Shaun Ryder, frontman of The Happy Mondays and Black Grape, and the star of Celebrity Gogglebox and I'm A Celebrity Get Me Out of Here will be spilling the beans, and the secrets, and the celebrity juice at Lawrence Batley Theatre on Sat 19 April.
Shaun William Ryder has a hilarious new book out, the cleverly named Happy Mondays - and Fridays and Saturdays and Sundays, which is signed, boxed, limited, and close to genius. Fans can look forward to a carnival of excess, wild tales, and improbable truths, as they enjoy the talents of a unique rock'n'roll star dubbed Britpop's answer to WB Yeats. You want battery operated chickens, UFOs and the Shaun-Ryder-Russell-Watson crossover that you didn’t realise you needed? Great. Then it’s all here. So, strap yourselves in and say ‘Hallelujah’ for Shaun.
Shaun is on good form: “Life begins at 60. It used to be 40, but not anymore.”
So tell us, Shaun: what’s it all about?
“I’ve got the attention span of a goldfish, an inability to plan too far ahead, but an opinion I’m prepared to share on pretty much everything. My new book and tour are an epic journey from Madchester to Mastermind, Brazil to Barbados, Spanish sunburn to the sewers of Salford. I’ll tell you some truths which are so improbable you’ll know they can’t possibly have been made up.”
So who exactly is Shaun Ryder?
“Well, if you believe Wikipedia, I’m an English singer, songwriter and poet – a leading figure in the Manchester cultural scene of the late 1980s and 1990s."
“But that was over thirty years ago now – there used to be a time when I was just the mad rocker who went onto TV shows. I’m still having great fun in the spotlight, whether that’s with the Happy Mondays, Black Grape, or as a solo performer, but these days you’re just as likely to find me blowing off the cobwebs on a bike ride, watching telly with my best mate Bez, or catching up on Corrie in my slippers.”
All night parties?
“They’re in the past. If I’m not out working, I’m tucked up in bed by 11pm these days. Well, we all have to grow up a bit sometimes, don’t we? Do I miss the old days? They were brilliant times that I certainly wouldn’t have missed for the world, but no I don’t. That was then, but this is now. I’ve been off the drugs for more than 10 years now, and I’ve never been happier."
“Let me tell you one thing right from the outset. My new book isn’t one to read soothingly to your grandkids at bedtime. It’s a boys’ own adventure which is about as far removed from Enid Blyton as you can get."
“This is my journey, my memories, my views… presented in my own unfiltered words.”
It sounds wild. And it is.
Happy Mondays… covers tomato seeds, growing up and ADHD, forming The Mondays and Zippy and Bungle. There’s stuff about egos and getting noticed, cycling and Christian Bale, WB Yates and Celebrity Mastermind.
“I’ll be visiting Caribbean adventures, encountering extra-terrestrials, and leading you through my hedonistic, hectic and sometimes hell-raising life in the music and entertainment business”.
Shaun formed Happy Mondays and was pivotal as Madchester swept the world.
“We were a massive success. We’d headlined the Friday night at Glastonbury in 1990, and that same year Paul McCartney told NME that we reminded them of The Beatles in their ‘Strawberry Fields phase.”
Shaun’s collaborated with others, including Paul Oakenfold and Gorrilaz.
“I like collaborations. I’ve done loads with Oakenfold, then there’s the Gorillaz. Damon Albarn got in touch with me and invited me to come to London and try to do some writing with them.”
Behind it all is a remarkably good woman: Joanne Ryder, Shaun’s wife.
“My wife Joanne is an amazing woman. I’ve been with her since 2004, and she’s definitely saved my life. I met her first at the Hacienda years and years earlier when she was a teenager – she binned me then though. When I hit 40, she reeled me back in.”
And now he’s hitting the road, this autumn, with a tour to go with his book. Can we expect mad scenes and late nights? “No chance. As soon as I’m off the stage I’ll be back to my hotel room to watch the news and get a good night’s sleep.”
Catch Shaun Ryder - Happy Mondays, and Fridays, and Saturdays, and Sundays at ours on Sat 19 April and hear all the wild tales straight from the man himself.
Syndicated Interview by Emily Bridgewater.