Author Archives: writewyattuk

About writewyattuk

This is the online home of author, writer and editor Malcolm Wyatt, who has books on The Jam, Slade and The Clash under his belt and many more writing projects on the go, as well as regularly uploading feature-interviews and reviews right here. These days he's living his best life with his better half in West Cornwall after their three decades together in Lancashire, this Surrey born and bred scribe initially heading north after five years of 500-mile round-trips on the back of a Turkish holiday romance in 1989. Extremely proud of his two grown-up daughters, he's also a foster carer and a dog lover, spending any spare time outside all that catching up with other family and friends, supporting Woking FC, planning adventures and travels, further discovering his adopted county, and seeing as much of this big old world as time allows. He can be contacted at thedayiwasthere@gmail.com and various social media online portals, mostly involving that @writewyattuk handle.

Looking back at 2018. Part one – the first six months

Posted on December 30, 2018 by writewyattuk

As another busy year draws to a close, let’s take a trawl through 2018’s WriteWyattUK feature/interviews, selecting a few choice quotes from within, starting with the half-year up to … well, in the words of Neil and Tim Finn, ‘You … Continue reading →

Posted in Uncategorized | Tagged Action Records, Ajay Saggar, Bill Bailey, Chas and Dave, Chas Hodges, Chris Hewitt, Chumbawamba, Damian O'Neill, Darron Robinson, Dave Peacock, Dave Robinson, Dave Wakeling, David Baddiel, Days of Future Passed, Deeply Vale, Donald Trump, Dunstan Bruce, Fun Boy Three, Gaz Birtles, Gordon Gibson, Gretchen Peters, Heather Small, Holly Ross, hygge, Interrobang, JC Carroll, Justin Hayward, Knebworth Park, Lee Thompson, Levellers, London, M People, Madness, Mark Chadwick, Mark E Smith, Mark Steel, Mary Whitehouse Experience, Oasis, Ocean Colour Scene, One Man's Madness, Preston, Rick Buckler, Roddy Radiation, Simon Fowler, Steve Smith, Stiff Records, The Beat, The Clash, The Common Cold, The Fall, The Jam, The Lovely Eggs, The Members, The Moody Blues, The Sha La La's, The Sound of the Suburbs, The South, The Specials, The Swinging Laurels, The Undertones, The Vapors, The Wesleys, Tom Williams, Top of the Pops, Wilko Johnson | Leave a comment

Stars in her eyes – the Bianca Kinane-Ewart interview

Posted on December 27, 2018 by writewyattuk

You can know a person a long time before you learn more about them. And such was the case for me with a professional singer as good as on my doorstep in Lancashire. I’d seen Bianca Kinane-Ewart out and about … Continue reading →

Posted in Books Films, TV & Radio, Comedy & Theatre, Music | Tagged Bianca Kinane-Ewart, BRIT School, Chris White, Clonmel, Croydon, Gary Barlow, Jools Holland, lancashire, Leyland, Mardigra sBombers, Mariah Carey, Penetration, Pet Shop Boys, Pete Waterman, poly Styrene, Preston, PWL, Rico Rodriguez, Stars in Their Eyes, Thank You For The Music, The Continental, Tina Turner, Tipperary, Zombies | 3 Comments

Celebrating 40 years of All Mod Cons with From The Jam

Posted on December 13, 2018 by writewyattuk

Somehow, while based in Lancashire for nearly 25 years now, I’d never visited The Grand in Clitheroe until last month, yet now I’ve caught two great bands there within a month, with two of my teenage heroes visiting – Hugh … Continue reading →

Posted in Books Films, TV & Radio, Music | Tagged All Mod Cons, Andy Fairclough, Blondie, Bruce Foxton, Buzzcocks, Clitheroe, Down in the Tube Station at Midnight, Give 'Em Enough Rope, Love Bites, Mike Randon, paul weller, Pete Shelley, Ramones, Rick Buckler, Russell Hastings, The Clash, The Grand, The Kinks, The Stranglers, The Who | 6 Comments

Introducing This Day in Music’s Guide to The Clash

Posted on December 9, 2018 by writewyattuk

It’s finally out there, nine months after I delivered the majority of the words, and a year and three-quarters after my first online hint about the project. This Day in Music’s Guide to The Clash is available from Amazon or online/in … Continue reading →

Posted in Books Films, TV & Radio, Music | Tagged Chris Salewicz, Damian O'Neill, Don Letts, Joe Strummer, Johnny Green, Julien Temple, Keith Topping, London, Lucinda Mellor, Marcus Gray, Mick Jones, Pat Gilbert, Paul Simonon, Robert Gordon McHarg III, Terry Chimes, The Bad and The Queen, The Clash, The Good, The Undertones, This Day in Music's Guide to The Clash, Topper Headon | 13 Comments

