Welcome to the latest instalment in our “Visuals” series, the result of a conversation with Charlie Munro about some important moments in skate history that made a lasting impact on him. Read on to see what video part, trick, photo, and board graphic he selected. Then see where he is at right now via a quick Q&A after the close…
Words and interview by Jacob Sawyer. Charlie Munro in NYC. PH: Quentin Guthrie
Charlie Munro is one of the most powerful skateboarders the UK has ever produced, a talented technician with a lunatic eye for what’s possible. He’s also one of the most prolific, always busy working on something. This interview was made possible by a momentary lull in his hectic travelling schedule, which is primarily focused on crafting a new part for New Balance. This is discussed later on in the article. We look forward to seeing new footage on the streets of London, and from wherever that heavily stamped passport delivers him very soon.
It was interesting hearing more of Charlie’s story in the context of his selection, and the point in time each moment found him. Everything he picked is tied in some way to his formative years. Our conversation greeted Charlie at the beginning of his skateboarding journey, where his first-ever video purchase could have gone in a variety of different directions. Thanks to sound advice he opted for a classic, and one part in particular held lasting appeal. Enjoy the appreciation of the seminal éS Menikmati video that kicks things off, and learn why Arto Saari’s part was one that lit the fire for him. You’ll be sure to think of it the next time you’re trying to pinch a crooked grind for some distance. Next, explore a magical Milton Keynes moment from a San Franciso-centric Rob Welsh part. This iconic trick made an impact on Charlie when he returned to skateboarding after a hiatus, it’s obvious watching him skate that Wu-Welsh’s execution has permeated into his consciousness, and set a precedent.
The photo that left a lasting impression on Charlie is a Sidewalk cover from over twenty years ago captured by Andy Horsley. This was the result of a Clown trip to Italy where a shortage of spots provoked some creative thinking from Chris Oliver, nudging him to entertain tackling a twenty-two-stair curved handrail. When it came to speaking about a board graphic it was another childhood favourite, a John Rattray Blueprint graphic Charlie fondly remembers prolonging the life of. This graphic was further stamped into his grey matter via some epic moments of John killing it on a Circa tour that featured in Transworld’s Video Radio. Enjoy finding out more about this selection and their significance…
Arto Saari – éS Menikmati (2000)
Menikmati was the first video bought with my own money when I was eight years old. I had just started skating, and was given some money for Christmas. We were lucky to have a skater-owned shop in Cambridge where I grew up called Vert 
which was there for a year or two after I started. We went in there between Boxing Day and New Year’s and I remember being super excited. I had some money, and knew I wanted to buy a video. The guys working in there recommended Menikmati for my first video. I can’t say the cover inspired me – I was picking up 411s because they had pictures on the front and naturally you’re drawn to them as a kid but I ended up going with Menikmati from their recommendation. I’m so glad I did, even now I can watch that video, and it’s still amazing.
Because Arto is regular, I related to him more, and wanted to be like him. I enjoyed the music, liked his style, and everything he was doing. There was also that element of him coming from outside of the US, then going there. His story about that in the intro was really cool, and relatable. He talks about America not being the absolute dreamland it’s presented to be, which is pretty bang on to be honest. I’ve experienced exactly what he’s talking about. When I went there I wasn’t under the impression it was going to be some utopia anyway purely from talking to other people. It’s great there but there are a few factors that make it a bit shit.
I was instantly impressed by how solid Arto was, he would do really gnarly shit but make it look easy. He did everything properly and that drew me to him. There’s a clip in the part where he does a frontside flip over a rail, then the next clip is a switch frontside flip down some stairs. I couldn’t believe that he could do it regular and switch. At the time that was so mind-blowing to me. There’s also the El Toro front board where the lights turn off which is so sick! You hear him say “motherfucking generator went off and shit”. It’s so good, he sounds pissed off even though he’s just rolled away from such a good trick.
“Revisiting this video will always take me back to being a kid again which is really nice”
His part is so good, I watched it again just the other day. He also does that crooked grind around the curvy ledge. That was monumental for me, something that was stuck in my head for so long. That’s why I forced myself to try and get good at crooks from a young age.
