"I am burnt out by any and all connections to Marr, Rourke, Joyce”: Morrissey says he wants to sell his half of the Smiths’ business interests

Morrissey has intimated that he is ready to sell his share of The Smiths’ business interests. Why? Because, in his words, he is “burnt out by any and all connections” to his ex-bandmates.

The singer posted a message (subject title: ‘A Soul For Sale’) on his website Morrissey Central yesterday announcing that: “Morrissey has no choice but to offer for sale all of his business interests in ‘The Smiths’ to any interested party / investor.

"This would include Morrissey's full and exclusive rights to the name ‘The Smiths’, all Smiths artwork, all Smiths merchanising rights, all Smiths songs lyrically/ musically, all synchronisation rights, all Smiths recordings and all contractural rights for Smiths publishing.”

He went on to say: "I am burnt out by any and all connections to Marr, Rourke, Joyce. I have had enough of malicious associations. With my entire life I have paid my rightful dues to these songs and these images.

"I would now like to live disassociated from those who wish me nothing but ill-will and destruction, and this is the only resolution. The songs are me - they are no one else - but they bring with them business communications that go to excessive lengths to create as much dread and spite year after year. I must now protect myself, especially my health."

As ever with Morrissey, it’s hard to tell how much of this is melodramatic self-pity or whether he is genuinely serious. The moderator of the Morrissey Central message board perhaps best summed up the feelings of many fans with his pithy response: “He’s f***ing cracked.”

The singer owns half the Smiths business interests, alongside Johnny Marr. Relationships between the two partners have deteriorated in recent years. Last year Morrissey made public that the AEG Group had made a “lucrative” offer to Marr and himself to tour as The Smiths in 2025: “Morrissey said Yes to the offer; Marr ignored the offer.”

He also made a number of claims about Marr regarding trademarks related to The Smiths, which the guitarist maintained were made in order to “prevent third parties from profiting from the band’s name”. Marr also confirmed it was true he’d snubbed the reunion, writing, “As for the offer to tour, I didn’t ignore the offer – I said no.”

Earlier this year, he explained further - on the Stick To Football podcast, of all places - to why he’d turned the tour down. “It was a little bit about principles, but I’m not an idiot, I just think the vibe’s not right.”

Marr has not commented yet on Morrissey’s purported Smiths sale. Interested parties with a few million quid burning a hole in their wallet should email eaves7760@gmail.com.