John Webster (orator)
John Webster (December 1913 – 15 December 2008), also known as Mo(u)hammed Jon Webster, or more simply just Webster, was a soap box orator and public speaker, primarily at
Early life
Webster was born in London in December 1913. His father battled alcoholism and his mother was in the
Ideological development and worldview
Webster, by his own confession, navigated the whole ideological spectrum from the centre to the far left, then over to the extreme right and back to the middle again. A communist rabble-rouser in the 1940s, he went on to subscribe to the anti-semitic views of the British fascists,[4] until he was approached by Oswald Mosley who told him – inter alia – in 1947 "we can use the Jews."[citation needed] This prompted Webster to reassess his own ideas and he subsequently wrote a letter of apology to the Jewish Chronicle expressing regret about his former views.[5][citation needed]
Webster's use of the name Mohammed came from when, having received the honorary title of Sheikh from the Hazhar University of Cairo while married to a Jewish woman,[citation needed] he embraced Islam in order to marry a Muslim one. This marriage to a Persian woman in 1963 was as brief as his previous marriage. He told journalist Linda Hornsey that he had been working for the Ministry of Information when he suggested on a television programme, amongst other things, that the Arabs should make peace with Israel: "After that I made a quick but quiet retreat from the Middle East".[6] He also told her that he had once been a "card-carrying member" of the Communist party, then a fascist, and a mystical Moslem of Sufistic leaning before evolving into a "simple" humanist. He had come to see adherence to doctrinaire creeds as dangerous, and planned to set up an "ecological workshop on religion", where anyone willing could come to have their religion "tested".[7]
Oratorical style and technique
Webster claimed that his purpose in orating was to inspire people to think for themselves. His method was one of deliberate provocation, conscious deployment of irony, "verbal cartooning" and a razor-edged wit attested to by all commentators of the time. "I have never yet heard Webster bettered by a heckler, nor stuck for some kind of answer to a question."[8] "It could be argued that the greatest demagogue in Australia today is a 53-year-old Cockney named Muhammed (sic) John Webster" wrote Sydney Morning Herald journalist Gavin Souter in 1966, "There is no one in the Australian Parliaments to match him, and in Sydney's Domain he has no real competition."[9] "Webster insults, abuses and ridicules his audience. The response, in laughter and applause, would be the envy of any television comic" observed Jim Oram.[10] A video of John speaking in Sydney's Domain can be found in the Youtube video, 'Webster's Domain'.
Personal life
Though he was married twice he had a number of gay relationships.[11]
Passing and legacy
The late Reverend
References
- ^ John Edwards: The National Times, Dec 27, 1971 p. 5
- ^ Nene King: The Sydney Morning Herald, June 28, 1971 p. 8
- ^ 'An Interesting Life, Lived to the Full' in On Fire Magazine, 2008
- ^ "A Reappraisal of Muhammed John Webster".
- ^ Richard Mckenzie: Sunday Telegraph, July 20, 1969 p. 37
- ^ Linda Hornsey: The Weekender, May 25, 1974 p. 27
- ^ Linda Hornsey: "Now, get on your Marx" The Advocate, May 17, 1974 p. 3
- ^ "The Society Spy", Daily Telegraph, April 23, 1968 p. 26
- ^ Gavin Souter: "Sydney's Muhammed is also the Greatest", The Sydney Morning Herald, July 21, 1966 p. 6
- ^ Jim Oram: "Meet the Sunday spruikers", PIX Magazine, August 31, 1968 p. 30
- ^ Stevens, Tony (17 December 2008). "Anarchistic demagogue has the last word". Sydney Morning Herald. Retrieved 15 September 2011.
...Webster was gay and had several male partners after coming to Australia in the 1950s...
- YouTube
- YouTube
External links
- Webster Dies – ABC News 16-12-08 on YouTube.
- His ashes scattered in Sydneys Domain – ABC News on YouTube
- Obituary:Sydney Morning Herald 17-12-08 http://www.smh.com.au/news/national/demagogue-has-last-word/2008/12/16/1229189622994.html
- The Speakers, Heathcote Williams: http://trove.nla.gov.au/work/17825728?selectedversion=NBD8706206