PigPen tribute for Gabriel

PigPen held it’s first show in 9 months at the end of February in memory of it’s co-founder Gabriel Hardisty-Miller who passed away last year. It was held at the spiritual home of PigPen- The Macbeth, Hoxton. If you’ve been to The Macbeth and you’ve been to PigPen, you’ll know why.

Gabriel was the brilliant taste-maker and curator behind PigPen. He was a non-verbal young man with autism. During the four years of PigPen he chose a plethora of electric and excellent acts using his yes/no comm device. He was a tireless campaigner with the National Autistic Society, a role model for raising awareness and encouraging people to think differently about disability.

It was only fitting that all profits form the PigPen Memorial Show went to the NAS.

The proceedings kicked off with a poignant procession from Gabriel’s estate down the road to the Macbeth. The procession was part of the Dron Festival at Hundred Years Gallery, Gabriel’s famous PigPen throne (that he always sat on during the shows) was decorated with garlands of flowers and lights and processed with bell ringing family and friends.



From here the marathon of performances began. The first half of the show saw PP stalwarts Eddie Halliday, Robyn Steward, Bram Arnold, Captain Spoon and Charlotte Young take to the stage for acoustic and performance art sessions. Then followed a beautiful tribute to Gabriel by jazz singer Sarah Niles with Rob Grundel on keys. For anyone that remembers the Roy Davies Jr, Peven Everett dance floor classic- ‘Gabriel’, Sarah did the most moving version of this.

As ever, DJ’s Brian Turner (AKA Bram Arnold) and Good Grief kept the crowd bubbling in between acts with a trademark blend of soul, indie pop and odd music from their varied record collection. The vegan chilli ran out within the first couple of hours and there was the latest edition of ‘Snizz Comics’ by myself.

Christine Binnie (with help from Tom Madders of the NAS) ran the PigePen Art Raffle with gusto. With such a fantastic array of prizes it’s not surprising this alone raised £250. We had artworks by Robyn Steward, Lewis Heriz, Martin Kingdom and myself, Dean Atta’s debut poetry collection plus a £150 meal voucher at a fancy restaurant up for grabs. Needless to say, all prizes went to very happy winners!

The first half of the show ended with one of South London’s finest voices and began with the same- Mr Joel Culpepper (one to watch people), following him PigPen legend with a capital L- Tim Ten Yen, poet extraordinaire Dean Atta and despite motor troubles- Honkeyfinger with their trippy, sweltering blend of psych -swamp rock. How could we possibly fit in anymore you say? Well we did.

United Vibrations opened their set with their beautiful and moving piece ‘Don’t Be Sad’ and continued to uplift us all in a way only UV could. Finally DJ/Producer Noel Eeteks (who grew up in the house next door to Gabriel) took the helm on the ones and twos and saw PigPen well into the night.

Not only was this a very special night that managed to raise £520.60 in Gabriel’s name, it was also a show that saw Gabriel very much present. The acts he chose and nights he curated were an extension of his unique personality, it felt as though the PigPen Memorial Show was as close as we could get to having him with us again. It was a blast from an entertainment point of view, also spiritual to feel his presence again. A huge thanks to all involved- far too many to mention.

On a final note, many people have been asking me on the future of PigPen and Snizz comics, all I can say for now is watch this space….

Ben Connors

In memory of Gabriel

A few weeks back, we received the incredibly sad news that Gabriel Hardisty-Miller, an ambassador and long-term campaigner for the NAS, had died.

Our official tribute can be found here on the NAS website, alongside a beautiful poem written for Gabriel's memorial service. We were also kindly invited to pay tribute to Gabriel at his memorial. Here is what we said:

I'd like to start by thanking Gabriel, for everything he has done as an incredible campaigner and ambassador for our charity.

One of the great challenges facing our charity lies in fighting public ignorance and challenging preconceptions and prejudices about what people with autism can and can’t do – what they can and can’t achieve. What Gabriel did in his short life to help us to do exactly that cannot be overstated.

