Tony Wilson

Tony Wilson died yesterday. I guess many people won't know who he was. Essentially, he was Manchester royalty. I first remember him as a presenter on Granada TV in the 1970s, when his role was to play the fool. His credibility was only slightly above that of Keith Chegwin. He somehow managed to mix this with presenting a cool, late night music show. As a fairly young child at the time, I always thought he was rather puffed up and took himself far too seriously. I suspect I was right.

Like every single person, he clearly had faults but he was extraordinarily driven. His vision was absolutely critical to getting a vibrant music scene going in a town whose decay was very comparable to that of Liverpool. That was no small achievement. The rest is, of course, history. I believe that the amazing rebirth of Manchester from unlovely mediocrity and decay to vibrancy owes much to Tony Wilson. He may have taken himself too seriously at times but Manchester needed him. I live almost next door to the Boardwalk club and the Hacienda. I've seen him in my local coffee shop a few times. I won't miss his occasional self-importance, but I will miss his vision, his drive and his preternatural level of pride in this city.

Tony, for all your weaknesses, I salute you.