Strabane loses its Glitter
Shamed star’s song axed from town’s festive playlist
A NORTHERN Ireland council has banned a Christmas song by disgraced pop star Gary Glitter from being played in a town centre following complaints from the public.
Derry City and Strabane District Council confirmed it has removed the 1984 track, ‘ Another Rock ‘n’ Roll Christmas’ from its festive playlist in Strabane after concerns were raised by locals.
Officials admitted they had made a mistake in playing the song.
Glitter, whose real name is Paul Gadd, is currently in prison after being convicted of downloading child pornography in 1999 and child sexual abuse and attempted rape offences in 2006 and 2015.
The case involved three young girls between 1975 and 1980. The ex-singer had also been deported from Cambodia on suspected child abuse charges in 2002.
The 76-year-old is currently serving a 16-year sentence for his crimes after an unsuccessful appeal in 2015.
Three years earlier Glitter had been arrested as part of Operation Yewtree, the major police probe which also examined child abuse offences committed by well-known public figures, including fellow paedophile Jimmy Savile.
The fallen star had been an icon of glam rock during the 1970s, selling more than 20m records for hits such as ‘ I’m the Leader of the Gang’ and ‘ Do You Wanna Touch Me’.
Known for his glitter suits, make-up and platform boots, Glitter’s Christmas track peaked at number seven in the UK singles chart 36 years ago, making it his most successful song since 1975.
Since his conviction, Glitter’s festive track has effectively been scrubbed from pop Christmas song history.
His performances on BBC’S Top of the Pops have not been reshown since his 2015 conviction.
In 2006 he had given an interview to the BBC denying that he was a paedophile.
The Strabane Chronicle reported the song was played alongside festive tunes by Paul Mccartney, Chris de Burgh and Mariah Carey.
Locals contacted the council after hearing Glitter’s music.
A council spokesperson said the song was removed in response to public concerns.
“The track was removed after it was highlighted by a member of the public,” they said.
A woman who complained praised the council for taking action, saying: “Mistakes can be made but the council did the right thing in removing the song from the playlist.
“Possibly the song made it on to the list by mistake because his songs aren’t heard anymore on the radio or seen on TV and so it probably wasn’t recognised.”
She added: “After what that man did, his songs should be deleted from history. I think the council removed it as soon as it was flagged up, which is absolutely the right thing to do.
Local councillor Raymond Barr yesterday praised the council for the move, adding he would have alerted the council himself if he had heard the song.
“Given what Christmas is all about — the focus on children on this time of years — it’s a complete contrast to the offences committed by Paul Gadd,” he told the Belfast Telegraph. “It was the correct thing to do by the council.”
‘After what that man did, his songs should be deleted from history. The council removed it as soon as it was flagged up’