Persons Unknown (1980)

Overview

Documentary by Gordon Carr on the so-called 'Persons Unknown' case in December 1979 in which members of the Anarchist Black Cross were tried at the Old Bailey on a charge of 'conspiring with persons unknown, at places unknown to cause explosions'. A concise look at the 'Persons Unknown' trial. A fascinating snapshot of history in the making, The Persons Unknown pieces together an intricate web of radicals at a thriller’s pace. Carr crisply relates the correspondences of a Black Cross secretary and imprisoned Irish republican and reaches all the way back to the Paris Commune to discuss the secretive, internationalist elements of radical leftist politics. Where mainstream media tends to become hysterical where anarchism is concerned, The Persons Unknown remains keenly factual throughout. Among those featured in the film are Stuart Christie, publisher of the "Black Flag" newsletter and former would-be Generalisimo Francisco Franco assassin, and the anarcho-punk group Crass.