Orwell’s 1984 is 2007. Except ‘Big Brother’ is a reality television show. Public apathy is complicit in a ‘surveillance society’ watched by a State that is fractured, dysfunctional and paranoid. Omega Place is a place of sanctuary hidden from the cameras’ gaze. It is also the point of resistance for the few. Tuesday 25th July, Gosforth, Newcastle Upon Tyne, Paul Hendry has had enough and left home. He cannot go back and unsay what he said to his step-dad, Mike Tennant, and his Dad will not take him in: he is besotted with Cheryl, a 23 or something year old, blonde. On Wednesday 26th July, somewhere, he learns about Omega Place and wants in. The chances of returning home get more remote however, as he disappears into the shadows of London city.

Omega Place is a political thriller written from the front-line of direct activism. It is a murky world where individuals’ identities are disguised by pseudonyms and their motivations clouded in autobiographical lies that create an undertone of mistrust. This mistrust is cleverly paralleled in MI5’s investigation into Omega Place as they seek to plug a leak of classified information. In the story, Paul Hendry the main character, seems to be an instrument of truth. It is his naivety that helps to disclose the truth about his fellow activists. It is his picture that is then caught on CCTV camera and leads the MI5 investigators to Omega Place. The book also asks poignant questions about civil liberties and CCTV. Graham Marks uses the activists to ask readers to think about the following questions. Why are people not protesting about CCTV? Who is controlling the CCTV? Who is making the money from CCTV? Who watches the watchmen? At the same time MI5 are using the covert surveillance techniques that Graham Marks appears to warn the reader about to close in on Omega Place. In the words of Paul Hendry, “It was like they were terrorists ...” (p.237).

Omega Place is a challenging and topical book for readers aged 14 plus, who are perhaps becoming the subject of more and more CCTV on buses, in shopping parades and in town centres. It will certainly spark discussion about CCTV and whether the amount of CCTV in Britain is justified.

2007-12-27