Dear Readers,
Good afternoon and welcome to Off The Fence, a newsletter that knows its onions. We just want to say a big thank you again to everyone who donated to our Fighting Fund. The draw has been conducted, and the prizewinners are being contacted today – 40 of you will be receiving emails later today, alerting you to your great moment of victory.
With our bounty secured, we’re delighted to announce that Cormac Kehoe has joined as investigations correspondent. Cormac was the co-author on two of our biggest hits of recent vintage, a profile of Justin Welby and another on the proprietor of what was the Evening Standard, Lord Lebedev of Hampton and Siberia. He’s written cover stories for the Observer, and contributes to Private Eye and Radio 4’s The Naked Week alongside many more. You should follow him on social media here.
There will be marmalade-droppers landing in this mail-out and, of course, in the magazine, with each issue kicking off with hard-hitting news, which we’re very pleased about. Do remember that this mail-out is going to be juicier and juicier each week: do have a read of the first outing of the year here.
Some lovely photos of the mag have been rolling in. Two come with the addition of beautiful pets, which always pleases us: Pedro the Dog in Cornwall and an unnamed cat with an interest in print oral histories. Speaking of undisclosed locations, one issue appears to be venturing seriously off-grid, although one of its Bluesky compatriots seems to be off to more luxurious climes. Finally, one of our papped mags is right where it should be, on a newsstand (Rococo News, Notting Hill), waiting to be picked up by you. Do keep them coming in to editorial@the-fence.com.
If you prefer your mags delivered to your door, we’ve printed off another five tokens, so you can get a lovely discount if you use ‘PRINT15’ at the checkout. Be speedy, be quick.
And with that said, we can pour the gravy and tuck in. This week, we have advice for the Guardian, but we kick off with a barely believable story that crosses the tramlines of race, music and celebrity in London.
Snakes in the Grass
Yonas Girma, or ‘TY from the Wyld’ is not your standard wildlife presenter. In March last year, the 28-year-old appeared in a long segment on Sky News, where he promised to help young people ‘understand the severity of the planet right now’. With over 100,000 Instagram followers, and trips to the Colombian jungle, Girma seemed well-placed for a career in broadcasting, having spent his teenage years in and out of prison, a member of the Ladbroke Grove-based drill music collective, CGM, formerly known as 1011.
Yet three months later, Girma was charged with the murder of Stephen Morrison, who was found seriously wounded on an Essex petrol station forecourt on 23 June 2020 before dying in hospital. What happened that day has been the subject of a five-year police investigation into gang warfare in London and a £10,000 pledge from Crimestoppers.
The timeline of events that day is not totally clear. But it is alleged that Stephen Morrison appeared on the set of Digga D’s video for his single, Woi, which was being filmed in Essex. During filming, Morrison upset members of 1011, who chased him and stabbed him in a car park. Morrison drove away before collapsing from blood loss at the petrol station.
Morrison, who was known as SteveO, was renowned for living close to the edge. In and out of prison, he would film himself on Snapchat speeding down motorways with stacks of cash in his hand. Infamously, he filmed himself robbing £500,000 of cannabis from a rival stash house, a video that is still available online, but we would warn makes for shocking viewing.
SteveO’s fame relied partly on his exploits, but was largely driven by his family, who are local legends in Newham. His older brother, Jonathan, is a rapper, confusingly releasing music under the moniker ‘Morrison’, where he has enjoyed some chart success.
While there have been many white rappers in the British music scene over the years – Mike Skinner, Skinnyman and Tommy Evans among them – Morrison stood out as a white artist in drill music, as he relayed in this interview with the BBC.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XPXb1bfl6fc
While Morrison may have achieved some levels of success as an artist, Girma’s bandmate, Digga D – real name Rhys Herbert – has achieved levels of success some degrees beyond that. He has appeared at Glastonbury and his third mixtape, Noughty by Nature, topped the UK album charts in April 2022.
When Girma and Herbert were teenagers, they were the subject of a Criminal Behaviour Order, where they could only release music with the approval of the Metropolitan Police. Since then, Herbert has been recalled to prison, most recently for selling cannabis from his home outside Lincoln.
When Girma was charged with murder last year, no publication linked his budding broadcast career with his musical past. Instead, the focus was on Morrison’s eldest brother, Joey, who spent nine years inside after dating Lauren Goodger, one of the stars of the reality TV show The Only Way is Essex.
TOWIE, now in its 37th season, has long been renowned for its links to serious organised crime, a story that has not yet been fully told in its entirety. We are also yet to hear what transpired on that summer’s day more than five years ago – a provisional trial date has been set for 18 May, when we will bring you more on the story.
Lager Than Life
We are also happily witnessing the renaissance of pub-writing in British media. The Guardian,the Telegraph, the New Statesman and The Economist have taken a sudden and increasing interest in the ale house, and all at once too! We love coincidences. We will claim, however, that if you want the really good stuff, if you want a book as good as the imaginary pint of Guinness the most annoying man in Stoke Newington believes is waiting for him somewhere in the mysterious nation of Ireland, look no further than our fine, fine book. Mr Bezos is currently offering a kind reduction (presumably in a belated plea bargain with the Ghost of Christmas Future) or you can support our good friends at Backstory, and buy it straight from them. Forget the start of this paragraph. There is nowhere else to read about the pub.
