Toby Shone – Dark Nights

PDF: Imprisoned for Psychedelics – Interview with Toby Shone (UK)

Posted on 2025/12/22 - 2025/12/22 by darknights

PDF: Imprisoned for Psychedelics: Interview with Toby Shone

An interview recorded illegally by telephone between Toby Shone and the leading occultist and psychonaut Julian Vayne, with added vibes from chaos magickian Peter J Carroll. Recorded and transcribed when Toby was imprisoned in G4S Parc, South Wales, on 23hr lockdown.

The introduction is the transcript of a talk from prison that Toby gave at Ozora psy-trance festival in 2022. The interview was recorded by Julian in 2022, with the result that Jules was removed from Toby’s phone list on grounds of “national security” and “conveying an illegal recording outside of the prison”. This interview was thought so dangerous by the British regime that they tried to suppress it, silence Toby and stop solidarity to his case.

This pamphlet has been available in print format since 2023 and is now being released online.

No gods, no masters!

Designed, printed and distributed by the Anti-Copyright Network 2025

Spoken contribution by Toby Shone for the Tattoo Circus, Bristol, 2025

Posted on 2025/12/01 - 2025/12/01 by darknights

This is from a talk by Toby at the Bristol Tattoo Circus, which took place a few weeks ago at a squatted venue in the city. After the talks and workshops there was bands, DJs and a benefit party. Free the prisoners!

Hello everyone,

Ok, we’re at Tattoo circus, my name is Toby Shone, I’m an ex-prisoner and anarchist. Tattoo Circus was started around 20 years ago in Italy as a way to fund anarchist prisoner solidarity campaigns.

I want to thank the organisers for inviting me here to speak, it’s very important as a released political prisoner to be able to come back into the community. Especially after living for a considerable amount of time distanced from the social movement. So overall, I want to communicate any lessons that can be told. Some of you already know me, so I’ll try not to bore you with what you know already, but for others I’ll just re-cap the case that I was involved in, then I’m going to simply give some anecdotes about my time in prison, and then speak about solidarity briefly.

I was arrested in the November 2020 Operation Adream case, and I was imprisoned for three years in conditions of solitary confinement and monitored for a year in line with UK-wide anti-terrorist restrictions by the National Security Division and Counter-Terror Police. From the evidence I’ve seen, it indicates that there is an ongoing investigation by the anti-terrorist units into the social movement in the South West region, and we can conclude that it’s also taking place across the country. I think it is certainly not for us to have to justify our harmlessness, but to really think about what it is going to take, long-term, for the type of social changes we’re aiming for. Continue reading “Spoken contribution by Toby Shone for the Tattoo Circus, Bristol, 2025” →

UK: Wildfires will begin: An interview with Toby Shone

Posted on 2025/09/18 - 2025/09/18 by darknights

1st June 2025

The former political prisoner talks about his anarchism, the 325 project and resisting the physical and mental jails that surround us all.

~ Interviewed by Elizabeth Vasileva ~

You recently spoke about the importance of solidarity and connections, between prisoners and with their supporters on the outside. Can you give us any examples of this kind of mutual or collective empowerment in the pushback against prison’s continuous repression?

Shortly before I was released in 2024, violent cell searches by a tactical unit of prison guards known as the National Search Team took place on C-wing of HMP Garth in Leyland, where I was being held. The NST took over the wing with dogs and riot gear. Cell by cell the raid took place with a lot of pointlessly brutal drama. In ones and twos we were handcuffed and placed in a locked wet room. Some prisoners were beaten, abused and a lot of our things were trashed. Some of the guys fought back, flooded their cells, banged their doors or played music really loud as a protest. The next day the whole wing refused to go back into their cells after the early morning unlock hour. As a cacophonous and unruly mob we demanded the immediate return of seized items, the replacement of damaged items and denounced the violence. This lead to the screws backing off. There was nothing at that moment that the screws could do because we all acted together, and without any leader. At the end of the lunch period, the stop-out ended.

Similar things happened in my experience when one of the prisoners was killed by depression or hopelessness. Demonstrations outside the prisons where I was held also were a strong experience that had an impact upon the guards and us. Especially when the fireworks exploded across the night sky and the comrades outside were militant. I found other prisoners to be generally supportive of each other in the roughly anti-system and criminal environment. Whenever I was transferred or moved to a different cell, the local guys usually would come to check if I was okay and if I needed anything. I helped other guys with their legal cases or prison admin, and tried to find common points of interest and subversion. We’d try to back each other, and if I had some problem, the guys would be voicing their demands too. There’s refusals and kick-offs being made in most of the prisons around the country each day about conditions and treatment. I lost track of the number of prison labour refusals and walkouts I heard about when I was inside, they are very common, as is getting on the netting that separates the landings to protest about treatment and poor conditions.

