John Lydon says ex-Sex Pistols bandmates didn't reach out following wife's passing

Monday, December 29, 2025 at 11:00 AM

John Lydon of Public Image Ltd performs live on stage during their This Is Not The Last Tour at Parr Hall. (Andy Von Pip/SOPA Images/LightRocket via Getty Images)

John "Johnny Rotten" Lydon says his former Sex Pistols bandmates didn't reach out following the death of his wife, Nora Forster, in 2023.

"I expected some kind of connection when Nora died, but nothing," Lydon tells the U.K.'s The Times.

Lydon has remained estranged from the rest of the Pistols — guitarist Steve Jones, bassist Glen Matlock and drummer Paul Cook — for some time; the band has since reformed with Frank Carter on vocals.

Lydon's previously criticized the current iteration of the Pistols as "karaoke" and reiterates to The Times he has no interest in being part of the band.

"I still have a very great fondness for the chaps from that period," Lydon says. "What they evolved — or devolved — into since is another consequence."

Lydon is currently playing a run of U.K. dates with Public Image Ltd. The Carter-fronted Sex Pistols will launch a European tour in June.