Thread by @FolkDevil1

Since it's #NationalComingOutDay - @NME lied about Morrissey's 1992 Madstock gig because Skrewdriver's roadie & ex National Front organizer, Nicky Crane had just come out as gay on a @Channel4 documentary about gay skinhead subculture called the Skin Complex.

Madness lead singer, Suggs, had been friends with Skrewdriver's lead singer, Ian Stuart Donaldson, before Skrewdriver rebranded as neo-Nazi in 1982 and Madness was rumoured to have a National Front following.

The National Front was outside the Madstock gig venue to attack an Irish Republican march. They were connected to Northern Ireland's protestant loyalists. Johnny 'Mad Dog' Adair (below left) started his paramilitary career in the National Front.

Morrissey is from an Irish Catholic family & had already been embroiled in a scandal for seemingly giving support to the IRA. Him mucking about with a Union Jack for less than 2 minutes would not convince the National Front he'd turned.

The Madness crowd was hostile to Morrissey, he cut his set short & refused to play the 2nd day. @Independent review put this down to him not being manly enough.
independent.co.uk/arts-entertain…

Select reported that the crowd threw coins & heckled 'poofy bastard' - but Morrissey should have endured the 'men's men' in the audience because he has an 'acid tongue'.

Morrissey had been scrutinised over race after the Melody Maker (while trying to make him come out as an 'uppity faggot') used a theory that white music was smart/punky & black music was dumb/dancey to claim Panic was about hanging black DJs.
illnessasart.com/2020/03/03/mel…

But the NME's homophobic angle is obvious. The accusation of racism was a fig leaf for attacking Morrissey's sexuality.
@Independent independent.co.uk/news/uk/reform…
@NME illnessasart.com/2020/11/26/nme…

A lie continually repeated for 30 years leading to Morrissey's words being heavily policed, edited & editorised while the homophobia driving it went completely unnoticed. #NationalComingOutDay

On a side note - the journalists behind the NME hit piece 'reclaimed' the Union Jack from the 'poofy bastard' by invoking the 2nd world war, telling foreigners to go home & photographing women in underwear. #Morrissey