When I heard that comrades outside were carrying out revolutionary solidarity, that is when I felt our power inside the prison, I can say. From hearing about the direct actions with the Adream case in Chile, France, Italy, Indonesia and around the world, to the phone-call interventions that I was able to make from inside prison to meetings of comrades on the outside, I could feel the warmth from the comrades. Also knowing about the censored letters and books, the solidarity funds and benefit events, it was great.

For readers who don’t know 325, what can you tell us about the project and its content?

325 is an anarchist network of counter-information and direct action. In November 2020, Dutch counter-terrorist police took down the nostate.net server which held the 325 website, upon request from their German and English colleagues. The website was a long-running information clearing house of general news, reports, communiques, publications, event listings, etc. Mostly the website covered Europe, Latin America and South East Asia. 325 is also a hard-copy magazine which comes out on an intermittent basis, and dozens of publications have been published by the collective, including the newsletter Dark Nights, which has it’s own website.

Over the years, 325 has participated in an evolving participatory international network based on direct action and the support of prisoners, as well as providing space for various tendencies of anarchist, anti-capitalist and anti-civilisation groups. In recent issues of the magazine the analysis has shifted slightly to the profound new industrial changes in production and technology, such as artificial intelligence, life sciences and automation. The archive of the 325 site is an important document of social and armed revolutionary struggle over a number of years in Europe and internationally. The project started in 2003 and continues. Continue reading “UK: Wildfires will begin: An interview with Toby Shone” →

Bristol: Solidarity with Anarchist Prisoners at BASE (UK)

Posted on 2025/09/02 by darknights

31/8/25: Successful night at BASE Bristol for International Week of Solidarity with Anarchist Prisoners. £150 raised for the Anarchist Defence Fund, everyone fed with tasty vegan dinner and apple and plum crumble and custard. Talk given by exprisoner Toby Shone. Until all are free! ‍☠️

UK: Schedule 7 – Anarchist comrade Toby Shone stopped at Gatwick Airport after Ozora rave

Posted on 2025/08/18 - 2025/08/20 by darknights

Schedule 7: Anarchist comrade Toby Shone stopped at Gatwick Airport after Ozora rave

“I don’t know”, “I can’t remember”

On the 5th August 2025 Toby was returning from the legendary Ozora psytrance festival in Hungary where he’d been partying for 12 days and invited to speak about social shifts, the war on drugs and his experience of being in prison for psychedelics. At the UK passport checkpoint he was approached by an Officer William NORMAN #39947, accompanied by a larger group of basement dwelling plain clothes bureaucrats of the Counter-Terror Police South East. Toby was detained against his will for several hours and subjected to weak verbal threats and physical intimidation. Toby was searched and his phone and MP3 player were seized by the cops.

Officer NORMAN unsuccessfully attempted to covertly record Toby’s legal call with his lawyer and it was clear that the police were upset that he’d been able to leave the country. According to NORMAN their intent was the continuation of the open investigation and harassment of our anarchist comrade on the first occasion that he re-entered a UK border, which granted them special powers of interrogation and seizure. Toby was later released without any arrest or charge.

This incident comes as the last collective house from Operation Adream was attacked and raided by violent local thugs and an armed response unit of Gloucestershire police in late March. One comrade was arrested and released under investigation and another comrade was identified at gunpoint, as they had issued an arrest warrant for Toby for Grievous Bodily Harm, which was related to self-defense to the attack on the collective house in Forest of Dean. An armed police team with dogs and torches searched for Toby in the surrounding forest and issued threats that Toby was a “danger to police”, which is only to justify their use of violence. This marker against Toby was set by agents of the National Security Division and Counter-Terror Police, after a few of them got their feelings hurt.

At no point was Toby asked about any of this, nor about anything related to “extremism”, or “terrorism”. Every State, authoritarian or democratic, calls its opponents “terrorists”, “extremists”. In a world of modern televised genocide these terms have completely lost any meaning. The time for revolutionary change is now. Fuck Schedule 7! Fuck the CTPSE!

16/08/2025

Forest Case solidarity group

Letter writing + Talk with Toby Shone for the International Week of Solidarity with Anarchist Prisoners – BASE Bristol (UK)

Posted on 2025/08/07 by darknights

Letter writing + Talk with Toby Shone for the International Week of Solidarity with Anarchist Prisoners – BASE Bristol

Sunday 31 August 2025

BASE Bristol – Easton – 14 Robertson Road – BS5 6JY

18:00 Food
19:00 Talk

The International Week of Solidarity with Anarchist Prisoners[1] takes place every year between 23-30 August to commemorate the murders of the Haymarket martyrs in Chicago, 1886, who died for freedom, labour rights and dignity.