In the part Arto does a lipslide followed by another lipslide on the Arco rails in LA. I remember going there on a trip and being so hyped to see those rails because of that. There’s also the bigger side where [Heath] Kirchart tries to lipslide then lipslide the two 17 stair rails in Sight Unseen which is pretty hectic. It was cool to visit that spot for nostalgic reasons. I think sub-consciously Arto is always a bit of an inspo for me. I don’t skate rails so much any more but there was a stage where I was really into it, and Arto was definitely a part of that. Revisiting this video will always take me back to being a kid again which is really nice. I used to analyse everything when I younger to try and figure out how people did certain things. I’d analyse step by step how someone made their board flip a certain way and try to apply it.
This video has such a good cross section of people too. You’ve got [Ronnie] Creager’s part which is super chill, he’s got the bucket hat on, he’s living life in Cali, having a nice time. Then Arto’s throwing himself down the gnarliest shit he can find. But I do love that Creager part too, the flip back tail flip out, all of that stuff he does is insane, so ahead of it’s time. Then [Tom] Penny’s part is amazing too. Having a guy in there from the UK made it so much more relatable, and way more enjoyable, knowing there were people from all over the world, and then this dude from Oxford thrown in the mix who is the absolute G.O.A.T.
Rob Welsh – Transworld FREE YOUR MIND (2003)
At the point when this came out I had been skating for a few years. I don’t think I really appreciated this as much as I should have until I came back to skating. I was skating from the age of about eight, then stopped when I was thirteen. I was always the youngest person in the group I skated with but when they all started to go to University, and left where I lived, I was kind of on my own. I carried on skating for about six months but it loses it’s charm a bit when you’re out skating on your own. Coming from a village, a small town, everyone leaving definitely took the fun away. So I stopped when I was thirteen, then started again when I was about to turn nineteen so I missed some pretty valuable years. I remember seeing this Rob Welsh noseslide pop out before I quit but it was only when I started again that I really appreciated it for what it was.
I would go to Milton Keynes a lot myself when I started again so this was something relatable. I remember looking at the spot and thinking it’s just the best way you could have done it. [Rob] Welsh is the steeziest guy, and I’m forever a fan of that trick. I’m a big fan of the noseslide pop and Rob Welsh does it in the best possible way, We kind of have a little saying me and Quinno [Quentin Guthrie] where you have the “Anti-Welsh” which is when someone noseslides and doesn’t pop out. The rule of thumb is that if you’re anti-welshing just don’t noseslide. There is definitely some Rob Welsh influence any time I do that trick. This one at the bus station is iconic.
“It is a great example of a simple trick done perfectly. Less is more is a saying that is very true in skateboarding”
It is a great example of a simple trick done perfectly. Less is more is a saying that is very true in skateboarding. There was a period of time where there was a lot of flip in, flip out shit going on but less is more. Keeping things simple can look the best. I’m a big fan of Rob Welsh, the dude is amazing but this one trick will always be an all time favourite. His whole part in Free Your Mind is so SF-centric then there’s this one trick in Milton Keynes. It’s rad that he’s not from here, then that one trick he did here is so phenomenal, and will always stick in my mind. I haven’t been to Milton Keynes for a long time but kind of want to revisit that bar-to pop-to road. It’s definitely hard to skate. I heard Barney [Page] did it frontside recently which is sick.
Chris Oliver. 50-50 in Sorrento. PH: Andy Horsley (2003)
Chrissy boy! I was with him yesterday actually, I went for a roast with him and his missus. This photo came out the same year as the Rob Welsh video part. It was the cover of Sidewalk, and I cut it out and put it on the cover of one of my workbooks for school because I was so into it. I remember thinking “this dude is insane”. In my mind there weren’t really any people in the UK doing shit like this, jumping on rails like that. I hadn’t really heard of Chrissy before seeing this, then suddenly there’s this dude, and from that moment I was an instant fan. It’s weird to think that now I’m really good friends with him, and we do all of this stuff together. He was such a big part of skateboarding for me growing up so it’s quite nice.
