The fact we survived is unbelievable

MARION MCMULLEN discovers the secret of Shaun Ryder and Bez's friendship as the Happy Mondays head out on tour for the 35th anniversary of their album Pills 'n' Thrills And Bellyaches

- MARION MCMULLEN

SHAUN Ryder knows exactly why he and Happy Mondays bandmate Bez have remained mates through all the years.

"Our friendship is like a sexless marriage," he says. "We don't have sex - that's why it works. I know he wants to, but he's not managing it. We are married... and sexless."

Bez says: "We've been through a hell of a lot, yeah. As Shaun says, it's really like a sexless marriage because we've been together for so long. Being a Happy Monday is a proper roller coaster the ups, the downs, the lows, the highs. We've had some big fallouts, as you'd imagine over more than 35 years, and yet, after everything, we're still really good friends. That's what it's about being able to go through all that emotion with somebody. It's rare, really rare."

Their friendship is evident on TV shows like Channel 4's Celebrity Gogglebox where they give their verdicts on what is on the telly.

Shaun says: "When Bez did Big Brother back in 2005, he brought a whole new young fan base to the band. When I did the jungle in 2010, the same thing loads of new people suddenly knew who we were. And every time we do things like [TV's] Storage Hunters, we pick up more.