Legendary Sex Pistols frontman John Lydon - aka Johnny Rotten - bringing spoken word tour to Burnley Mechanics

He’s back on the road until October for a fresh leg of his acclaimed, ‘I Could Be Wrong, I Could Be Right’ show, which stops off at Burnley Mechanics Theatre later this month, May 26th.

He promises to ‘tell it how it is’ during the audience question and answer sessions, when absolutely nothing will be off limits.

“I’ve basically spent my whole life being censored. So this is me, honest and unscripted. It’s my thoughts, in my lingo, right or wrong, straight from the horse’s mouth,” he says.

“I always find it’s far more fun just telling the truth than being a miserable bleedin’ philosopher. This is a format which suits me down to the ground – because if there’s one thing you can guarantee, it’s that I’m never gonna run out of words!”

Since the last leg of the tour, Lydon has lost two of the most important people in his life - his beloved wife of more than 40 years, Nora, and his long-time tour manager Johnny ‘Rambo’ Stevens.

“I just can’t get over the loss of Nora; I don’t think I ever will,” says Lydon, who cared full-time for his wife in her later years as she battled Alzheimer’s.

He says his head was ‘full of cotton wool’ when Nora died, but happy memories from their 40-plus years together are starting to rekindle.

“And then I lost Rambo, my all-time best mate and manager. There never has been, and never will be, anyone remotely like him. He lived life to the full and enriched the lives of so many.

“I’ll talk about Rambo on stage and keep fresh in people’s memories how very important he was to the success of us as a band.”

Lydon first found fame with the Sex Pistols, the punk rockers who helped to spark a musical revolution that changed the face of music forever and went on to form Public Image Limited (PiL), with whom he still tours.

Over the decades he has carved out a hugely successful career, being described as a revolutionary, an icon, and a provocateur.

In 2004, he appeared in ‘I’m A Celebrity Get Me Out Of Here’, which he says, was a chance to show people what he was really like.

And he’s also had a crack at Eurovision, with a failed bid to represent Ireland with a song written in memory of a holiday to Hawaii with Nora.

“I’m very glad I was able to perform the song on Irish TV so I could show it to Nora before she died,” he says. “It might not have been chosen, but it did put a big smile on her face, and she was very proud of me.

“But I’ll never sing that song again because it’s just too heart-breaking. I just can’t go there; it was so deeply personal.”