this is the monologue which opened the gybe! live show at the royal festival hall, london, on april 3rd 2000.

there is a devil in this world and no angel will save us our relations are sickened and damaged as this upside down world they’re turning our neighbourhoods into disneylands they’re building more prisons and doubling their patrols at the same time miss celine dion sings love songs while our cities burn in these times, when everything is denied us anything is possible but everyday stubborn clumsy beautiful ideas rot on the withering vine all dreams fall down failure leads to irony, and irony smothers us with all the pastel colours of the newest retail superstores we call for an end to this state of affairs long live a little bit of autonomy long live all quiet roof easels a sort of culture can be built here all sorts of things can happen when and if we finally begin to refuse we dedicate tonight’s performance to quiet refusals loud refusals and sad refusals we dedicate it to the imminent market collapse we dedicate it to carpenters waitresses and drug addicts we dedicate it to secretaries, alcoholics and schizophrenics we dedicate it to the boys kissing boys girls kissing girls girls kissing boys and everything in between we dedicate it to anxiety attacks, hangovers, worried depression and all the other necessary by-products of trying to live free we dedicate it to any endeavour who’s ultimate unreasonable goal is autonomy self-determination or joy we dedicate it to every prisoner in the world.