I first saw Morrissey on Top Of The Pops in 1983 when The Smiths mimed to This Charming Man. I was fourteen. I read Smash Hits at that time, not the weekly music press… I didn’t listen to John Peel… so that chance appearance on a television chart show was my introduction to a love affair that has yet to diminish. Indeed, hearing a beautiful singing voice ask “will nature make a man of me yet?” was a powerful, external acknowledgement of my own teenage life and how I felt!
I was hooked. I bought all of the records and religiously sat with fingers hovering above the record button of both vcr and tape deck whenever The Smiths were on television or the radio.
I was sixteen when I saw my first gig in 1985. It was in Manchester… but it was Frankie Goes To Hollywood!!! BUT, I was fortunate enough to see The Smiths the following year at Salford University and then their penultimate gig at Manchester Free Trade Hall.
The Smiths split in 1987, and I was devastated. I made two visits to Salford Lads Club that year and unwittingly documented the exterior as it was seen on the artwork of The Queen Is Dead, and then after its lime green paint makeover around the time of the Stop Me video. In my photo you can see the concrete bollard that Andy Rourke eased his tight jeans against!!!
I followed Morrissey into his solo career, continuing to acquire his recordings and attend numerous gigs, the most recent being Leeds Arena in March 2020. However, the only time I have met Morrissey was at the HMV store in Manchester on 17th March 1994 (my 25th birthday). He was signing copies of Vauxhall & I.
I had been a fan for just over a decade, and every imagined conversation-starter I might have fantasised about initiating with Morrissey during those years cruelly deserted me when I was finally stood before him. I just opened my arms, and he did the same. I kissed his cheek and whispered “I love you!” He softly replied “Thank you” as we hugged.
I’d say the exact same thing to Morrissey if I met him today…
Mark Nicholson (aged 52) of Bradford
(Photo of me in late 1987 aged 18 attached)
Letters to Morrissey 