Everybody and their dog now claim to have been at Sex Pistols’ seminal first show at Manchester’s Lesser Free Trade Hall in June 1976, but Steve Diggle was most definitely there. It’s where he first met Buzzcocks’ Pete Shelley and Howard Devoto and was recruited to join one of Britain’s foundational punk outfits.
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When Devoto suddenly quit less than a year later, Diggle stepped up to become Buzzcocks’ co-frontman, penning some of the era’s most enduring breakneck pop hits.
The fruitful Shelley-Diggle partnership continued on-and-off until Shelley’s death in 2018. An emotional tribute show the following year convinced Diggle to continue the band, and he wrote and sang the entirety of Buzzcocks’ 2022 album, Sonics In The Soul.
It’s been quite a ride, hence Diggle’s decision to write it all down in his memoir, Autonomy – Portrait Of A Buzzcock, due to published by Omnibus Press on August 22.
But before that, he’s kindly consented to undergo a gentle grilling from you, the Uncut readers, for our next Audience With feature. So what do you want to ask an evergreen punk-pop legend? Send your questions to audiencewith@uncut.co.uk and Steve will answer the best ones in a future issue of Uncut.
