How John Shuttleworth gave Sting the hump
His song teased the Police frontman on the set of Quadrophenia
He’s the mildest-mannered musician you could envisage – but in a previous incarnation, John Shuttleworth made Sting’s life a misery.
The Police frontman was tormented by a punk song that was a hit for Shuttleworth’s creator Graham Fellows back in 1978. Recorded under the name and title Jilted John, the track was famous for its catchy refrain about his ex-girlfriend’s new bloke: ‘Gordon is a moron.’
And when cast-mates on the set of the mods vs rockers movie Quadrophenia, which was being filmed at the time, found out Sting’s real name was Gordon Sumner, they relentlessly teased him about it.
In the documentary A Way Of Life: Making Quadrophenia, co-star Phil Daniels recalled: ‘One day, on the call sheet, they put Gordon Sumner down instead of Sting, so, everybody found out his name was Gordon, and they started singing "Gordon is a moron".’
Although some of the film’s cast insisted that Sting took the teasing well, Daniels remembers things differently. ‘I don’t think he was too happy That’s all I remember.’
The documentary was released in 2006, but the story resurfaced thanks to the Far Out music website running a retrospective report on the film.
Shuttleworth is currently on tour with with his Raising The Oof show (dates). And here’s the full Jilted John track:
Published: 26 Feb 2025
