Ian Curtis' Widow Was Humiliated When She Learned Joy Division Anthem Was About Her

The widow of tragic Joy Division singer Ian Curtis has revealed she felt humiliated when she first learned that his song Love Will Tear Us Apart was written about her.
In the introduction to new book So This Is Permanence: Ian Curtis, Joy Division Lyrics and Notebooks,
Deborah Curtis admits she was anything but flattered when she discovered she had inspired the classic song.
She writes, "How did I feel when (Joy Division manager) Rob Gretton told me Love Will Tear Us Apart was about me? Angry, humiliated. I scoured his manuscripts looking for evidence that it wasn't so. The burden of finding a way to displace what was happening in his life must have twisted him to the core."
In the book extract, reprinted exclusively in this week's Nme magazine, Deborah Curtis also opens up about how her life with her husband changed after he was diagnosed with epilepsy, explaining, "He became resentful at home as if broaching the subject of his illness aloud made it more real."
So This Is Permanence: Ian Curtis, Joy Division Lyrics and Notebooks, which has also been co-edited by Deborah Curtis, will be released on 10 October (14).
Ian Curtis committed suicide on 18 May, 1980, on the eve of Joy Division's first North American tour.
His widow has previously written the biography Touching from a Distance: Ian Curtis and Joy Division.