Johnny Rotten is a full time carer for Alzheimer's-suffering wife Nora
Punk icon John Lydon has spoken about being a full time carer for wife Nora as she battles Alzheimer’s disease.
The former Sex Pistols singer, better known by punk moniker Johnny Rotten, has opened up about looking after his partner after 40 years of marriage.
Speaking to the Mirror, the 64-year-old said: “Nora has Alzheimer’s... I am her full-time carer and I won’t let anyone mess up with her head.
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“For me the real person is still there. That person I love is still there every minute of every day and that is my life. It’s unfortunate that she forgets things, well, don’t we all?”
The couple married in 1979, with Rotten becoming step-dad to Nora’s daughter, the The Slits singer Ari Up, who was just six years younger than the her mum’s new husband.
Discussing Nora’s condition, the star said: “I suppose her condition is one of like a permanent hangover for her.
"It gets worse and worse, bits of the brain store less and less memory and then suddenly some bits completely vanish.”
However, despite her health gradually worsening, Lydon says 78-year-old Nora “never ever forgets” who he is.
The couple live in Los Angeles, but Lydon says he will remain his wife’s carer and will not let her go in a care home as he insists “a bit of love goes a long way”.
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After the Pistols broke up, Lydon went on to form experimental band Public Image Ltd, a group he still fronts to this day.
While he says the current coronavirus pandemic hasn’t impacted too much on his day-to-day life due to being “under lockdown anyway” because of his responsibilities to Nora, Lydon says the situation has impacted the band’s touring schedule.
He described himself as “f***ing furious” gigs had been cancelled as it means “there’s been no income”.
