Quotes from John Lydon

I love books, and all the best ones are people analysing their own emotions. You can learn from that.

I'd love to have been born into a wealthy family. I might have turned out even more marvellous than I am now.

I love American ski resorts because they're open to everyone, are not incredibly expensive. They're not snobby and you can have fun all day long on the most excellent mountains.

I will always pay respect and homage to my early years, because that's what gave me the initial push to go on and do what it is I do. That's where I learned the love and respect for music.

I never wore a studded leather jacket, y'know. Ne-va!

These days young kids don't have any place to form an epic adventure. It's more often in front of the TV screen or a laptop. That's very hard on them. They're being taught daily unsocial skills. Facebook is an unsocial skill. It's so sad.

Until I see an Arab country, a Muslim country, with a democracy, I won't understand how anyone can have a problem with how they're treated.

Remaining childish is a tremendous state of innocence.

I've created several musical trends, really. That's not because I'm so far out and fabulous. It's because most bands have no ideas of their own. They're so desperate they'll grab at any old straw.

Punk became a circus didn't it? Everybody got it wrong. The message was supposed to be: Don't follow us, do what you want!

It's nice to be irritated. It's a very joyous thing.

You gotta bear in mind, the youth - and this is just in Britain alone - have nowhere to go in the evenings. They've closed all the social centers. There's not even a patch of grass to kick a ball on.

Listen, you know this: If there's not a rebellious youth culture, there's no culture at all. It's absolutely essential. It is the future. This is what we're supposed to do as a species, is advance ideas.

I'm not blowing my own trumpet here, but I made a rap song 20 years ago with Afrika Bambaataa.

The real color of my hair is mouse. I always want to be ginger, which I was when I was born, or blond, because I live in L.A., and I want to look like I go surfing without any physical effort.

We need wealthy dogs off the seats of power. They're taking us back to feudalism and I really don't want that. But I'm very far from being a socialist.

Freedom isn't to do what you want at somebody else's expense.

I find Lady Gaga hilarious. And I kind of like her. My heart's warmed to her.

Being born into the Royal Family is like being born into a mental asylum. Marrying into it is not something to be taken lightly.

I've always said, I thought the Sex Pistols was more Music Hall than anything else - because I think that really, more truths are said in humour than any other form.

I've been asked over the years to compile a list of desert-island discs. I couldn't do that. If I was trapped on a desert island, I don't think I'd want 10 songs to bring with me.

I could never be a member of a single party. I want the best of all worlds, thank you.

When you grew up like me and my four brothers, you end up feeling somewhat inadequate, like somehow you don't count.

When you grew up like me and my four brothers, you end up feeling somewhat inadequate, like somehow you don't count. I was very ill as a child and in and out of hospital. That sort of alienates you, and in my songs I put that to good use.