Sex Pistols’ Johnny Rotten Actually ‘Proud of the Queen’ for ‘Surviving + ‘Doing So Well’
Once upon a time, Sex Pistols' Johnny Rotten sang "God Save the Queen," a song viewed as a rant against England's monarchy which was timed for release in 1977 in the events surrounding Queen Elizabeth II's Silver Jubilee celebration. But during a recent chat with Piers Morgan for Piers Morgan Uncensored on U.K.'s Talk TV, Rotten (aka John Lydon) offered a little clarification on his feelings about the Queen.
When Morgan started up a discussion on Lydon's views of the Royal Family, bringing up the Sex Pistols' "God Save the Queen," the singer stated, "It's anti-royalist, but it's not anti-human."
"I've got to tell the world this. Everyone presumes that I'm against the royal family as human beings, I'm not. I'm actually really, really proud of the queen for surviving and doing so well," said Lydon, while also raising his hand to his brow with a salute. "I applaud her for that and that's a fantastic achievement. I'm not a curmudgeon about that."
That said, he defended his stance within the song, stating, "I just think that if I'm paying my tax money to support this system I should have a say so in how it's spent."
The Queen is currently 96 years old and has had some health issues of late, including a battle with COVID. As for what that means in terms of the Royal Family's future, Lydon offered, "I think it's possibly the end of the monarchy because Prince Charles is not going to be able to handle it. This is the man who plays Pink Floyd to his cabbages."
He adds, "That's a shame too, cause I do love pageantry. I'm a football fan, how could I not? I like watching royal weddings because I love watching spitfires and B-52s and the like flying over the palace. I get quite emotional with all that. I love me country, I love me people and everything about it, but if there's problems in it, I think I have the right to say so."