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The Guardian - UK
The Guardian - UK
Entertainment
Tim Jonze

‘I know what it’s like to be frightened’: John Lydon on loneliness, lyrics and life as a Sex Pistol

John Lydon photographed at home in Los Angeles, may 2022
‘Behind all those screens of state is a person and she’s managed rather bravely and wonderfully’ … John Lydon on the Queen, at home in Los Angeles. Photograph: Daniel Gonçalves/The Guardian

“I always panic,” says an unexpectedly anxious John Lydon. He has had the challenging task of connecting to this video call, all by himself, from his home in California, and he seems surprised that he has managed it. “I’ve got bad eyesight anyway, so I don’t know what I’m looking at.”

The 66-year-old hasn’t entirely lost that love of riling up an audience that he first displayed with the Sex Pistols. Later, I will get a dose of his current pro-Trump, anti-woke outlook. But increasingly, he is a man with a degree of vulnerability laid bare.

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