This year at BASE we’re holding a fund-raising dinner and letter writing event along with a talk by ex-prisoner Toby Shone, who will speak about the international week, the background of Operation Adream*, his own prison experience and the importance of solidarity, as well as the continual need for revolutionary action.

Two years since Toby was snatched[2] for attending an International Week of Solidarity with Anarchist Prisoners letter writing event at BASE, he’s back. The Counter Terror Police South-West and the National Security Division couldn’t keep our comrade out of our arms for long.

Too many anarchists and activists remain behind bars. Everywhere the authorities are cracking down against dissent and protest. When freedom is outlawed, only outlaws will be free! Come and sign cards, write
letters and learn about the anti-prison struggle and the cases of imprisoned anarchists.

Don’t forget about those in prison and if you want to take part, you can show up for a solidarity banner photograph (bring a mask!) after the event, so we can send it to prisoners. Vegan food. Fundraiser for the Anarchist Defence Fund[3].

If Solidarity is Terrorism Then We Are All Terrorists!

Fire to the Prisons!

[1] https://solidarity.international/
[2] https://thebristolcable.org/2024/08/bristol-anarchist-community-centre-under-surveillance-counter-terror-police-anarchist-locked-up-for-visiting/
[3] https://afund.info/

* A four year shambolic political policing operation lead by DCI Sion MARGRIE of the Counter Terror Police South-East against 325.nostate.net.

https://darknights.noblogs.org/?s=toby+shone
https://actforfree.noblogs.org/?s=toby+shone
https://freedomnews.org.uk/?s=toby+shone

https://basebristol.org/
30 years of BASE

Brighton, UK: ABC Brighton presents – A talk by former anarchist prisoner Toby Shone on Operation Adream & UK prison conditions

Posted on 2025/01/29 - 2025/01/29 by darknights

ABC Brighton talk with Toby Shone, March 7th

19:00, March 7th, 2025, The Cowley Club, Brighton, UK
Members and guests only – cowley.club

ABC Brighton presents

A talk by former anarchist prisoner Toby Shone on Operation Adream & UK prison conditions

Operation Adream: An attempt by the security services to criminalise anarchist praxis and anarchists themselves by equating anarchism with terrorism and using the judicial imposition of “Serious Organised Crime Prevention Orders” on individual anarchists to hamper their meeting and organising.

Anarchist Toby Shone Free in the Forest!

Posted on 2024/11/13 - 2024/11/18 by darknights

Toby Shone walked free from HMP Garth on Monday 11th November after serving his entire sentence. He was released at 8:30am and picked up by friends and comrades. He has no licence conditions or restrictions.

The State made a few last desperate attempts to exercise their spite and misery at losing Toby, including removing another close comrade from his phone list four days before his release, but it was to no avail.

Nothing is over, everything continues.

UK: “Unsurprising Fact” – Letter By Anarchist Prisoner Toby Shone + Fallout From Publication Of “Unsurprising Fact”

Posted on 2024/11/02 - 2024/11/03 by darknights

“Unsurprising Fact” – Letter By Anarchist Prisoner Toby Shone

17/10/24

Some things don’t surprise us and for sure the recourse to judicial options I find distasteful but expedient. Anarchism is either illegal or it is not anarchism as our dear comrade Gustavo Rodriguez reminds us. Nevertheless, over the past few months my lawyers were able to obtain a Security Intelligence Report (SIR) produced by the prison’s anti-terror bureaucrats. This disclosure occurred in the course of a parole motion, which was denied in any event. The Secretary of State opposed my release and used a non-disclosure application to prevent me from seeing or being able to respond to “evidence” used against me on grounds of “national security”. The Parole Board disagreed and granted me access to a scant eight pages of intelligence reports. These cover the time period September 2023 – January 2024 and show an incomplete snapshot of the surveillance and censorship of my correspondence and books, the gathering of information on those that I am in contact with and the intel received about the fireworks solidarity demo at Bristol prison last year when I was detained there. The report revealed the collection of all the names, addresses and personal details of all those who communicate with me. For example, it is noted that one comrade writes that he works as a postman, another comrade “has a daughter in prison”, etc. Also listed in the entries are any personal connections and any details related to affiliations to any groups or tendencies. Geographic analysis using Google Maps has been made to view their locations. The Star and Shadow Cinema in Newcastle upon Tyne is designated a “potential meeting point” and BASE in Bristol described as “a heavily graffitied possible squat or commune.

