'Jayne, Holly and Pete looked like they'd been dropped from some other planet... I thought they were incredible'

ORRAINE McCulloch wasn't sure about Liverpool the first time she visited the city.

- Lorraine McCulloch tells RYAN PATON about the role the city has played in her memorable career and personal life

From left, Jayne Casey, Holly Johnson with dancer and Pete Burns

Although she was only born in nearby Warrington, Lorraine spent her formative teenage years hanging out with her mates at the other end of the M62 in Manchester.

She told the ECHO in an exclusive interview: "When I came to Liverpool, it was a whole different vibe. I thought everyone was unfriendly because I'd been to [legendary Liverpool nightclub] Eric's once, saw Pete Burns and he scared the s**t out of me. I was like, 'Oh my God!."

Little did she know then that Liverpool would transform her life, as she would go on to become a key part of the city's cultural scene and eventually raise a family here.

Dead or Alive star Pete was renowned for his avant-garde, innovative style and Lorraine explained seeing him alongside two of the city's other icons piqued her interest in the punk movement as she later realised how wrong first impressions could be.

She added: "I must have been about 15 and I was shopping down Church Street. Walking towards me was Pete Burns, Holly Johnson and Jayne Casey.

"They looked like they'd been dropped from some other planet. I was like, 'Oh my god! They are incredible'. That was my thing when I was attracted to punk."

After establishing her place in the UK's post-punk scene, Lorraine reevaluated her impressions of Liverpool in the early 80s during a reluctant second visit to Eric's, when she was asked by a friend to come down in support of an up-and-coming band struggling to sell tickets.

That struggling band went on to become the hugely successful Simple Minds and it was at this gig that changed her life forever as she met future husband and Echo and the Bunnymen frontman, Ian McCulloch.

She said: "I knew Ian and the Bunnymen were really special from the minute I met them. He was on the dole when I first met him. They'd literally just started the band. But I knew he was so talented."