Morrissey – the man who appears on the cover of this week's NME spouting enough anti-immigrant polemic to make Anne Widdecombe look like a straggle-haired pot-smoking hippy – has had enough.
According to the NME, Morrissey spent the duration of a recent interview banging on about how crap immigrants are and how England isn't England any more like some of dribble-chinned retired bombardier who's just learnt that three extended Kosovan families have bought the house next door. However, Morrissey seems adamant that that everything in the NME interview is a big fat lie, and so he's followed through on his promise to sue the magazine for everything it owns.
And by 'everything it owns' we mean three Klaxons promo CDs, a sperm-stained poster of The Horrors and as much hair gel as he can possibly eat.
As one of pop's most articulate lyricists, you can always count on Morrissey to be entertaining in interviews, whether he's using them to ambiguously dance around the topic of his sexuality, rant on bitterly about his old bandmates or – as evidenced in this week's NME cover-story – make all sorts of ill-advised statements about how much he doesn't particularly like immigrants. Statements like:
"England is a memory now,"
"England was thrown away."
and
"The higher the influx into England the more the British identity disappears. So the price is enormous. Travel to England and you have no idea where you are."
It's just about the last thing that Morrissey – a man who's happily yakked about injuring scientists without raising any eyebrows in the past – should have spoken about, thanks to the memory of all those racist-seeming songs he wrote in the 1990s and the time he twirled about wrapped in a Union Jack before an audience of skinhead National Front members. But the thing is, Morrissey says the whole interview's a lot of cock.
And that's why Morrissey has decided to sue the NME and its six-year-old editor Conor McNicholas for defamation. According to Morrissey's spokesperson:
“They have not only misquoted Morrissey, they have omitted critical parts of the interview and distorted the tone of the piece, his responses and the questions he was asked in order to try and present an inflammatory case.”
Other than acknowledging the lawsuit, the NME has yet to comment on the matter. But the simple fact that it didn't acquiesce to Morrissey's previous demand that a retraction should be published by 1pm yesterday makes the whole thing look like both sides of the disagreement are equally hell-bent on charging at each other head-first, like a crap version of the Rocky IV opening that nobody really cares about much if they're honest.
If this lawsuit does go to court, though, chances are that the unedited tapes of Morrissey's NME interview will be played for those present, and that should happily clear the mess up. For instance, Morrissey's point that critical parts of the interview were omitted could be proved, like the part where he leaned in close to interviewer Tim Jonze and muttered "I don't believe a single word of what I'm saying, you know, but if I don't say something completely ludicrous then you'll end up putting fucking Beth Ditto on the cover again instead of me."
Equally the tapes might prove that the NME gave an accurate description of the encounter with Morrissey, and rule that Morrissey is actually a bit of a racist. But if that happens, will anything change? Everyone has known forever that Morrissey is the sort of unrealistically-nostalgic fool who can't even watch Open All Hours because he thinks it's too progressive and, regardless of immigration, is still happiest complaining that English people don't work 27-hour shifts down the mines, eat a diet that mainly comprises of stale bread and lard and then die of TB at the age of 32 any more.
That's just how Morrissey is. Better just to let him keep releasing albums that nobody listens to three days after they've bought them, we'd say.
Read more:
Morrissey sues as racism row ends NME love-hate affair – Times
pj says
Completley biased and unfair article. Democracy is about free speech, he obviously holds some conservative values, values that i for the most part disagree with, but to be libelled as a “dirty tory” for saying some views on Britains changing identity is totally wrong. These days its almost like if anybody slightly disagrees with the left they are instantly dismissed as a racist, which is laughable. He has stated he is not racist but because he would prefer less migrant workers let into our country every year hes lambasted.
Funny how this interview didnt mention other anti-racism songs such as Irish-Blood English Heart or when he dismissed the Bush administration as being like the “SS”. But wearing a union flag during a gig (wtf our flag is not a racist gesture!!!) is mentioned. I understand what he was trying to say, although i do personally think the the cultural diversity of our counrty HAS made it stronger and disagree with what Moz “reportidly said” But to be attacked for holding these views is disgraceful.
Good luck on your savage attack on 1 of the Uk’s finest ever musicians.
gir says
Awesome, I was looking for a UK-based row over racial politics to show that you limeys can outdo the Americans in spittle-flecked poorly written screeds posted to a humo(u)r blog. Although to beat out the Dog the Racist Bounty Hunter squabble, it’s gonna have to be something special.
michael says
Yes, he is representing…racism and intoleration in people..the good part, right?? BUT HE IS ONLY SAYING WHAT HE IS THINKING..right?
remember, even Hitler was representing people, right??
the fear and hate!!
but people are quickly forgetting..(or they don’t even know ?? sorry, they are common)..
I like some of his MUSIC, but HE is VERY (VERY) STUPID getting even close to saying something like that..
I would like to know if people in Italy have something against his accent..
Arrogant and stupid
Adam Gade says
And there we have it. Godwin’s Law enacted a tad sooner than anticipated in this thread. Sorry michael, thanks for playing.
Greek Island Cruises says
England was thrown away? What is that? It doesn’t seem normal to me to do such affirmations related to this beautiful country. I love everything related to the English culture, not to mention that the latest trends in fashion first come there.