bernard sumner

Joy Division's tragic demise should have permanently snuffed out its band members' careers.  But Bernard Sumner, armed with drum loops, programmed beats, and a Blue Monday, emerged from those ashes to create an upbeat New Order, sell millions of records, and wind up in a John Hughes film.  How does it feel, to read Bernard Sumner's autobiography through and through?  Find out as Christian and Martha become heavenly persons today and review Bernie's Chapter and Verse.

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New Order and Maxine Peake are joined by The Pet Shop Boys and Honey Dijon to tell the story of the best-selling, most groundbreaking and arguably greatest 12 inch single of all time. Series finale!

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Maxine Peake tells the story of New Order’s first masterpiece, a record that seamlessly fuses punk, club culture and technology. 

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A cathedral of music. A milestone in British culture. A financial catastrophe. Maxine Peake takes us to the Haçienda, the nightclub that nearly ruined Factory Records, and then changed the world.

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Maxine Peake describes the emergence of a new band from the ashes of Joy Division. Besides choosing a singer and recruiting a new member, they also needed to find a name for this embryonic group. Enter: The Witch Doctors Of Zimbabwe.

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Maxine Peake, Bono, Anna Calvi, Thurston Moore and the surviving members of Joy Division describe the band's growing success, the creation of the timeless song 'Love Will Tear Us Apart', and the tragic death of their iconic singer, Ian Curtis.

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Maxine Peake narrates the story of the legendarily chaotic record label Factory, with memorable contributions from founder Tony Wilson ("We were clever enough at the very beginning to know that musicians know f**k-all about music”). Also: FAC numbers explained. 

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Maxine Peake describes the birth of one of the most adored albums of all time, including its iconic artwork. But the process of creating a classic is far from smooth, with producer Martin Hannett’s eccentric methods generating tension. 

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Maxine Peake tells the story of the beginnings of Joy Division, one of the most influential bands ever. The story begins with a young Bernard Sumner posting a notice in a Manchester record shop: "Band seeks singer".

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This is Transmissions, the definitive story of New Order and Joy Division.

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There’s a family tree of modern music and one of its biggest branches is New Order.

The Manchester band, formed in the wake of Joy Division’s untimely end, have fed into the sound of almost every band and artist you’ve loved for, for forty years. Even if you’re not a fan, you can trace their blueprint across all you hear. Their transformation from post punk to electronic music, swept up kids who would go on to become techno DJ’s, rock bands, pop acts, and everything in between.

In the 80’s, they were the backbone of The Hacienda, bringing big club culture to Manchester. And over four decades there have been stops and starts, barneys and breakups.

It’s a lucky year when I have the chance to Take 5 with two different members of New Order. You might remember back in winter 2019 Peter Hook joined me to share his Unknown Pleasures. If you missed that, scroll back in your feed to hear Hooky’s tales.

In 2020, it was Bernard Sumner’s turn. The surprise frontman of New Order, who made it his own. The theme I gave Bernard, was just that. The songs that made him. And from Iggy Pop to Arcade Fire, he traced the blueprint of his own life, with plenty of incredible stories between.

Iggy Pop - ‘Shades’

Electronic - ‘Twisted Tenderness’

Joe Smooth - ‘Promised Land’

Arcade Fire - ‘Ready To Start’

David Morales - ‘Hideaway [Ft. Blondewearingblack] [Classic Mix]’