Simon Goddard interview - @marriedtothemoz

An extensive Simon Goddard interview at @marriedtothemoz in two parts:

Fifteen minutes with… Simon Goddard, author of Mozipedia PART ONE
Fifteen minutes with… Simon Goddard, author of Mozipedia PART TWO

 

[Skylarker]

New Simon Goddard Interview

He's quite great.

 

[John Reed]

Great stuff... fantastic to read, but not what I imagined Simon Goddard would look like... don't know why.

 

[123xyz]

Goddard really comes across as a different kettle of fish altogether from Rogan. It's great he appears to see writing a (fantastic) book about Morrissey isn't a license to ingratiate himself. Enjoyed the read, thanks for posting...

 

[joe frady]

What a charming man.

I have always felt that close connection between Morrissey, in his totality, and Colin Smith (as rendered by Tom Courtenay) in the closing scene of 'The Loneliness of the Long Distance Runner'. Ever since I was first astonished by the film twenty odd years ago I sensed a certain Morrissey-ness about that searing finalé.

Smith's won the race, victory is assured, he knows he is miles ahead of the field. Yet he chooses to lose. In front of figures of authority (Michael Redgrave's headmaster, as well as the borstal's wealthy patrons) and friends alike (his fellow borstal boys) Smith decides to stop running. As the top toff eventually passes him to take the prize Courtenay even does this half exhausted / half deferential bow, as if to say 'I am allowing you to win'; a quite sublime gesture of physical acting. Redgrave watches in disgust as he realises precisely what Smith is doing, before turning away in fury. His peers, denied an historic victory over the upper classes, are baying for his blood. And Smith just stands there, smiling, and wipes the sweat from his brow.

With the critics and fans alike often baying for his blood I've always sensed a bit of Smith in Morrissey. And he knows it; "Unlimited self-sabotage", etcetera...

 

[Anonymous]

Uneducated question...so is Simon Goddard the same as "uncleskinny"? Maybe I misunderstood

 

[Southport Grandma]

One of johnny marr's new songs features a sample from " the loneliness..."

 

[Giselle]

I have always felt that close connection between Morrissey, in his totality, and Colin Smith (as rendered by Tom Courtenay) in the closing scene of 'The Loneliness of the Long Distance Runner'. Ever since I was first astonished by the film twenty odd years ago I sensed a certain Morrissey-ness about that searing finalé.

Smith's won the race, victory is assured, he knows he is miles ahead of the field. Yet he chooses to lose. In front of figures of authority (Michael Redgrave's headmaster, as well as the borstal's wealthy patrons) and friends alike (his fellow borstal boys) Smith decides to stop running. As the top toff eventually passes him to take the prize Courtenay even does this half exhausted / half deferential bow, as if to say 'I am allowing you to win'; a quite sublime gesture of physical acting. Redgrave watches in disgust as he realises precisely what Smith is doing, before turning away in fury. His peers, denied an historic victory over the upper classes, are baying for his blood. And Smith just stands there, smiling, and wipes the sweat from his brow.

With the critics and fans alike often baying for his blood I've always sensed a bit of Smith in Morrissey. And he knows it; "Unlimited self-sabotage", etcetera...

So well put. Those parallels between Courtenay and Morrissey are indeed so striking and maddening. Not much more I can add.

 

[miss anna]

I too agree. The parallels are indeed thought provoking. Once there was a time when Morrissey was a runner too. I think it was sprint rather than long distance, but didn't he say the 100 metres was his raison d'etre or something? Even titles like Years Of Refusal suggest that same unwillingness to conform just for the sake of it.

 

[Johnny Barleycorn]

Ernie (The Fastest Milkman In The West) has one of the finest lyrics in popular music. l

 

[joe frady]

Uneducated question...so is Simon Goddard the same as "uncleskinny"? Maybe I misunderstood

He wishes!

 

[Anonymous]

Is it me, or does the interviewer, Julie, come off as an annoying drunk? I found her to be distracting. When you interview someone, you should not try to inject yourself in the interview, you're an observer and then you write succinctly what you observe and hear. Injecting yourself is OK for some style I guess, but it needs to be done tastefully. Julie acts like Simon is a real celebrity, which he's not. She acts as if he's Elvis Presley. Take a breath, dear, stop gushing. This is why journalism is dead, all this online shit is garbage, these blogs are pure trash. Get a clue.

 

[Uncleskinny]

Is it me, or does the interviewer, Julie, come off as an annoying drunk? I found her to be distracting. When you interview someone, you should not try to inject yourself in the interview, you're an observer and then you write succinctly what you observe and hear. Injecting yourself is OK for some style I guess, but it needs to be done tastefully. Julie acts like Simon is a real celebrity, which he's not. She acts as if he's Elvis Presley. Take a breath, dear, stop gushing. This is why journalism is dead, all this online shit is garbage, these blogs are pure trash. Get a clue.

Well, you're on your own there. Well done on writing the words, though.

P.

 

[Media Whore]

Is it me, or does the interviewer, Julie, come off as an annoying drunk? I found her to be distracting. When you interview someone, you should not try to inject yourself in the interview, you're an observer and then you write succinctly what you observe and hear. Injecting yourself is OK for some style I guess, but it needs to be done tastefully. Julie acts like Simon is a real celebrity, which he's not. She acts as if he's Elvis Presley. Take a breath, dear, stop gushing. This is why journalism is dead, all this online shit is garbage, these blogs are pure trash. Get a clue.

Well, you're on your own there. Well done on writing the words, though.

P.

Anon. is not alone in the slightest. I couldn't agree more.

 

[Dave2006]

The highlight of the interview was Goddard's sketch of Highgate

Quite a talent

Dave

 

[Anonymous]

I agree too. Goddard is a two-bit journo who wrote a watery book about The Smiths and made a Wikipedia scrapbook about Morrissey. He's as famous as an extra from Emmerdale Farm.

 

[goinghome]

There's a lot of substance, and plenty of genuine interesting details in this. For example, this caught my eye, once again, perhaps, proving Malcolm Gladwell's theories of outliers?!

My great-great-great grandfather designed paisley shawls. His archives are now in the V&A along with his son, my great-great-great uncle, a late Victorian artist called George Charles Haite. He knew Oscar Wilde - I’ve seen Wilde’s letters to him - and he drew the cover of a famous Victorian magazine called ‘The Strand’ which gave the world Sherlock Holmes. And he was an art critic as well so I think we can blame his genes for my career.

 

[Anonymous]

Writing about his star sign and interjecting 'Ohh yeaaah!' - this is a sixth former in love with her own gush, interviewing a no-mark. I wonder why this never made it into the print of a newspaper.

 

[Uncleskinny]

Writing about his star sign and interjecting 'Ohh yeaaah!' - this is a sixth former in love with her own gush, interviewing a no-mark. I wonder why this never made it into the print of a newspaper.

Because it was never meant to be a Newspaper article, she did it off her own back for her own blog. Sheesh.

P.

 

[joe frady]

ffs ~ it ain't 'The Paris Review'. It's just a fun Moz blog interview with a very nice Moz writer. End of.