'I'd like to apologise to the entire human race. I have managed to offend everyone': Inside the head of... John Lydon

The wild man of punk is a born survivor: he came through a coma aged seven, narrowly avoided the Lockerbie bombing and is proudest of outliving The Sex Pistols. His dream dinner date? The Queen, of course – ‘there’s so much to sort out there!



 

What is your earliest memory? My dad holding me in his arms in Highbury Fields, Islington, when I was less than a year old. When Mum went into hospital to give birth to one of my younger brothers, I was left with Dad. 

I remember that moment because we were very close. What sort of child were you? Very quiet and studious. I could read and write by the age of four. 
By 11, I was reading Crime And Punishment. 

I grew up in a poor neighbourhood in north London. Mum was always ill – endless miscarriages didn’t help – and Dad often worked away as a crane driver, so it was my responsibility to look after the household.

 I was botty-wiping for my three younger brothers from an early age, but somebody had to do it and I liked the responsibility. It’s instinctively in me to look out for people. What has been your biggest achievement? Getting my band, Public Image Ltd, together. 

Despite the Sex Pistols falling apart and the ridiculous court cases that ensued, I still managed to form a new band, raise the finances and secure a record deal.
 I’m prouder of that than of anything I did in the Pistols because it came out of a much more difficult situation. And your biggest disappointment? Contracting spinal meningitis when I was seven. 
I developed very bad headaches, dizzy spells, fainting fits and started imagining things – like green dragons breathing fire. 
One morning I blacked out and went into a coma. 

When I woke up in hospital seven months later, I’d lost my use of language. 
I thought I was formulating words, but I was just making noises.

 I lost most of my memory, too. I couldn’t even remember my own name, let alone recognise my parents, and I often forgot my way home from school. Reading in the local library saved me. It seemed to kick-start my memory and I realised I was the same person I had been before I’d lost everything. 

But the pain of that period remains with me. Read more: http://www.dailymail.co.uk/home/event/article-2960103/John-Lydon-says-d-like-apologise-entire-human-race.html#ixzz3STDlPqG5 Follow us: @MailOnline on Twitter | DailyMail on Facebook