Fifer’s classic punk photos found after 38 years

Iconic images from the punk rock era are going on display at Fire Station Creative in Dunfermline next week.

The long-forgotten photos were captured within a seven month period in 1979 by live music fan David Hunter.

Forty years ago this summer he was travelling around the country watching gigs but did not develop his photos at the time.

David, from Dunfermline, said,  “I took my camera along to some of the gigs I attended, starting with Eddie and the Hot Rods, finishing with the Buzzcocks / Joy Division gig at Manchester Apollo.

“I went to a lot of gigs and didn’t always take my camera but these images are from the more New Wave bands that were emerging or already famous at the time.”

Incredibly, the negatives then lay hidden for 38 years as David explained. “I found the thin negatives difficult to print at the time, everything was done by guesswork. So, I put the negatives away and more or less forgot about them.

“I rediscovered those negatives in late 2017 when I was looking behind a wardrobe in my house. I dug out a film scanner and found that newer technology could achieve  what my early darkroom skills couldn’t. Then a friend suggested that I display them publicly.  

“The photos here are unique in as much as they haven’t been seen since I took them and feature some musicians no longer living.”

Although David photographed many other performers, he has chosen 18 new wave bands to form the basis of the exhibition. He has also included  colour shots from The Skids’ recent performance at the Royal Albert Hall in London. 

“The fact that I’ve got photographs of Ian Curtis, Ian Dury and Pete Shelley to share with the public is really important to me because these legends aren’t with us any more,” said David.

Many of the prints will be on sale and all of the proceeds will be donated to charity. 

‘SEVEN MONTHS IN 79’ runs from 8th to 18th August.