respect the classics

The Smiths, Like the Queen, Are Dead

Photo: Clare Muller/Redferns

Johnny Marr took one look at the proposal to reunite the Smiths and thought, respectfully, the more enticing option would be getting hit by a double-decker bus. That’s according to Morrissey himself, who — likely encouraged to say something due to the Gallagher brothers’ biblical truce for an Oasis reunion — wrote on his website that the duo had been presented with a “lucrative offer†to tour worldwide as the Smiths in 2025. “Morrissey said yes to the offer, Marr ignored the offer,†the bitchy statement reads. “Morrissey undertakes a largely sold out tour of the USA in November. Marr continues to tour as a special guest to New Order.†Marr previously admitted that he had interest in a reunion tour and that it was a “very real prospect†in the late aughts, but the duo harbored a more acrimonious relationship in the ensuing years with the guitarist now admitting personal and political differences had pushed them apart as friends. (The band’s bassist, Andy Rourke, died in 2023.) Even before Morrissey’s statement, Marr trolled a fan on social media with a sloshed photo of British arse Nigel Farage when the fan expressed optimism that the Oasis reunion could tempt the Smiths. Meanwhile, Rick Astley is waiting for the papal conclave to crown him as the next front man.

The Smiths, Like the Queen, Are Dead