SOPHIE Film Plays At The Hole Gig 02 Academy, Brixton

Many of you will be aware of the special place that Illamasqua has in the heart of Courtney Love; not only was she a huge influence in the early days of the brand, but her love for the products and Illamasqua philosophy is something she identifies with. Human fundamentalism; the right to live and let live, the right to self expression and the right to be who you want to be, regardless of who you are 'told' to be.

The S.O.P.H.I.E foundation and Illamasqua work in synch to raise awareness of the brutal murder of Sophie Lancaster - who was killed for being part of the Goth subculture by a group of narrow minded, ignorant thugs in 2007.


Courtney is rarely seen without her S.O.P.H.I.E wrist band [click here to purchase if you haven't yet got yours!] and specifically requested that the film be shown prior to her performance at the O2 Academy in Brixton yesterday.

My colleague Rosa and I went down to the venue at 6pm yesterday to run the video from my laptop and do some last minute sound checks and video checks. The staff that were setting up the gig all stopped and watched the film as it played it's practice run and it was a touching moment.

Having never been backstage [as in literally on the stage...] I was quite in awe of all the wires everywhere and was terrified of accidentally pulling out the wrong lead after the video had played!

The doors opened at 7pm [at which point Rosa and I ran out to grab a bag of Quavers for dinner - healthy, healthy!] and the Academy was soon packed out.

The film played after the supporting act had performed and the crowd reaction was great as the Academy went quiet to observe the haunting animation that documents the last moments of Sophie's short life.