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What is Dead Centre? Most people will think of it as ‘the bull’s eye’ or centre of a target, or a shot that hits it. However, in the context of his book, the Welsh writer Owen Jones uses the term in three ways:
- as in bull’s eye above
- to refer to the point where a killing took place, or the location of maximum fatalities
- to refer to The Dead Centre Agency, which is a secret organisation that is responsible for the wave of extreme terrorism that’s sweeping the world. In different contexts, the term has been used in reference to terrorist attacks since at least the 1980s.
What is Dead Centre? Did it really exist?
The Dead Centre Agency, as used by Jones, is fictional, as far as he knows. In acts of terrorism, especially in the past, terrorists would attack targets such as shopping malls, train stations, and airports. These were places where large numbers of people gathered, making them easy targets. However, the author envisioned a scenario where terrorism could be a business opportunity.
He foresaw an organisation that found willing volunteer suicide bombers in order to carry out terrorist attacks on areas with little or no security. The client would choose the target, and The Dead Centre Agency would do the rest. Even to the point of paying the bomber’s or participant’s family his fee after the conclusion of the attack.
Could such an organisation really exist?
They say that the FBI has identified a terrorist group called “Dead Centre”. Apparently, it was formed in 2009 and its members are believed to be responsible for several recent terror attacks. The group’s name comes from the fact that it uses tactics similar to those used by the IRA during the Troubles in Northern Ireland. However, the author is not aware that that that group operated to order as Jones writes in his work of fiction.
Surely crime on this scale could not happen in real life?
This type of terrorism is very different from other forms of terrorism because it does not involve any kind of political agenda. Instead, it involves random acts of violence carried out by individuals who are paid to commit suicide… and they do it because they have a terminal illness.. Furthermore, these people do not represent any particular religion or ideology, so they are very difficult to trace.
Although it is a form of terrorism, killing innocent people is not the objective. The client sets the purpose of the attack, and it is usually financial gain or revenge.
Did the owners of The Dead Centre Agency have a guilty conscience?
There was no evidence that the owners of The Dead Centre Agency had any sort of guilty conscience. In fact, they were quite proud of what they were doing to help the terminally ill provide for their families. They believed that they were doing something good for society.
Is there a sequel to Dead Centre?
At least seven police forces around the world and the SAS sought the leaders of the agency high and low. However, in Dead Centre 2, they are located by MI6, and offered a very special mission by an extremely important client.
“I can say no more”, said the Welsh writer with a smile.
What is the likelihood that such an organisation could really be out there?