5 Questions For... Jon Holmes

18/08/2009

Will rock band kiss 'n' tell author reveal the hottest Take That secret of all...?

How will this be different to previous Fringe shows?

It’s my first solo show, but I’ve been up before for BBC Radio 4’s The Now Show. I’m out there on my own, like Captain Oates going into the unknown.

You’ll be doing readings from your music exposé book, Rock Star Babylon. How many risks did you take?

There were some very fine lines. Penguin said it was their most libel-edited book of all time. It came back from a lawyer covered in Post-it notes with messages like, ‘We will get sued if we print this!’ When you’re talking about libel cases, it’s about whether you can prove that it is true.

What’s your favourite debauched rock star moment from the book?

One of my favourites is about Motley Crue. There’s a story about how Nikki Sixx and Tommy Lee went on a three month-long hygiene strike to see if they could still sleep with groupies every night. In the end Nikki Sixx lost because a girl threw up mid coitus because the stench was so bad.

Why did you write the book?

Partly because there are no rock troublemakers now! If you look at the glory days of Led Zeppelin when they used to ride motorbikes in hotel corridors, nothing compares.

Was there a story you wanted to print but couldn’t?

Yeah, there’s one about Take That which everyone in the industry knows to be true, but even a vague mention of it would land me in a lot of hot water…

Interview: Alex Donohue

SHOW INFO

Jon Holmes: Rock Star Babylon

Gilded Balloon Teviot, August 17-30

www.jonholmes.net