Court Date Set for Morrissey vs. NME Trial

Morrissey‘s libel suit against British music magazine NME is headed to court this summer. Pitchfork reports that the case is set for July 16 to 19 at London’s High Court; the former Smiths singer has solo concerts set for July 16 in Athens, Greece and July 19 in Istanbul, Turkey that reportedly will go ahead as scheduled.Morrissey is suing the publication over a 2007 NME article which he believes was defamatory and libelous in its portrayal of him as a racist. He claims his words were taken out of context and altered significantly, and that the interview tapes and transcripts will back him up.

In the November 28, 2007 article, Morrissey is quoted as saying, ”The gates of England are flooded. The country’s been thrown away … Although I don’t have anything against people from other countries, the higher the influx into England the more the British identity disappears.”

NME offered to issue an apology on its website (but not in the publication), but, according to the Morrissey fansite True to You, the singer rejected the offer “as disproportionate to the damage done to Morrissey by the NME magazine itself.”

NME sought to have his suit thrown out due to his lengthy delay in filing it, but in November the British High Court ruled in Morrissey’s favor, saying that he had a ”very serious” claim and a “credible” explanation for the delay and that the suit would go ahead.