WHAT WOULD MORRISSEY SAY?

The ongoing battle between Mike Joyce and the man who once described him as a lawnmower (or words to that effect) has flared up again like a bout of sciatica with Joyce announcing he was going to have to sell all his stuff because of unpaid royalties.

Morrissey has responded by issuing a detailed breakdown of payments to date. It's all very detailed, claiming that Mike Joyce has been hoovering up all Smiths royalties - stopping anyone else from getting any, reckons Morrissey. And then there's the cost of it all:

10. In legal fees alone, Joyce has cost me 600 thousand pounds - this is quite apart from any payments made to him, and is quite apart from any money seized by him. In total, Joyce has cost me 1 million, 515 thousand pounds. This is an approximate figure - it could even be higher.

This is, of course, how all great bands end up, it seems - pissy little spats over who got the cash for doing the artwork on the sleeves.

Joyce is not poor because of one reason - me. His career now is the fictitious position of an unpaid ex-member of the Smiths. He has also pursued all of his claims on Legal Aid.

I don't make this statement in search of sympathy from anyone, but I wish that the people at MorrisseySoLow who support Joyce would at least get their facts right before they say anything. Even with his 10% share, Joyce was wealthy. Now, he is extremely wealthy.

It's all a little bit sad, really.

music morrissey the smiths mike joyce