I think this is probably one of the best Sidewalk covers that there ever was, it’s so good, and it was twenty-one years ago so Chrissy must have only been about nineteen at the time. There are over twenty stairs, and there’s a gnarly curve at the front, he is a wild man for that. He still skates so good nowadays, every time I skate with him I’m shocked. He’s still learning tricks, still skating better than anyone. He really is so underrated, anything he wants to do on a skateboard he can do it. It never clicked, he never went as far as we all would have liked to have seen, but I guess that’s skateboarding.
“I think this is probably one of the best Sidewalk covers that there ever was”
There’s footage of the attempts at this out there too, it doesn’t look like this was hard for him at all. This was on a Clown Skateboards trip back when Benny [Fairfax] was riding for them too. The ride out for this isn’t ideal either, you’re heading into the sea, it’s such a short landing, you see him power slide at the bottom. It’s so wild, his stance on the 50-50 is so sick too, he’s got one arm up. There are pedestrians watching him do it in the background, and they’ve never seen anything like it “who is this lunatic?” they’re thinking. Chris has gone on this trip, and the only spot he can find is a twenty-two stair curvy handrail – guess I’ll jump on that then. That’s just Chris, that’s probably what went through his mind, the only thing he can see is this massive rail so he adapts, and sees what happens. I don’t remember any other really big rails he skated other than this one which is quite interesting, it shows his approach to stuff. He is a great human, I’m hopefully going to see him later today.
Blueprint John Rattray deck. Graphic by Dan Magee (2001)
This was one of my first boards, it’s one that will always stand out in my mind. All of the colours are so sick together. When you’re really young you value your skateboard so highly. I would have made this board last for six months or maybe longer. You know when you scrape your tail so much that it goes square? I would have sanded the corners of this one down to make it round again. It would have been re-gripped too just to make it last as long as possible. This was my favourite board, I would have learned a bunch of shit on it.
[John] Rattray was a massive inspiration to me back in the day, he’s the reason for choosing this board. Waiting For The World would have been my first introduction to him. Then he has footage killing it, riding this exact board in Transworld’s Video Radio which is another video I rinsed when I was younger too. He is just an ATV, he skates anything, and everything, and does it so well. Arto and him don’t remind me of each other specifically but the way they skate is similar in a way, very powerful, and well rounded.
The board itself really stands out in Video Radio, [John] Rattray does a nollie flip, and a backside flip down London Bridge ten on it. He’s also skating Playstation skatepark in that video. He does a frontside alley-oop ollie on the old vert ramp high above a kid stood in the foreground with a mohawk. I was talking to Tom [Knox] about it and it turns out that kid was his brother Sparrow which is so sick, I heard that and couldn’t believe it, that’s fucking amazing. He has a line at Southbank skating that board too, he does a nollie backside heelflip on flat, then switch backside 180s the seven, and he is going so fast! I’m a big fan of Rattray. It’s during the filming of Video Radio that he was asked by Jamie Thomas to ride for Zero, so looking back these are the last flashes of him on a Blueprint board. That was another big step back then, someone moving from a UK board company to one of the most popular US companies.
“When you’re really young you value your skateboard so highly. I would have made this board last for six months or maybe longer”
Palace paid homage to those boards recently, they did one for Chewy [Cannon], and one for [Danny] Brady. I was hyped when I saw that, I should have probably tried to buy one of those for the wall. I would ultimately love to have that Rattray board but that’s a very long time ago now. I skated a lot of Blueprint boards back in the day, my first ever board was a Blueprint, they would have all been bought from the same shop where I got Menikmati from. I knew of Blueprint but the guys in the shop definitely helped me make the decision and guided me towards the company. My first board was a Colin Kennedy with an arty type of yellow graphic, I remember being super hyped on that board too. After that I would try to only skate Blueprint boards. I was young at the time so had no real idea of what was good but I’m so glad that was my introduction, a UK thing, a brand that was so sick. If anyone has one of those boards to donate I would be eternally grateful.
Thanks for that Charlie, just a few questions. You’ve been busy this year, what’s your schedule right now?
