Cuttings

THE OUTSIDER Behind the steely myth and intense music, the Joy Division story remains a dark riddle wrapped inside the enigma of frontman Ian Curtis 's early death. Pat Gilbert unravels a twisted tale of depression, black humour, infidelity and sickness. IN OCTOBER 1979, JOY DIVISION CLIMBED into Steve Morris’s Olympic blue Ford Cortina and headed off on their first major UK tour. For the next six weeks they would be supporting the Buzzcocks at 2,500-seater venues across the country. Befitting a group on a small Manchester independent label, money was tight. Up north, they drove home after the gigs, feasting on the backstage booty of butties and crisps. The damp autumn weather and lack of luxuries resulted in numerous muttered complaints. Yet, despite their austere public image, life on the road with Joy Division was never dull. In fact, it was pure Spinal Tap, with perhaps a dash of Coronation Street. “We were like kids in a sweetshop,” grins Steve Morris. “They gave you a fr