It is hard to believe today that this


seemingly mild-mannered septuagenarian was known for breaking boundaries back in the ‘70s and ‘80s, ridiculing some of the world’s most famous figures along the way. Having formed an unlikely partnership


with former US Hell’s Angel and rabble rouser Hunter S Thompson, the pair parodied the rich and famous and exposed social inequality across the globe, wielding their poison pens for almost 40 years. “It was our way of attempting to put right what was wrong in the world,” says Steadman. “The desire to shock is a way to get


back at authority.” Ralph Steadman was born on May 15,


1936 in Wallasey, on the Wirral – the ‘posh’ part of Merseyside. He completed his national service in


the RAF between 1954 and 1956 and it was here that he learnt technical drawing and signed up for a correspondence course in art. Having sold his first cartoon to the Manchester Evening Chronicle in 1956, flushed with success, Steadman moved to London, intent on making his fortune in Fleet Street. His dream to see his work published in Punch Magazine took three years to realise. His persistence paid off and throughout the 1960s, his work appeared in numerous high profile publications. But his big


break was a trip to the Kentucky Derby where he met up with Thompson and embarked on a career which was to see the pair sabotage


some of the world’s most-watched events. The pair were so drunk they could


barely see the race so, instead, set about recording their impressions of the crowd. Unwittingly, they had stumbled on a winning formula that was to be the cornerstone of their careers for almost 40 years.


Steadman readily admits the pair were


like “chalk and cheese” – but nonetheless next took up an invitation to report on the Americas Cup in September 1970 – despite Steadman protesting he ‘didn’t really like boats.’ Thompson set off distress flares, which caused complete mayhem. In May 1980, they sabotaged the Honolulu marathon and, when later


him at home in Loose on a number of occasions.


Indeed, the final stages of ‘For no Good Reason’ were shot in Steadman’s studio when Depp was filming in Chatham. So how did a northerner, who spent


25 years in London, end up in Kent? “I had re-married in 1972 and we had Sophie two years later. We decided to


The word Gonzo came from another US journalist Bill Cardoso who, upon seeing one of the pair’s early pieces declared it: “pure Gonzo!” Steadman isn’t sure if the term is derived from Cardoso’s surname or the Portuguese word for ‘hinge’.


“It’s my supposition that it meant we were totally unhinged!” he smiles.


asked why they committed such outrageous acts, the reply was: “For no good reason” – a phrase that was to be resurrected as an apt title for a documentary film about Steadman’s life, produced in conjunction with Johnny Depp, in 2012. One of their most memorable trips


was to cover ‘Rumble in the Jungle’ – the big fight in Zaire in 1974 between George Foreman and Mohammed Ali. However, Thompson sold the tickets to buy drugs, leaving Steadman to sketch the fight from what he could see on TV! While admitting he enjoyed a few


drinks on his forays with Thompson, Steadman steered well clear of drugs, apart from on one isolated occasion just before the Americas Cup. The experience so unnerved him, he vowed never to touch them again. Thompson’s zany persona made him an instant hit and celebrities were always dropping into his vast farmhouse kitchen. It was there that Steadman first met Johnny Depp, who has since visited


look for somewhere more rural,” he explains. An estate agent sent them the details


for Loose Court which they purchased in 1980 for £100,000. “I didn’t buy it to speculate – but I


guess I’ve done quite well!” he smiles. Later in the 1980s Ralph was


approached by the wine merchant, Oddbins, to produce its wine catalogues and travelled the vineyards of the world, capturing the scenes and characters he encountered. It inspired him to establish his own


vineyard in his garden in Loose – although he admits that only one palatable wine has ever come out of Chateau Steadman! Steadman still maintains a keen eye


for social injustice and takes a dim view of George Osborne’s ‘bedroom tax’ – so much so that when he mi-spelled his name on a recent cartoon, he merely crossed it out and wrote ‘oops’ – and turned the initial O into a percentage symbol!


Kent folk are getting a rare chance to see the work of this prolific artist in an exciting exhibition at the Maidstone Museum


from now until the end of February. From his first published cartoon, right up to the present day, the exhibition celebrates the career of the 78-year old artist,


famed for his work in Private Eye, Punch and Rolling Stone magazine, as well as his part in the anarchic ‘Gonzo’ journalism. It includes the wine drawings he produced for Oddbins, humanitarian pictures, savage political cartoons and some of the


many charming illustrations he has produced for children's books. The exhibition runs daily until Saturday 28 February 2015, with a nominal admission charge of £3 (£2 for concessions)


Images courtesy of Rikard Österlund, www.rikard.co.uk Mid Kent Living 7


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