Factory United - A Chat With Fiona Allen (2020)

Until a few days ago this ‘piece’ had been meant to go onto another blog/website however that is currently on hiatus...

To be honest the article was ‘in draft’ for some time and it had gone through various revisions but now having it finished and nowhere for it to go it felt wrong...

So in the spirit of of the individuals mentioned within I got off my arse and created this blog so there would be somewhere to ‘put it out’ (because that’s what they would have done!)

That was 48 hours ago...

Factory United – A Chat with Fiona Allen

In Manchester at least  the blue side have been much derided over this season with their use of the 'Hacienda Strips' as part of their away kit

Even as a lifelong United fan and attendee over 30 years I can respect what they've done as a homage and mark of respect to the likes of late Rob Gretton (died 15.05.99), manager of Joy Division and New Order, one of the founding members of Factory Records and the key driver behind the Hacienda…

Also, to Mike Pickering, legendary Hacienda DJ, leader of M People, respected A&R man (without whom the careers of Happy Mondays, James could have been very different)

The influence which Rob and Mike have had on the culture of Manchester is without question and is most likely to have touched, in some way, anyone reading this whether they realise it or not

So I guess fair play to Manchester City for their tribute/acknowledgment, Rob and Mike deserve it

For those of a certain age, the heady years of the late 80’s and early 90’s may be beginning to blur a little. It is easy to mix the heyday of 'Madchester' with the rampant success and dominance during Fergie’s time however this isn't strictly true.

The roots of Madchester can first be seen and heard around 1987 when Little Hulton's finest (and United fans) introduced 'E' to the city, helping turn football hooligans from gangs looking to fight to groups looking to party. The story of the drugs, guns and gangsters taking over and then falling apart have often been told so it's not worth repeating here.

One thing that is not often discussed, and some Manchester United fans may not be aware, is that it was the red side of Manchester who were the first to be linked to fashion long before there was a new 'leisure wear' line to accompany the replica shirts featuring the Adidas or Nike logo

On Thursday 17th May 1990, as the 'Madchester' scene was peaking (Happy Mondays 'biggest' hit 'Step On' was in the Top 20), United were seeing their first flourishes of success with an FA Cup replay victory against Crystal Palace which led to a period of domination unlikely to be ever repeated in English Football

Around this time, Factory Records employee, front of house at the Hacienda, future Corrie and EastEnders Actress and Award-Winning Comedienne, Fiona Allen had the idea to use her Factory credentials to bring the worlds of football, music, and fashion together

How did you get involved with United?

I was a United fan, and a Bolton Wanders fan (sorry!) Tony Wilson was obviously a massive Man United fan and we'd often get a load of tickets to all the games, generally, in the stands but sometimes we'd get a box. I used to look at their merchandise, but it wasn’t really to our taste, it wasn't very Factory, so we come up with the idea to make something of our own. Merchandise even then was tied up in knots, but I managed, with some perseverance, by talking and pushing the people at United, explaining that it was going to be uber cool, it wasn't going to cross markets or probably even make any money, it was just a creative thing using the emblem and a statement. No one was going to 'get it' unless they were a music fan and a United fan, so people buying the other merchandise wouldn't want to touch it anyway

They were brilliant t-shirts

How many shirts were there?

Three in the end. There was one with the United emblem and Factory logo, another which had 'Are You Man U' plastered on the front and another with 'the Saint' which was a stick man one

Did you design them?

Yes, our graphic designer listened to the brief, designs were created and once decided on the T-shirt’s were sent off for print. We bought good T-shirt’s. They were really thick cotton. Cost a bit more but they were well made.

Everyone really loved them. 

You wouldn't be able to do anything like that now with the branding rights and kit sponsors etc

No, at the time merchandise wasn't as considered, I went round the shop and everything was shiny nylon, I didn't like it at all. It was big, but nowhere near as big as now. I do remember going back to Tony after a visit and saying, 'there was a really lovely old guy there with a cap on'... and that was Sir Matt Busby! I'm so uncool!

The T-shirts were very tastefully done, great quality, they were a really nice product, very subtle, other than the 'Are You Man U' one... it was a typical Factory thing to do

It was an idea I had, I went to Wilson and said, 'I think we should have a shop' ... he asked why and I said, 'because we've got loads of stuff to sell’.

I suggested we had a clothing label... it was going to be so smart, but we just didn't have the money. We all sat around with the designers, it was a mix of 'Paul Smith' and 'Comme Des Garçons' it would have been a very blokey thing, but I loved them...

While sadly the fashion label didn't come to be (although you could argue that the Donnelly Brothers filled this gap via Gio Goi) 

Fiona did take up a vacant slot at Afflecks Palace to open the 'Factory Shop' as an outlet for various pieces of merchandise and releases generated by the label, as well as those Factory/United T-shirts.

John Cooper of Cerysmatic had previously interviewed Fiona about ‘The Area’... that interview can be found at... https://factoryrecords.org/cerysmatic/sc5-absence-of-the-object-becomes-presence-you-can-feel.php