Pete Shelley
Acting
Biography
Pete Shelley (born Peter Campbell McNeish; 17 April 1955 – 6 December 2018) was an English singer, songwriter and guitarist. He formed early punk band Buzzcocks with Howard Devoto in 1976, and became the lead singer and guitarist in 1977 when Devoto left. The group released their biggest hit "Ever Fallen in Love (With Someone You Shouldn't've)" in 1978. The band broke up in 1981 and reformed at the end of the decade. Shelley also had a solo career; his song "Homosapien" charted in Australasia and Canada in 1981 and 1982. Shelley was born to Margaret and John McNeish in Leigh, Lancashire. His mother was an ex-mill worker in the town and his father was a fitter at Astley Green Colliery. He had a younger brother, Gary. Shelley's stage name is inspired by Percy Bysshe Shelley, his favourite poet. Shelley formed Buzzcocks with Howard Devoto after they met at the Bolton Institute of Technology (now the University of Bolton) in 1975 and subsequently travelled to High Wycombe, near London, to see the Sex Pistols. The band included bass guitarist Steve Diggle and drummer John Maher; they made their first appearance in 1976 in Manchester, opening for the Sex Pistols. In 1977 Buzzcocks released their first EP, Spiral Scratch, on their independent label, New Hormones. When Devoto left the band in February 1977, Shelley took over as the lead vocalist and chief songwriter. Working with the producer Martin Rushent, the band created the punk/new wave singles "Orgasm Addict", "What Do I Get?" and "Ever Fallen in Love (With Someone You Shouldn't've)", along with three LPs: Another Music in a Different Kitchen (1978), Love Bites (1978) and A Different Kind of Tension (1979). Difficulties with their record company and a dispute with Virgin Publishing over the UK release of their greatest hits record, Singles Going Steady, brought the band to a halt in 1981. Shelley developed a different personal image from many of his rebellious 1970s punk contemporaries, telling Melody Maker in 1978, "I won't be nasty. We're just four nice lads, the kind of people you could take home to your parents."
Known For
Never Mind the Buzzcocks is a comedy panel game show with a pop and rock music theme. The show is infamous for its dry, sarcastic humour and scathing, provocative attacks on the pop industry.
Never Mind the Buzzcocks
A definitive landmark series charting the emergence and re-emergence of rock music as a global force, told through the musicians who have shaped this most enduring of genres.
Seven Ages of Rock
Riverside was a TV series broadcast on BBC2 in the United Kingdom featuring musicians, bands, actors, fashion designers, artists and comedians. It consisted of sketches, interviews and live performances. Guests included Alice Cooper, Steve Strange, Martin Rushent, Alan Adler, Clare Grogan, Paul Weller, Martin Fry, The Cure, The Smiths, New Order and Pauline Black.
Riverside
A chronological account of the influential late 1970s English rock band.
Joy Division
Paul and Kim meet when their vehicles collide. Paul is fascinated with the attractive Kim. It turns out that the two were childhood friends in Catholic boys' school, but back then, before the operation, Kim was named Karl.
Different for Girls
This documentary on rock 'n' roll groupies, including the infamous Plaster Casters, features performances (musical) by such bands as Ten Years After, Terry Reid, Spooky Tooth, and Cat Mother.
Groupies
Two teenagers are drawn together by the Buzzcocks' single 'Love You More' during the summer of 1978.
Love You More
Carol Morley returns to Manchester, where in the early 1980s, five years of her life were lost in an alcoholic blur. The Alcohol Years is a poetic retrieval of that time, in which rediscovered friends and acquaintances recount tales of her drunken and promiscuous behavior. In Morley’s search for her lost self, conflicting memories and viewpoints weave in and out, revealing a portrait of the city, its pop culture, and the people who lived it.
The Alcohol Years
An examination into Factory Records. The members of New Order interview founders Tony Wilson and Martin Hannett, who speak on the philosophical and cultural purpose of their label, and their associates, who mostly appear frustrated or confused. Rob Gretton, Factory founder and manager of New Order, interviews himself. Also includes three live performances of New Order at the Haçienda.
Factory: Play at Home
An archive celebration of studio performances from the British bands that broke through courtesy of punk between 1975 and 1982. Starting with Dr Feelgood and Eddie and the Hot Rods and culminating in Gang of Four, with performances from Top of the Pops, The Old Grey Whistle Test, Something Else and other shows by The Sex Pistols, The Clash, The Buzzcocks, The Damned, Joy Division, Siouxsie and the Banshees and many more. Hey ho, let's go!
Punk Britannia at the BBC
Brass Tacks was a current affairs programme shown on BBC2 between 1977 and 1988. On this episode called Punk Rock, broadcast on 3rd August 1977, it focuses on the Manchester Punk scene, bands and its iconic club, The Electric Circus.
Brass Tacks: Punk Rock
A look at the life of John Cooper Clarke. From his rise as a 'punk poet', through his heroin addiction, and finally to his comeback.
Evidently... John Cooper Clarke
Live recording of English punk band The Buzzcock's 1981 concert in Hamburg, featuring some of their best-known hits including 'Why She's a Girl from a Chainstore', 'Strange Thing' and 'Ever Fallen in Love'.
Buzzcocks - Auf Wiedersehen
The programme includes The Damned’s set-smashing performance on The Old Grey Whistle Test and the Sex Pistols' anarchic trip on the Thames. It also features powerful live performances from Iggy Pop, Patti Smith, Gang of Four, Linton Kwesi Johnson, Tubeway Army, Ian Dury and the Blockheads, Siouxsie and the Banshees, Soft Cell, The Selecter, Joy Division and the Au Pairs. In addition, there are gems from The New York Dolls, The Fall, Blondie, Pete Shelley, The Police, Devo, X-Ray Spex, Klaus Nomi, Laurie Anderson and many more.
Punk and New Wave Years with Annie Nightingale
Recorded in 1986, Pete Shelley (the leader of the seminal punk band The Buzzcocks) performs solo as part of the 'Live from London' series.
Live From London: Pete Shelley
The Buzzcocks filmed live at the Shepherds Bush Empire in 2003. Tracks include: 'Boredom', 'Fast Cars', 'I Don't Mind', 'Love Battery', 'Autonomy', 'Harmony in My Head' and 'Sitting Around at Home'.
Buzzcocks: Live at The Shepherd's Bush Empire
An assortment of promo videos, studio footage, TV appearances and live concert footage from 1978-89. Excerpts of interviews with Pete Shelley and Steve Diggle are between the music tracks and interrupt a few of the tracks themselves.