Impossible City, Impossible Citaaaaaaaaayy
Ignore the Aussies at Broadsheet with their ‘40 best flit whoites in London’ listicles. Disregard the irritating American who does the ‘Subway Takes’ in London videos with Grace Campbell. Resist the colonial ambitions of Brooklyn’s Dream Baby Press.
The only London-focused tipsheet you need is our own Capital Letter, which had its first outing of 2026 last week and, if we’re to say so ourselves, is reading fabulously.
Kings Place Irregulars
There are many reasons to raise an eyebrow at the Guardian. From the constant tin-rattling that crowds out every article and renews its presence with every click, to the eye-wateringly ill-advised wording on their cod-ironic OUR COUNTRY IS FULL (Of People Who Can Heal Division) charity appeal.
But funding and charity was a secondary concern in the most acerbic takedown of the Graun this week, namely the thoughts of Frieze editor-in-chief Andrew Durbin, who took aim at art critic and star of OTFs passim, Jonathan ‘J-Bones’ Jones.
The offending article is, indeed, worth a read, quite possibly aloud if you have an Art History graduate within earshot. And while we could not possibly endorse such inclement language ourselves, we admit the term ‘bozo’ is criminally neglected in today’s commentary, and offer Andrew a hearty get-well-soon for his cold.
All My Friends Are Famous
David Gardner. Jonathan Wilkes. Fran ‘The Katekeeper’ Cutler. We have long been fascinated with the mysterious covenant of the celebrity-civilian friendship pact, so it’s a real treat to have How Long Gone’s Chris Black explore the rules that bind the famous and the non-famous together. It’s available to read here, for free.
Lord JawJaw
Last week saw another intimate and tasteful release from the plucky short film outfit, Kensington Palace. Completing their seasonal ‘Mother Nature’ series with the latest stop on the weatherometer – winter, for those counting at home – studio co-exec, Catherine, Princess of Wales, marked her 44th birthday with a paean to the healing power of nature, as she strolled through the leaf-sodden Berkshire countryside. Who was manning the camera? Well, who else do rich, out-of-touch institutions turn to for engaging short-form content? Will Warr, one half of the duo behind TopJaw. We remain on standby for the future King’s five best street eats around W8.
Ideas Are Good
A reminder that we’re open for pitches for Capital Letter and also the print magazine, both for the upcoming issue and its future iterations. In Issue 27, we’ve got space for one more feature – handy if you’ve got an amazing story down your back pocket. As ever, ‘insider’ pitches from misunderstood or misrepresented industries are especially welcome, as are pitches from first-time writers.
Stand on Our Words
Those of you who like readings and events with cold drinks will be pumped to know that we’re appearing on 5 February at St Bride’s in collaboration with Stack Magazines. Tickets are available and members of the editorial team will be in attendance, selling rare archive jewels. It will be a grand evening out. Stack have also launched an exciting new publication called The Mortar, which we heartily recommend you check out here.
In Case You Missed It
One DR Congo fan’s incredible tribute to Patrice Lumumba at AFCON.
An exciting new book from Sam Ritholtz, concerning justice in the queer search for refuge.
A fantastic old news read from Richard Dimbleby, featuring the news coming in over a rotary phone.
An oral history of a bizarre Folgers coffee ad from 2009.
An interesting take on the invasion of Venezuela: it’s all for the meme(coin).
A man has been painting the US states in the manner of 19th century livestock oil paintings. Here’s Utah.
And Finally
Let’s close with some magic, and a hearty endorsement of Messrs Penn Jillette and the mononymic Teller. They have been in the big time for years – they are the longest running headline act in Vegas history – and are entering a respectable, and still remarkably successful, twilight. Teller is now 77 and is still getting out there night after night. They are both odd characters too: Teller was a Latin teacher well into his forties, and Penn was a giant – 6’ 7’’ and of significant circumference – layabout who went to clown college and became a juggler. You wouldn’t have picked them as showbiz stars, nor the latter to have been in a long-term relationship with Debbie Harry, but there you go.
But probably, they deserve their spot. Even if you find Penn’s voice/shtick somewhat tiresome, they are really good at what they do. Check out this side-by-side of their famous nail gun trick to see what we mean.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=k3mJ-kF0pcM
They’ve done lots of great stuff over a long career, and their magicians’ talent show is high-quality late-night watching fodder. Have a watch of these.
What we recommend to you today though is their ‘Magic Mystery Tour’ series: three documentaries made in Egypt, China and India. There’s a slight whiff of early 2000s soft cultural racism to some of the opening graphics, but the idea and content is solid. The duo go to each of these discovering their magic traditions through the performers still doing them. Lots of them are brilliant and some of them are very, very strange. We pack you off to Cairo with all our best.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bWaE5vROvs0
As the light in Soho fades and this winter evening once more claims its iron price, it’s time to parcel out goodbyes. If you’re still waiting on your mag, contact support@the-fence.com and we will ensure the soft pat of paper upon your doormat with haste. The first man ever imprisoned in the Tower of London, Ranulf Flambard, became the first to escape it one year later. Until next week.
All the best,
TF