Some years ago at the Manchester Evening News we did an online poll to find the greatest Mancunian  in history…and to my astonishment, Morrissey won it by a mile. Never having been a Smiths fan, this irked me as I had done all the historical research and come up with some great figures of the past.

Despite myself, I was beginning to warm to his new album…until I watched him on the One Show tonight. He announced proudly that, in his youth, he used to go to the job centre with no intention of finding a job. OK, so I guess there are a few more out there who think the same.

But then, whe asked about the plight of those who have lost their jobs during the recession, his pearl of wisdom was: “Well, they should paint or do something creative.”

Greatest Mancunian? Greatest tosser!