John Lydon has reacted angrily to his former Sex Pistols bandmates, who he believes are 'shamelessly' trying to 'cash in' on the death of the Queen with their infamous single 'God Save The Queen'.
The 66-year-old, who shot to fame under the stage name Johnny Rotten, was the band's frontman when they released the track in 1977 to coincide with Elizabeth II's Silver Jubilee.
But now, the singer says promoting the track at the present time would be 'disrespectful' towards the Royal Family.
A statement on his Twitter account read: "John Lydon wishes to distance himself from any Sex Pistols activity which aims to cash in on Queen Elizabeth II's death. The musicians in the band and their management have approved a number of requests against John's wishes on the basis of the majority court-ruling agreement.
"In John's view, the timing for endorsing any Sex Pistols requests for commercial gain in connection with 'God Save The Queen' in particular is tasteless and disrespectful to the Queen and her family at this moment in time.
"John wrote the lyrics to this historical song, and while he has never supported the monarchy, he feels that the family deserves some respect in this difficult time, as would be expected for any other person or family when someone close to them has died.
"Rest in Peace Queen Elizabeth II. Send her victorious."
The band responded by denying it was actively seeking to profit labelling Lydon's comments as 'baffling'.
A spokesperson told the MailOnline : "We cannot understand what [John] would be referring to. Other than a couple requests for use of imagery or audio in news reports on the Queen and her impact on culture, there's nothing new relating to God Save The Queen being promoted or released in any way."
Do you have a story to sell? Get in touch with us at webcelebs@mirror.co.uk or call us direct 0207 29 33033.
