So there I was loitering on The Pier at Great Yarmouth trying to sell my book when who pops up to claim his copy - MORRISSEY.

Me: "So Morrissey what do you think of the book?"
Morrissey: "What book?"
Me: "The Day I Met Morrissey - by me - it came out on Monday"
Morrissey: "Really? I haven't seen this one."
Me: "Well, why don't I give you this copy to read and you sign my copy.."
Morrissey: "Ok, thankyou very much."

Luckily, fellow fan Ian Cappitt was on hand to get a snap of Moz getting his hands on my book.

Things went from better to even better during the concert when Morrissey asked: "Where is Dickie Felton?"

Obviously I nearly fainted. He handed me the microphone and I uttered allsorts before asking him: "So, now what do you think of the book?"

Morrissey: "It's very attractive"

Praise from the main man himself - can life get any better?

I will be taking the book for sale at the Manchester shows and it's for sale on my website too www.thedayimetmorrissey.com

Would you like to send birthday wishes to Morrissey? Send photos, cards, poems, words, notes, letters, etc. to [email protected] or visit the site for more details.

http://www.happybirthdaymorrissey.com/

The Boston Globe reports:

Discounted DJ: Rourke spins and muses
...By the time Andy Rourke finally arrived at the Roxy [nightclub] Saturday night, party promoter Jon Regan was rattled. "I'm not going to give him the rest of his money," said Regan. "And if he's got a problem with that, I'll [expletive] knock him out." Regan had already paid Rourke, the former bassist for the influential British band The Smiths, $2,000 - plus hotel, meals, and a king-size bottle of Absolut - to DJ for two hours.
Morrissey's former amigo was supposed to start spinning at 9 and end at 11. But he didn't show up until 10:15, and then sat backstage with a tall vodka drink. "I need a leveler," Rourke said, explaining that he'd just flown from Manchester, England. "I'm a bit knackered." Exhaustion aside, Rourke said he digs DJing because it gives him a chance to meet loads of Smiths fans. "I've signed quite a few breasts," he told us. "One drunk woman came back a year later and she'd had my autograph tattooed. I was a bit mortified that someone could be that stupid."
In response to the inevitable reunion question, Rourke is noncommittal. "Every couple of years, Coachella rears its head," he said, referring to the music festival that's tried to entice The Smiths with the promise of a huge payday. "I'm a great believer in never saying never, but I think Johnny [Marr] and Morrissey would have to be down to their last McDonald's to do it for money. . . . You better not say that - I don't think Morrissey eats McDonald's."

Because he showed up late, Rourke spun for a while at the after-party and, at the end of the night, got half of the $1,000 he was owed.

Johnny Marr Fans,

Today I was driving on La Cienega in L.A. and on the corner at 3rd street across from the Beverly Center waiting to cross the street I saw a guy that looked just like Johnny Marr. I got closer and reallized "Holy sh*t! That really IS Johnny Marr!" So I pulled over to the neighboring parking lot and he was still waiting for the crossing light and I said "Johnny Marr!" And he looked over like he knew me and said hello. I shook his hand and he said I looked familiar. I told him how we met first met backstage at a Neil Finn show he played at in 2002 and he said "Oh yeah- you guys had my old guitar!" He then totally remembered me from both of the times I met him! So eventually the light changed again and I said "I'll let you go" as I didn't want to keep him- but that I lived a mile from here and was shocked that I happened to randomly see him and just wanted to say hello again. And we shook hands again and smiled and off he went! Great guy. All class. The irony is that I was on my way to the cell phone store to replace my phone that I had just dropped and broken a few hours before- otherwise I would have current Johnny Marr pix to share with you all!

Cheers,

Jay "Some Totally Random Moz Fan"

PRESS RELEASE

Paint a Vulgar Picture: Fiction inspired by The Smiths edited by Peter Wild and published by Serpent’s Tail at £8.99 original paperback on 28 May.

This Friday, Morrissey turns 50 and we’re publishing PAINT A VULGAR PICTURE: Fiction inspired by The Smiths on 28 May just in time for his golden jubilee. In this tribute to the songs of The Smiths, contributors including Mike Gayle, Kate Pullinger, Catherine O’Flynn, Helen Walsh, Mil Millington, Alison MacLeod, Matt Beaumont, Scarlett Thomas and Jeff Noon explain why they love the band and each choose a song title – Heaven Knows I’m Miserable Now, There Is A Light That Never Goes Out, Ask, Shoplifters of the World Unite... - to write a story around.

As Peter Wild explains, ‘They were a band who celebrated books and reading – what was it Morrissey sang? “There’s more to life than books you know, but not much more.” – in a way that no band has before or, to my mind, since. When you think about it, it’s amazing that it’s taken this long for a book of fiction inspired by that most literary of bands to arrive. Is it really so strange? We don’t think so.’

• The anthology’s editor, Peter Wild is based in Manchester and is available for interviews, as are several of the contributors.
• Paint a Vulgar Picture is third in our series of Fiction inspired by cult bands which includes The Empty Page (Sonic Youth) and Perverted by Language (The Fall).
• Please email [email protected] for further information.