ENGLAND SWINGS: Rumors that Morrissey had committed...

ENGLAND SWINGS: Rumors that Morrissey had committed suicide swept the British music world in recent weeks--even the staid BBC called music weekly Melody Maker to check out the buzz. The “news” proved quite false, though Morrissey’s British press officer, Murray Chalmers, was forced to make a statement to stop the talk.

“We got loads and loads of calls,” Chalmers said. “It was amazing how fast the rumor spread. I think it must have been started by someone in Scotland, because the story was that it had happened there. But in fact, as I told everyone, he was on a train from Manchester to London that afternoon, and he hasn’t been to Scotland for ages. Don’t worry--he’s alive and well.”

* Shane MacGowan has been censured by the Irish Advertising Standards Authority over a poster campaign for his new single, “The Church of the Holy Spook,” which it ruled “insensitive and offensive.” The poster, like the single’s cover, features a 4-year-old photo of the former Pogues singer, bearded and shirtless, striking a Crucifixion pose, his arm outstretched along a wooden crossbar and his head lolling to one side. Warner Music Ireland officials argued that the young people in MacGowan’s market would understand that the photo was not meant to offend, but the Authority ruled that the poster was not acceptable under Irish advertising standards.

* Manchester-based Factory Records, best known as the original home of Joy Division and New Order, is being re-launched after battling financial problems. The new venture, re-christened Factory Too, is set to bow with a new album by the veteran band Durutti Column on Nov. 14.