That came from my mother. She was the biggest influence on my life. I remember once refusing to get on a bus with her because she was wearing a mink, and I thought we should be taking a taxi. She just said, 'Who cares what people think?' and I remember sitting on that bus, being utterly embarrassed, but knowing somehow that she was totally correct.

This is Manchester, we do things differently here.

When forced to pick between truth and legend, print the legend.

Energy, energy? Energy is, is, it's nothing more than a lot of new age hokum masquerading as religion.

There is no celebrity quite as powerful as the local, homegrown celebrity.

Jazz is the last refuge of the untalented. Jazz musicians enjoy themselves more than anyone listening to them does.

I've been a minor celebrity since I was 23 years old.