Mr. Sebastian...

Mr. Sebastian


Alan Oversby, the London-based master piercer and tattooist known to fans and clients around the world as Mr. Sebastian, died on May 7 1996. The reclusive artist practiced body modification in the UK long before it became a popular fad; he gained some notoriety in the US with the publication of RE/Search's Modern Primitives, in which his piercing and tattoo work appeared adorning Genesis P-Orridge and other TOPY members. Originally an art teacher, Alan Oversby left his initial profession to pursue his interests in tattooing and piercing instead. From his studio in London, he promoted both tattooing and body piercing, especially within the gay leather community

His vocals were used in the Psychic TV track "Message from The Temple" which appeared on their first album Force the Hand of Chance.

Operation Spanner
In 1987, Alan Oversby was one of 16 men charged as a part of Operation Spanner, a series of raids that resulted in the arrest of men who were all engaged in consensual homosexual BDSM activities.

Alan, like the other men, was charged with assault occasioning actual bodily harm for performing a genital piercing on a client. He was also charged with using anaesthetic without a licence and for sending obscene material through the post (photographs of piercings).

As the judge was not willing to take the consensuality of the participants into account, Alan pleaded guilty along with the other 15 men. He received a sentence of 15 months, which was suspended for two years.

A funeral was held in London on May 16 1996.

Excerpt From a Genesis interview from "The morning news"  sept 2009 http://www.themorningnews.org/archives/galleries/genesis/04gen.php
"Our belief is it is really about power. S&M and festish activities were for a long time (centuries) primarily the vices of the aristocracy and royalty, who could afford the luxury. As the so-called common person developed an interest in these privileged sports, they were harassed, intimidated, and eventually jailed. One gay man in the infamous Spanner Case got three years in jail for piercing HIS OWN foreskin. The local pharmacy saw his snapshots and turned him in. His trial, with 11 others, was at The Old Bailey, London, with a judge, but NO jury. All were found guilty and for a shameful time the U.K. had no legal rights to tattoo, pierce, scarify or practice S&M. This was in 1991. It was the primary reason we were forced into seven years exile as an “instigator” though we were NEVER charged with even a parking ticket. But cultural engineering is a powerful force and look at the world now! Everyone and their brother is an expert on “Body Modification”. We say hurrah. The alternative repression is far worse."


Excerpt from jan 2008 Gen interview Stay thirsty http://www.staythirstymedia.com/news/29/202-genesis-p-orridge-int.html
Thirsty: They wanted to just completely put a stop to it back then?

Genesis: Yes. They declared it illegal. And as we say they jailed several people, and ruined the lives of other people. One of them was teacher who had pierced himself. He lost his job. He was ridiculed in the media. It was a terrible, terrible attack, and in the original case, there were 13 people that they were arresting through the courts, and one of them was me. And they’d got all the names by going through Mr. Sebastian’s appointments book. And then suddenly my name dropped off that list. And of course, it turned out to be, because they wanted to deal with me separately. And we found out later that was the time they began on the whole strategy to raid my house and stop me being in Britain, encouraging this horrible decadent behavior. (laughs) It’s a wild story, and if we didn’t have all the documentation, it would be hard to believe. But Jaye used to say to me when we would walk down to St. Marks and we would see all these kids with dreadlocks and loads of piercings and tattoos, and she’d look at me and go, “I blame you for this.” (laughs)