Thus the level of intelligence and analysis displayed is low and crude but we can anticipate that the data is funnelled to the security services and the police state.

The security regime that I am imposed with is directed from outside the prison by a panel* comprising of senior police, Counter Terror Unit, National Security Division, governmental administration and forensic psychology.

We know that the state is afraid and takes step of repression; however it is rare that we see the evidence and its workings, therefore I am giving this account as my response.

I have nothing to justify.

In this situation I already knew perfectly well before disclosure what the secret “evidence” consisted off – the fact that I maintain my perspective and contacts with the anarchist dependency and with the social movement. The stand that I continue to write “and try to receive” letters and I am sent books and publications with critical content.

I will not apologise one sentence for those things.

I send my greetings to Alfredo, Anna, Juan and all the prisoners and those persecuted in Italy.

To Francisco, Monica and all the imprisoned comrades in Chile.

To the comrades imprisonned and those in struggle in Greece.

To Daniela Klette in Germany, strength.

Likewise to all the comrades detained in every territory and to the groups of action, I send a hug and my complicity.

A warm hug to Claudio who is now free.

To the application of practical theory.

For a black international.

Toby Shone
13th October 2024
HMP Garth
North-West

* MAPPA – Multi-Agency Public Protection Arrangement

Fallout From Publication Of “Unsurprising Fact”

22/10/24

As the result of Toby Shone having giving the text “Unsurprising Fact” to Brighton ABC, he had a visit from Counter-Terror Prevent duo Ian Turner and Mick McCormack on the morning of October 21st. He was issued 3 administrative sanctions and is now on Basic IEP regime, which means no television and only £5 a week to spend. The sanctions were for: writing an open letter to Joe Black at Brighton ABC on October 13th. [“Unsurprising Fact” was dictacted over the phone]; repeated phone calls to a friend during which she put him on speaker phone so that he could also talk to others in the room; and for speaking disrespectfully about staff including his Probation Offender Manager person Clare Ashton in a conversation with another contact in September. The first two people have been removed from his phone list.

NB: Toby is due to be relased on November 13th, 2024, having served his full sentence. This is just the latest (and hopefully the last) vidictive move by HMP Garth’s “anti-terror bureaucrats” attempt to punish him during his final days at “His Majesty’s pleasure.

Source: Brighton Anarchist Black Cross

UK: Prisoner Support Now A Threat To National Security + Update On Toby Shone’s Situation

Posted on 2024/07/09 by darknights

Update On Toby Shone’s Situation

27/06/24

Yesterday (19/06/24) Toby was issued with an administrative sanction as a direct result of his “bad attitude” and conveying open letters and audio interventions outside of the prison. This comes after several anarchist comrades were removed from his permitted contact list with the reason being a “threat to national security”. This sanction will reduce the number of visits he can receive as well as reducing the amount of money he can spend on phone calls and groceries. Toby was able to receive a few letters and postcards recently, but he is still facing an enhanced censorship on his correspondence and post. Toby wishes to express that he is well and sends an embrace of fire to all the other imprisoned comrades and to the action groups.

Prisoner Support Now A Threat To National Security

28/05/24

Brighton ABC has now become the third victim of a banning of all contact with Toby Shone on the supposed grounds of “National Security” [sic]. This is just another facet of the on-going campaign to isolate Toby, cutting off his contacts with his support network and the wider outside world. People have been arbitrarily removed from his PIN phone list, had their mail censored or simply withheld as part of the vindictive campaign against Toby on the part of the security services in retaliation for their inability to secure a conviction on the trumped-up terrorism charges that were hastily dropped by the prosecution days before he was due to stand trial on October 6, 2021.

He continues to be persecuted as a direct result of the political views that he holds and at his upcoming parole hearing the State will make a further attempts to restrict his political activities post-release by having highly prohibitive license conditions imposed on him, this despite his having not been convicted on any of the political charges that he was originally charged with.

Write to Toby at:
Toby Shone A7645EP
HMP Garth
Ulnes Walton
Leyland
Preston
PR26 8NE
UK.

It is advisable to send any mail via recorded delivery so that you can have a record that it was received by Garth in case it somehow gets mysterious “lost”.

If you have sent him mail previously and had no response – Toby always replies to any mail he receives – it is likely that it too has been withheld from him. If so, please get in touch with with his legal team by emailing your evidence to: j.bicket@birnbergpeirce.co.uk.

Source: Brighton ABC