I’ve been travelling a lot this year so far. I’ve been going on a bunch of trips with Quinno [Quentin Guthrie] for a New Balance project. It’s kind of our own project but New Balance have been supporting us throughout which has been incredible. We’ve got Davide [Holzknecht] from Italy involved too so we’ve done a bunch of trips for that, I’ve been trying to get out filming with Quinno [Quentin Guthri] as much as possible. I also have a bunch of Monster trips coming up too, I’m going to Lisbon with them next week.
Where have you been already this year?
I spent a month in Australia which was amazing. It’s pretty hard to skate there though. Everyone is just so fucking good there that even when you think you have a good idea, chances are it’s ABD. SO that made the trip pretty difficult. I took a pretty good slam the first week I was there too, and had to chill for a couple of weeks. I borderline thought I had broken my hip but luckily I think I’m okay. It still hurts a little bit but I can fully skate now which is good.
Going the distance. Backside nollie-switch frontside crooked grind in Milan filmed by Quentin Guthrie
I’m going to Lisbon next week. I’ve been to Athens, that was for a New Balance Europe thing with Josh Hallett and the boys. That was really fun, we were in Athens a couple of weeks before I flew to Australia. I went to Brazil with Monster in December of last year, we did an event out there. I blew out my heel half way through that trip and it took until February to heal properly, an annoying two month injury which healed in time for Athens. So my next stop is Lisbon, then Zurich, then I’m back for a week before flying out to China.
Sounds like you’re way busier than most.
It’s all pretty full on right now but when I get back from China I’m going to try my best to stay here. I really want to film some stuff in London, I feel like I’ve been slacking on London footage for this project, and we want to make sure there’s a bunch of good stuff filmed here. London is the best.
It’s sick you’ve had the New Balance thing to focus on and it’s something epic, not just sporadic trips for smaller projects.
It’s been great, I’m proud of everything we’ve been doing. Quinno is amazing at what he does. He’s very strict when it comes to quality control. But that is definitely not a bad thing, it’s important to have quality control in everything you do.
You must be used to that having worked closely with Dan Magee and Kevin Parrott on Cover Version.
That’s true, those guys are strict about what they put out also. It can be frustrating sometimes. There are a few things we have filmed that I would be happy with but Quinno thinks I could do it better so we’ve planned to go back. Some of the stuff is quite scary though, there are some situations I’m not looking forward to putting myself through again. I have a few things playing on my mind I need to go and confront again but it’s all for the greater good. Quality over quantity is what we’re going for.
When do you expect that part to be finished?
We have to figure the music, and there’s still a bunch more stuff that I want to do for it. When Quinno feels it’s ready, in a good place, and he’s hyped on it is when it will go out. We’re working with September as a rough deadline but we’re not sure just yet.
You’re currently operating without a board sponsor, how’s that going?
Yeah, I recently parted ways with Primitive so now I’m a free agent. I actually feel really good about it. I don’t feel restricted in any way. I have been riding Primitive boards for around seven years so iI’ve been enjoying trying out other boards again. It’s like a new chapter which is great, everyone has been really supportive.
What’s your ideal board?
I’m actually not that picky. I kinda dip between 8.25″ and 8.38″ depending on how I’m feeling.
We hope you find a new home soon. Any last words?
Shout out to you for taking the time, and shout out Palomino.
We would like to thank Charlie for this one, we can’t wait to see what his year of travelling produces. Thanks to Quentin Guthrie for the support with photo and footage. Thanks also to Neil Macdonald ( Science Vs. Life ) for the Sidewalk cover mag scan, and to Dan Taylor for the photo from his Blueprint board collection.
Keep an eye on Charlie Munro for updates, and follow New Balance for clips of Charlie and the rest of the team. We recommend taking in the “Scrape” part Charlie grafted on with Quentin Guthrie. At 1:41 there is a nollie noseslide employing Rob Welsh’s exit strategy, and at 0:20 there is a lengthy crooked grind handled all these years later thanks to some Arto Saari technique. It’s good to see that inspo in action.
Previous Visuals Interviews: Lev Tanju, Jack Curtin, Ted Barrow, Dave Mackey, Jack Brooks, Korahn Gayle, Will Miles, Kevin Marks, Joe Gavin, Chewy Cannon