Few people can claim to have been the spearhead and true instigator of a scene. The birth of Punk is usually attriibuted to Malcom McLaren and the Sex Pistols, but there is a person who was the true underground voice of punk; Mark Perry of ATV. The young Mark Perry was working as a bank clerk in 1976 when a Ramones gig inspired him to start a fanzine called Sniffin Glue.( One of the collaborators on the fanzine was Danny Baker, now known as a TV presenter and about as divorced from his punk roots as you could get.) Sniffin Glue became the UK punk scene’s bible and Mark Perry quit his job and did numerous TV and radio appearances acting as an articulate spokesperson for the emerging new phenomenon. Early in 1977, Mark Perry hooked up with a young Miles Copeland to form Step Forward Records, releasing tracks by Fall, Sham 69, Chelsea and the Cortinas amongst others. Mark was also involved with Miles’ other labels, Deptford Fun City Records and Illegal Records. The first incarnation of ATV was born shortly after, with Mark Perry on vocals and guitar. They released their first single, ‘Love Lies Limp’, as a free flexi disc given away with the last issue of Sniffin’ Glue (no.12), August 1977. Mark with Mick Jones

From then on, the various line-ups of ATV read like a Who’s Who of musicians who would become influential or famous during the next decade; collaborators included Joolz Holland, Genesis P Orridge, and Jammo and Dobbo (World Domination Enterprises). Following a brief unsuccessful flirtation with EMI, ATV released their first proper single, ‘How Much Longer’/'You Bastard’, on Deptford Fun City Records. Their first album was released in May 1978. Ever at the forefront of innovation, Mark quickly became disillusioned with the limitations of the punk scene. He can be heard on a live recording berating the audience for their thug-like behaviour and disinterest in the ideological messages that he and other intelligent punk front-men were trying to convey. This led him to mutate ATV into the Good Missionaries, a more experimental project influenced by the nascent industrial scene.

From then on, Mark sporadically made departures from, and returns to the music industry, always somehow managing to be involved with the major faces of the future, like a young Alan McGee. In 1996, Mark got back into writing by providing the text for Erica Echenberg’s photo book, ‘And God Created Punk’, which was published by Virgin. In 2000, Sanctuary Books published ‘Sniffin’ Glue: The Essential Punk Accessory’, which compiles all the issues of Mark’s fanzine along with lots of new writing and photos.