One of the foremost catalysts for Manchester's vastly influential post-punk and electronic scenes, Tony Wilson died of kidney cancer August 10. He was 57.
As the owner of Factory Records and one of the proprietors of the Haçienda club, Wilson helped to nurture the careers of important bands like Joy Division, New Order, A Certain Ratio, Durutti Column, Happy Mondays and Section 25.
In an interview with the BBC, former Factory employee Phil Saxe said, “[Wilson] was a visionary in that he helped bands, who otherwise wouldn't have made it, who were a bit out of the ordinary.”
A garrulous, risk-taking entrepreneur, Wilson served as the inspiration for the protagonist (played by Steve Coogan) of the 2002 film 24 Hour Party People, a quasi-factual depiction of Factory Records' role in Manchester's seminal music scene.
Below is a six-minute interview with Wilson.
