / I'm Getting Buried In The Morning / Germ Free Adolescents

## Live

Recorded at the Brampton Live Festival. First Broadcast: 27 August 2006

1. Light At The End Of The Tunnel
2. Corgi-Registered Friends
3. Paintball's Coming Home
4. Joy Division Oven Gloves
5. 24 Hour Garage People
6. For What Is Chatteris
7. We Built This Village On A Trad. Arr. Tune
8. Running Order Squabble Fest

## Other Shows Played

   1986
* 03 April 1986: I Love You Because You Look Like Jim Reeves

1995
* 16 July 1995: Even Men With Steel Hearts (album - Some Call It Godcore) Probe Plus

1996
* 29 September 1996: Hair Like Brian May Blues

1997
* 06 October 1997: Deep House Victims Minibus Appeal (CD - Voyage To The Bottom Of The Road) Probe Plus

2000
* 20 April 2000: 24 Hour Garage People (CD - Trouble Over Bridgwater) Probe Plus
* 27 April 2000: Irk The Purists (CD - Trouble Over Bridgwater) Probe Plus
* 11 May 2000: Twenty Four Hour Garage People (CD - Trouble Over Bridgwater) Probe Plus

2001
* 20 July 2001: On Pissing Lilac Urine (single - Editor's Recommendation) Probe Plus
* 05 October 2001: Twenty Four Hour Garage People (CD - Trouble Over Bridgwater) Probe Plus

2002
* 10 May 2002: Even Men With Steel Hearts (CD - Some Call It Godcore) Probe Plus
* 11 October 2002: The Light At The End Of The Tunnel (Is The Light Of An Oncoming Train) (CD - Cammell Laird Social Club) Probe Plus
* 01 November 2002: If I Had Possession Over Pancake Day (CD - Cammell Laird Social Club) Probe Plus
* 29 November 2002: Breaking News (CD - Cammell Laird Social Club) Probe Plus

2003
* 03 January 2003: If I Had Possession Over Pancake Day (CD - Cammell Laird Social Club) Probe Plus
* 01 August 2003: It Makes The Room Look Bigger (CD EP - Saucy Haulage Ballads) Probe Plus
* 15 August 2003: On Finding The Studio Banjo (CD EP - Saucy Haulage Ballads) Probe Plus
* 23 November 2003: Tending The Wrong Grave For 23 Years (CD EP - Saucy Haulage Ballads) Probe Plus

2004
* 09 May 2004: When The Evening Sun Goes Down (session)
* 09 May 2004: If I Had Possession Over Pancake Day (session)
* 19 September 2004: When The Evening Sun Goes Down (CD - Cammell Laird Social Club) Probe Plus
* 31 October 2004: 24 Hour Garage People

2005
* 10 April 2005: Corgi Registered Friend / Paintball's Coming Home (session)
* 11 September 2005: Joy Division Oven Gloves / Mate Of The Bloke (CD - Achtung Bono) Probe Plus
* 11 September 2005: We Built this Village on a Trad. Arr. Tune (CD - Achtung Bono) Probe Plus
* 18 September 2005: Corgi Registered Friends (CD - Achtung Bono) Probe Plus
* 02 October 2005: Upon Westminster Bridge (CD - Achtung Bono) Probe Plus
* 09 October 2005: For What Is Chatteris… (CD - Achtung Bono) Probe Plus
* 23 October 2005: We Built This Village (CD - Achtung Bono) Probe Plus
* 20 November 2005: Mate Of The Bloke (CD - Achtung Bono) Probe Plus
* 04 December 2005: Joy Division Oven Gloves (CD - Achtung Bono) Probe Plus

2006
* 12 February 2006: 24 Hour Garage People (CD - Trouble Over Bridgwater) Probe Plus
* 30 April 2006: With Goth On Our Side (CD - Trouble Over Bridgwater) Probe Plus
* 16 July 2006: We Built this Village On A Trad Arr Tune (CD - Achtung Bono) Probe Plus
* 20 August 2006: Upon Westminster Bridge (CD - Achtung Bono) Probe Plus

2007
* 12 March 2007: Corgi Registered Friends (album - Achtung Bono) Probe Plus

2021
* Andy Kershaw Podcast Episode 2: Twenty Four Hour Garage People (album - Trouble Over Bridgwater) Probe Plus

2022
* Andy Kershaw Podcast Episode 11: When I Look At My Baby (album - The Voltarol Years) R M Qualtrough
* Andy Kershaw Podcast Episode 11: Midnight Mass Murder (album - The Voltarol Years) R M Qualtrough
* Andy Kershaw Podcast Episode 11: I'm Getting Buried In The Morning (album - The Voltarol Years) R M Qualtrough
* Andy Kershaw Podcast Episode 12: I'm Getting Buried In The Morning (album - The Voltarol Years) R M Qualtrough
* Andy Kershaw Podcast Episode 13: Beneath This Broken Headstone (Lies A Broken Heart) (album - The Voltarol Years) R M Qualtrough

## External Links

* Wikipedia
* Discogs
* Official Website