BBC News - V for Vendetta masks: Who's behind them?

A-ha! About time somebody in the mainstream media investigated the source of this… Trend? Fad? Phenomenon?

British graphic novel artist David Lloyd is the man who created the original image of the mask for a comic strip written by Alan Moore. Lloyd compares its use by protesters to the way Alberto Korda’s famous photograph of Argentine revolutionary Che Guevara became a fashionable symbol for young people across the world.

“The Guy Fawkes mask has now become a common brand and a convenient placard to use in protest against tyranny - and I’m happy with people using it, it seems quite unique, an icon of popular culture being used this way,” he says.

A curious Lloyd visited the Occupy Wall Street protest in Zuccotti Park, New York, to have a look at some of the people wearing his mask.

“My feeling is the Anonymous group needed an all-purpose image to hide their identity and also symbolise that they stand for individualism - V for Vendetta is a story about one person against the system.”

The mask, as it’s currently sold, is licensed by the studio who made the film. In effect, this symbol so beloved by protesters is actually channelling money into the pockets of big business. So much for the principles of anarchy.

Side note: The film is drivel. The graphic novel is a masterpiece.