Fac51, Yohji Yamamoto & Adidas.

Taken in January 2002 - I was walking past the old Factory Records nightclub (which had closed a few years before) and noticed bulldozers behind a fence, so I stuck my head round and asked one of the workmen if I could take some snaps, but as they didn't have a spare hard-hat they couldn't let me in! I snapped this anyhow before they chucked me out. The shot is from where the womens toilets were, looking towards the dancefloor. I joined the club in the first week (in the early days it was members only costing £5.25 per year which gave you a half-price entry fee and you could 'sign-in' a guest). My membership number is 1002. I loved the actual club as much as the bands - I would go down there and just stare at the lovely bleakness of the architecture and design. I saw some of the greatest bands in the WORLD there including New Order, The Smiths, Grandmaster Flash And The Furious Five and even Madonna ... eh, them were the days. This shot was used as the 5th sheet of tissue paper for the Adidas/Yohji Yamamoto/Ben Kelly/Peter Saville/Peter 'Hooky' Hook training shoe (along with photos by Kevin Cummins and an architectural plan by Ben Kelly). The trainers were designed by Ben Kelly and Peter Saville in collaboration with Gary Aspden at Adidas (who I stressed-out with my 'mithering') and Mr Hook. They cost £345 a pair and only 250 pairs were made and only 200 of these went on sale in Manchester, London and Tokyo. They really are a beautiful piece of art and combine many elements of the legendary club - right down to the box which is the exact shape of the hacienda dancefloor. Ben Kelly phoned me up and asked if they could use my image on the wrapping to which I replied in the positive (obviously! plus we reminisced about the club, and I told him that I stole a cats-eye from the side of the stage after a Smiths gig and that it props me bedroom door open to this day! He hasn't turned me in to the fuzz as yet) and they sent me a pair just before Xmas 2007 - many thanks chaps! Most of my friends tell me to put them in a bank vault for my old age as they've been going for £1,000 on ebay - but bollocks to that - life's too short and I'm going to wear them out on special occasions!

Client: Adidas/Yohji Yamamoto/Ben Kelly/Peter Saville/Peter 'Hooky' Hook.