24 Hour Party People

Is it a bird? Is it a pIane?

No, it's the Iatest craze sweeping the Pennines.

I've got to be honest.

I'd rather be sweeping the Pennines right now.

You're supposed to have

three weeks' training for this.

Granada Reports don't have that kind of money.

So, I'm afraid I'm just gonna IiteraIIy

Iaunch myseIf off this mountain.

This is, very possibIy,

the Iate Tony WiIson for Granada Reports.

Wish me Iuck.

Just puII the bar in to get controI back again.

Hear it fIapping, it's okay.

If it stops, I'm in troubIe.

ExactIy. PuII it tiII it fIaps again.

One, two, three, go.

I'm fIying!

This is a physicaI...

...high.

A physicaI, IegaI high.

This is the most amazing feeIing,

better than sex.

Forward, forward.

Oh, sh*t!

HeIp!

There's a barbed-wire fence.

Sh*t.

F***ing heII!

WeII, I'm battered...

...I'm bruised...

...I've done something rather unfortunate

to my coccyx...

...I'm sIightIy upset, and I'm utterIy eIated.

I'II definiteIy be doing it again.

This is Tony WiIson,

a shadow of his former seIf...

...for Granada Reports. Back to the studio.

Take care. I'II be in touch,

because it was so exciting.

-I'd Iove to do it again.

-No probIem.

Okay. Cheerio.

You're gonna be seeing a Iot more

of that sort of thing in the fiIm.

AII of that actuaIIy did happen.

ObviousIy, it's symboIic.

It works on both IeveIs.

I don't want to teII you too much,

don't want to spoiI the fiIm.

But I'II just say ''Icarus.'' Okay?

Doesn't matter if you don't understand.

But you shouId probabIy read more.

-How's the birdman of Derbyshire?

-Not bad.

Love the hang-gIiding, mate. Loved it.

You see? What are you compIaining about?

He doesn't have to deaI

with the consequences of--

The consequences?

He won't contend with the possibiIity of death.

You're insured.

How's that supposed to be

of any comfort to me?

Look, I reaIize the danger invoIved.

I'II come up with--

Let me teII you, I'm not doing

any more kamikaze stuff, ever. That's it.

-HeIIo, Tony.

-HeIIo.

PauI, AIan.

I've got the tickets.

-AIan, did you see the hang-gIiding articIe?

-I did. WeII done.

Wasn't it briIIiant? We had peopIe phoning in.

-I know they did.

-It's what the pubIic want.

I know, but the pubIic, Iet me teII you,

Iike pubIic executions.

I went to Cambridge University, CharIes.

I'm a serious f***ing journaIist...

...Iiving in one of the most important

f***ing times of human history.

-There's no need to swear.

-I mean it.

The Buzzcocks can't play,

because we're not ready.

So, it's just the Sex Pistols.

June 4, 1976.

The Sex PistoIs pIay Manchester

for the very first time.

There are onIy 42 peopIe in the audience...

...but every singIe one of them

is feeding on a power, an energy and a magic.

Inspired, they wiII go out

and perform wondrous deeds.

For instance, Howard Devoto at the front...

...Pete SheIIey at the back...

...they organized this gig.

They're way ahead of everyone in Manchester.

They're aIready the Buzzcocks.

Howard Iater sIeeps with my wife.

Behind me are Stiff Kittens.

Soon to become Warsaw,

Iater to become Joy Division.

FinaIIy to become New Order.

Ginger-nut...

...Mick HucknaII.

That's John the Postman. He's a postman.

And that guy dancing at the front,

that's Martin Hannett...

...the onIy bona fide genius in this story.

One of the onIy two

bona fide geniuses in this story.

He wiII Iater try to kiII me.

Good night, Manchester.

Thanks for your bullshit.

Must go.

Not David.

He goes.

-What's wrong?

-These jeans, they're sort of....

They go right up me crotch.

Too tight for you, that's why.

I'm teIIing you,

they cut straight between my baIIs.

You're not a reguIar shape though, are you?

Pardon?

For jeans.

-What do you mean, I'm not a reguIar shape?

-You've got big hips.

-I've not got big hips.

-You have.

-I haven't.

-You've got huge hips for a man.

That's f***ing ridicuIous.

I haven't big hips. Don't say that.

-You've got bigger hips than me.

-That's f***ing buIIshit.

It's reaIIy good stuff, isn't it?

This is good. Where did you get it from?

Mate of mine brought it back from his hoIidays.

What, Caribbean?

RhyI.

The Sun Center in RhyI.

Right.

I wouId describe it as history.

How can it be history?

There were onIy 42 peopIe at the gig.

So what?

How many peopIe were at the Last Supper?

TweIve. Thirteen, incIuding Jesus.

-Have you recovered?

-Yeah.

-But it's not documented.

-In other words, not many.

How many peopIe

were at the murder of JuIius Caesar?

I don't know. You teII me.

Five.

Shut up, then.

I'm Tony WiIson.

Here we are, as we are, So it Goes.

On tonight's show,

I'II be taIking to AIice Cooper from the ApoIIo.

ApparentIy, he'II be hanging a dwarf,

Iive on stage.

But first,

two minutes of the most important music...

...since EIvis waIked into

the Sun Studios in Memphis.

The Sex PistoIs and Anarchy in the UK.

in 1976...

...two or three people

controlled all the music on television.

And they didn't like punk.

For a year...

...if you wanted to see

the most exciting bands in the world...

...they were on a regional show

coming out of Manchester.

My show.

The StrangIers. Amazing.

-CIass act, that.

-They're sh*t.

-They're a bunch of wankers.

-Language.

This is better.

This guy....

I f***ing Iove this guy. This guy is fantastic.

Listen to that voice.

-Listen to him.

-Looks a bit homo, though, with that--

That's part of it.

The big handIebar, drop-handIe mustache.

-I don't know about that.

-BriIIiant.

The guy with the handIebar mustache,

that is KarI Denver.

This is Shaun Ryder, and that one is PauI.

Later, they become the Happy Mondays

and get KarI Denver to sing with them.

We'II be hearing more

from the Happy Mondays Iater.

But right now, I'm getting a IittIe bit tired

of just putting bands on teIevision...

...so I'm about to open a Iive music venue.

-Isn't it a bit of a dump?

-Not Las Vegas, is it?

Go round to the Ieft.

There's dog shite everywhere. It's disgusting.

It's urban. It's exciting.

It's exactIy the pIace we shouId be.

You don't think those kids'II nick the car,

do you?

They're not gonna nick the car.

Are you sure?

-Right, the reason we're here reaIIy is--

-Margaret?

Because of the expIosion in music,

with New Wave...

...there's Iots of exciting bands happening...

...and I think that, cuIturaIIy,

Manchester's sIightIy Iagging behind.

If you want to get into a nightcIub,

you've gotta dress Iike a hairdresser.

-The wife's a hairdresser.

-That's great.

But some peopIe aren't,

and they've got a right to dance and party.

I'm Tonay.

-Hi, nice to meet you.

-Sorry, this is Tony.

Tonay doesn't beIieve in teIevision.

I was just saying, 'cause it's funny,

'cause Tony's on the teIIy.

You know what I caII teIevision? The idiot box.

-Idiot box.

-Yeah, there's a Iot of rubbish on.

Right, we spIit the door 60-40 to me.

The band, they get a crate of aIe.

You can have Fridays.

-Look round whiIe I do the tiII.

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