I met Hooky once at a Monaco gig.
He might have been having a bad day, but he was pretty rude and made me wish I’d never approached him.

I guess it must sometimes be annoying having people approach you when you’re not in the mood.
However, he was hanging out front of stage at a Monaco gig prior to his set; on his own, having a beer. Probably not the best place to avoid New Order fans (he was quite likely to have people approach him).
I was polite and friendly and not at all gushing. Yet he was really arsey and rude.

Kind of put me off him a bit (daft, I know). I knew he had a bit of a reputation for being awkward / belligerent at times, but it still kind of hurt.

Also saw Gillian once and really, really wanted to go and see her but she was with family, so thought it best not to disturb.

Met Tony Wilson once. Very friendly and happy to chat (obviously 😀 ). A great guy.

Saw Rob Gretton once, but didn’t speak as he looked busy.

Edited by user 04 April 2018 04:39:24(UTC)  | Reason: Typos, again...

I met Hooky in 2000 before a Monaco gig through a mate who knew Twinny.
He had a few drinks with us (vodka, lime & soda) was a really nice bloke and didn't mind how many people came up with stuff for him to sign or requests to get on the guest list.
A young Jack and his sister Heather were knocking about too, adding to the friendly vibe.

Seems such a long time ago given everything post-Sirens, but there you are.



I met Rob once in the Britons Protection. He was pissed but in good form.

I must have caught him on a bad day.

Or maybe I’m a complete, obnoxious twat and don’t know it...

This makes me feel old but... I remember Smash Hits magazine doing a feature on artist fan clubs: Details of their address, what you get if you sign up etc.
For New Order I think they gave the address but not much else. The next issue a reader wrote in to say he had sent an enthusiastic letter to New Order and then got a reply scribbled on the back of his envelope from Hooky. It basically said: Fuck off, we don't have a fan club, don't send demanding letters like this.
I think Smash Hits then contacted NO and indeed had confirmation that they thought the fan letter was out of order so responded acordingly.
I am of course paraphrasing this story, it dates back to about 1985, so um, don't sue me for libel Hooky!

Well Smash Hits was mostly aimed at teenagers and I suspect the fan in question was guilty of nothing more than enthusiasm - something that most artists would perhaps recognise and appreciate. But not Hooky! So maybe it's not just you Perspex Orange, maybe it was him.

I suspect you can find this story online either in Rock's Back Pages, which you have to suscribe to (googling: smash hits new order fan club letter Hook shows me the cached words: ""WE GOT a letter last week," Peter Hook, the bearded and occasionally belligerent bass player, the one who answers all New Order fan mail, is ...") Or somewhere in these Smash Hits scans
But I'm too lazy to find the definitive link.

I’ve posted these before on these pages......

Met hooky back in 1990 as part of Revenge. Really sound bloke, watched England vs Germany semi finals before he would play. I was only 17 then so a bit nervous my mate spoke to him more but he was really sound and signed everything you stuck in front of him.

Met Stephen and Gillian at a cold cave/ factory floor gig at Deaf institute back in 2009. Spoke for about half an hour and they then called me over as they left for another chat. Cannot speak highly enough of them. I think it made it better it wasn’t a new order event so they were very relaxed and nobody else seemed to know who they were. Spoke to Gillian’s sister for ages thinking it was Gillian! I was a bit stoned to say that he least.... she does really look like her though. meting those two is my favourite celebrity moment.

Met Bernard at BL gig and shook his hand... also went to book signing he did but mind went blanksaid something crap and went on my way.

She gets that quite a lot, I understand, but always takes it in good spirit.

Mind you, the REAL test of respect for the fans is how you treat them. And judging by Hook's passion and commitment to the Light...

PART 1--
I reported here some time in the past, that after driving 4 hours and arriving at the venue parking lot in Dallas around 4pm, a few seconds later Bernard pops out of the rear exit of the building. So, it is just myself and
a guy with an armful of LPs ,who shouts at Bernard, to come over and sign some record albums.

Bernard hollered back that 2 hours previously he had signed those LPs .

The guy pleaded again
So Bernard walks over .
Then , while signing , the guy asks B to sign with several different pens of various colors . I am looking on wondering if and hoping Bernard would not lose it, , but no, he instead asked me what I want.
I thanked him for the massive amount of great songs that contribute to my daily happiness.
He said" cheers mate" As he kept signing , i wished i could have given him a cookie or a bit of chocolate , but I did not have any.
PART 2
Months later I drove to Austin and there ,a few hours early , parked a few blocks away from the venue . Steve and Gillian were right there walking toward the venue as I put coins in parking meter. I thanked them for the songs and how they contribute to my happiness ,and they stopped briefly and among other topics remembered Peter De Freitas fondly

Part 3-- Months later, I flew to LA, and drove to Santa Barbara.At their hotel restaurant I was enjoying a burger and looked up and
noticed Phil and Tom were a few feet away looking thru a telescope at the sea , marina ,etc. and Bernard was several more yards away and i like to think he noticed and remembered me . Tom was kind to give me an orange plectrum with superpowers .
So ,they are each most wonderful ,and I hope to thank Peter some day ,too.

So,my advice is -- be polite, offer them cookies or milka chocolate bars , maybe mention beluga whales and narwals -- Bernard 's favourite animals after osprey, puffins , grizzly bears and honey badgers.He likes to collect fridge magnets and enjoys tickling, but less so being tickled