One of the great joys about Gabriel was in watching him meet and interact with people for the first time. A young autistic guy, in a wheelchair, sometimes snizzing, communicating unconventionally with his yes/no device, people often didn’t know what to make of him at first… yet, those who did meet him quickly found out he’s sharp as hell, funny, quick-witted, sociable, creative, stylish, ambitious, and self-assured. By simply being himself and allowing others to get to know him, he was able to challenge attitudes and presumptions about people with autism more effectively and succinctly than I or my colleagues ever will be able to.

Gabriel, along with his great friend Ben, have been peerless ambassadors for the NAS over the past few years. They’ve made hilarious videos and blogged for us, spoken at events and meetings, and met some of the most senior politicians. Gabriel’s story was recently told in our 50^th anniversary report, published just a couple of months ago. And he has also featured in the most over-used photo the NAS has ever taken, celebrating the passing of the Autism Act, which he campaigned for, on Waterloo Bridge. 

I remember one particular meeting when Gabriel was on especially good form. He and Ben were being filmed interviewing then Minister for Care Services, Phil Hope. After showing him the latest Snizz Up comic and asking him some searching questions, Mr Hope – a well-meaning but rather goofy MP – at first responded with a long and incredibly boring monologue about his social care reform plans. A visibly unimpressed Gabriel, who was making everyone laugh with a few brilliantly timed “No”s on his device, had Phil a bit rattled. So, in a bizarre panic, the minister tried to win Gabriel back over by reaching for some juggling balls, and having a juggle. As many of you will know, Gabriel absolutely hates juggling. So the Minister’s well-intentioned distraction technique was met with a prolonged and multiple bashing of the “NO!” button.. Mr Hope will have been lobbied countless times that year, but I doubt any of his other meetings will have left the impression on him that Gabriel did that day.

When we passed a card around the office when we found out the incredibly sad news that Gabriel had died, I think almost every comment from staff included the word ‘inspiring’. It can be an overused word, but those of us who work at the NAS know how true a word it is to describe Gabriel. At the NAS we hear from people with autism, from parents and family members, every day. Often they are worried about what the future holds for them or their children; sometimes nervous about what kind of life they will have – what they will achieve.

Gabriel, with the support of Mary, Ben and the rest of his entourage, has inspired people to think bigger about what they can do with their lives. Inspired people to get creative. To do more. Not to be told what they can and can’t do. To live life to the full.

Personally, I’ll remember Gabriel with a big smile – as someone with a great sense of fun, who could curate a damn good gig night, whose dress-sense I envied, who could down a half pint of shandy with a straw in 6 seconds flat, and whose joyous snizzing would put a grin on the face of whole room of people.

Losing Gabriel is of course an unspeakably sad loss to his family and his many friends. And the autism community will mourn the loss of a great champion, campaigner and role-model for others with autism. But through what he has achieved – and for a 25 year-old, let’s never lose sight of just how much that is – his legacy will be an enormous one: a non-verbal young man who spoke for thousands.

Ambassadors help us celebrate 50th Birthday

To mark our 50th birthday, we commissioned the largest ever survey into autism, in order to show what life is like in the UK for people affected by the condition. Over 8,000 people, including many ambassadors and champions from the AAN, were among those who took part.

You can now read the full report, ‘The Way We Are: Autism in 2012’, online. 

Some of it does make for difficult reading but for all the troubling experiences there are also many stories of hope and courage.

Covering the wide range of autism experiences from diagnosis and employment to school and independent living, the report shows that whilst there have been enormous strides in autism awareness since the NAS started life in 1962, there is still work to do.

Ambassadors Sam, Gabriel and Ben were among many Ambassadors interviewed for the report. 

We were also really grateful to Daniel, Jennifer, Basil and Mark who were involved in a focus group many months ago to help with messaging for the 50th

Many, many thanks to all who took part in the research and got in touch to share their experiences with us.