HUMO Magazine
22nd November, 2005

This John Lydon interview for the Belgian magazine HUMO is featured here in downloadable PDF form (for which you will need the free Adobe Reader application). The interview is scanned straight from the magazine, so unless you speak Flemish, chances are you won't be able to understand it, but at least you can see it!

Belgian journalist Raf Weverbergh had the good fortune to travel out to meet John at his LA home; where amongst many other things they discussed 'Rotten & Reynebeau' & 'The Best of British £1 Notes'.

As you'll see below, from this report from the Belgian VRT News web site, John's full and frank comments in the interview caused some controversy in Belgium…

VRT News.com

Johnny Rotten is raging!

Former Sex Pistols front man, Johnny Rotten, escorted a VRT journalist / historian, Marc Reynebeau, on a journey of discovery through Great Britain (in a Rolls Royce). The resulting television series "Reynebeau & Rotten" is now coming to and end on Belgian TV but Johnny is "Miffed. Angry. Pissed."

Mr Lydon (Johnny Rotten) is furious at the producers of "Reynebeau & Rotten", Kanakna. In an interview with the Flemish magazine, Humo, the former punk rocker expressed his anger at certain aspects of the series.
Johnny Rotten is not happy with the way he has been portrayed in the programme. He feels he has been misrepresented by the way the footage has been edited, leaving only cheap one-liners and vulgarities that he insists were uttered "off camera".

Rotten was not too impressed with his travelling companion either. Despite appreciating Marc Reynebeau's dry, "saucy" feeling for humour, he felt the Belgian lacked essential knowledge of "England" for someone who claims to be an Anglophile.

General Director of Kanakna, Leo De Bock, does not accept the criticism. "Rotten knew very well the intention of the programme" according to De Bock.

The final episode of "Reynebeau & Rotten" can be seen on the VRT channel, Canvas, on Friday. Leo De Bock is keen to point out that in it, Johnny Rotten says that the filming was a fantastic experience.

Rotten to go to court

A major bone of contention for Mr Lydon is the fact that Sex Pistols' music was used in the series. In the Humo interview, he says that it is clearly stipulated in the contract that none of his music can be used without prior, written permission.

The notorious punk rocker plainly told Raf Weverbergh, from Humo, "This is going to court."

Leo De Bock is not so concerned however. "This is a technical judicial matter over which I cannot comment at the moment, but we have no need for self reproach."