Old, new, hallowed and true – back in touch with Slade legend Dave Hill

Posted on December 7, 2018 by writewyattuk

If it’s December, Slade must be doing the rounds again, in the post Holder/Lea configuration they’ve worked in for 25-plus years. And it’s not long after ‘Super Yob’ guitar hero Dave Hill calls me from his home in the Black … Continue reading →

Posted in Books Films, TV & Radio, Music | Tagged Andy Scott, Anthony Keates, Dave Hill, Don Powell, Erling Kagge, Falkland Islands, Israel, Jim lea, Merry Xmas Everybody, Noddy Holder, Russia, Slade, So Here It Is, Solihull, Tarmac, Who Do You Think You Are, wolverhampton | 1 Comment

Sweet inspirations, five decades on – the Andy Scott interview

Posted on December 5, 2018 by writewyattuk

Can it really be half a century since the pre-glam incarnation of The Sweet threw their first chord shapes, and 45 years since the era-defining ’Blockbuster’ saw the band in their pomp top the UK charts? What’s more, it’s … Continue reading →

Posted in Books Films, TV & Radio, Comedy & Theatre, Football, Music | Tagged Andy Scott, Ballroom Blitz, Blockbuster, Brian Connolly, Bruce Bisland, Don Powell, glam rock, Jimi Hendrix Experience, Love Affair, Mayfield's Mule, Mick Tucker, Mike Chapman, Nicky Chinn, Novatines, Pete Lincoln, Redcar, Rock against Cancer, Roger McGough, Slade, Spinal Tap, Steve Priest, Suzi Quatro, Sweet, Teenage Rampage, The Elastic Band, The Scaffold, The Silver Stones, The Sweet, Tony O'Hora, Wrexham, Wrexham FC | 3 Comments

Christine and the Queens – Manchester Apollo

Posted on December 4, 2018 by writewyattuk

She may be less than five feet tall, but Héloïse Letissier commands a mighty on-stage presence, endearing and quirky yet very much in charge and assured. I’m guessing that state of mind only came with life experience, but her worldly-wise … Continue reading →

Posted in Books Films, TV & Radio, Comedy & Theatre, Music | Tagged Camille Dalmais, Chaleur Humaine, Chris, Christine and the Queens, France, Girlfriend, Héloïse Letissier, Janet Jackson, Michael Jackson, Nantes, Tilted | 2 Comments

The Members – The Star and Garter, Manchester

Posted on November 27, 2018 by writewyattuk

If you’ve seen The Members on a bill recently, it’s understandable if you felt sceptical about a line-up without lead singer Nicky Tesco, that voice and charismatic energy a key component of what this band were about. But there in … Continue reading →

Posted in Music | Tagged At the Chelsea Nightclub, Calle Englemarc, Camberley, Chris Payne, Ingrrland, JC Carroll, Manchester, Nick Cash, Offshore Banking Business, Solitary Confinement, Star and Garter, Surrey, The Members, The Sound of the Suburbs | 1 Comment

The Cardigans: from indie roots to Gran Turismo and beyond – the Nina Persson interview

Posted on November 23, 2018 by writewyattuk

Nina Persson was between rehearsals with The Cardigans at home in Malmö when I called, getting set for four UK dates revisiting the band’s best-selling album Gran Turismo in full, 20 years on. Including the singles ‘Hanging Around’, ‘Erase/Rewind’ and ‘My … Continue reading →

Posted in Books Films, TV & Radio, Music | Tagged Emmerdale, First Band on the Moon, Gran Turismo, Jönköping, Life, Lovefool, Malmö, Nina Persson, Stina Nordenstam, Super Extra Gravity, Sweden, The Cardigans, The Smiths, The Sundays | 5 Comments

The Comeback: Elvis and the Story of the ’68 Special by Simon Goddard – a WriteWyattUK review

Posted on November 19, 2018 by writewyattuk

I wasn’t quite sure what to make of The Comeback: Elvis and the Story of the ’68 Special at first. I felt I already knew plenty about the event and circumstances surrounding it, even though I was barely a year … Continue reading →

Posted in Books Films, TV & Radio, Music | Tagged Allan Blye, Bob Finkel, Bobby Kennedy, Chris Beard, Colonel Tom Parker, Elvis 68 Special, Elvis Presley, Graceland, Harry Belafonte, Martin Luther King, NBC, Omnibus Press, Simon Goddard, Steve Binder, The Comeback: Elvis and the Story of the ’68 Special | Leave a comment