The band never actually split up - we just stopped speaking to each other and went our own separate ways.

After half an hour the drug hit me like a sensuous tidal wave. I turned into a tactile temptress and wanted to stroke the whole world. It gave me untold confidence.

People say things about me all the time and I get over it. I've had some appalling things told about me.

And being gay isn't so easy, either I've always said that if anyone ever thought I was straight they must need glasses - but when I finally came out and said, "Yes, I do sleep with men and I'm gay," yeah, I lost record sales. There's no question - big, big time.

Remember that I was out of the closet at the age of sixteen. My parents knew I was gay; I'd had to tell them.

The Taboo crowd was certainly less precious. They were happy to end up in a pile of vomit and booze at the end of the night. It was antifashion, in a sense. They were just as obsessive as the New -Romantics but they acted like they didn't care.

The most political thing you can do is be yourself