To mark the release of Jonny Hannah's new double side screen print I got Monsieur McHulot, one of Jonny's biggest fans, to conduct an interview over a pint.
So Jonny, do you still do the drawing?
My uncles and aunts used to always ask this, like it was some kind of negative affliction, but it was the only thing they knew about me. You could see them thinking ...he’s wasting his time, it’s just a phase...he’ll grow up and get proper job eventually...But no, I’m still doing the drawing. Everyday. Some evenings too. Drawing keeps me sane. It means I don’t go around the streets screaming at people about TOWIE or Love Island... I realise this may make me sound like a terrible snob, but that’s because I am. Cheap shoes are one of the curses of the nation. Alongside plastic burgers and the need to stuff them in, on moulded plastic chairs...enjoy trout once a week...
Two prints for the price of one?
Lp’s have two sides. And singles and ten-inchers. So me and the Penfold Press Diagheliv, Danny the Buggster, thought what the hell, let’s do the same for private press publishing The Stooges did for garage punk when they released Now I Wanna be your Dog & 1969 as a double A-side. Only in two colours, with the Penfold Pirate and the Darktown Diva. They go off on a jaunt together, and in the nick of time, return to the page, ready for you to buy....makes perfect sense to me.
What are driving these days?
A Raleigh pioneer. Elegant, 21 gears, smooth... It happily gets me down the Lee Lane and back home via the Sombre Ville docks in time for my morning cup of tea. We used to have the Turbo Taxi, as driven by the queen of Darktown, but the good folks at Solent University bought that in good faith and certainly weren’t disappointed. That went from A to B & back again in 26 Darktown seconds. Personally I don’t drive. Public transport is largely for me...apart from when it’s enjoyment is somewhat marred by… the public.
How long did it take?
How long is a piece of string? I have a piece of string in Darktown that’s 12.5 cms...but this print was even quicker to draw. Ink, brush, drafting film. Bish, bash, bosh. Mussels, wine, baguette. Don’t hang around is my motto. Just get on with it. Think once, draw once. And if it’s wrong, do it again, til it’s right. Better mugs than smug.
How much money do you make?
Enough...sometimes. Other times I’m a bit skint. That’s how we rock and sometimes roll in Darktown. If I’d wanted to be rich I would have become a champion darts player. Step up to the ochee & sing Jocky Wilson Said. But the drawing is so much fun. I have bread, & often butter…job’s a good ‘un.
Do you take a drink yourself?
Craft ale. Red Wine. Lager. Muscadet...never whisky these days, despite playing the Alabama Sing on a regular basis...but more cycling is needed and less booze as I approach the late August of my years... and some controlled breathing in between half pints of Big Wave and heavy porters...