Morrissey donates £50,000 to help save Salford Lads Club – the location of the iconic The Smiths photo

nme.com:

Morrissey has donated £50,000 to help save Salford Lads Club, the venue which is pictured in The Smiths’ ‘The Queen Is Dead’ album artwork.It comes after the Greater Manchester building was confirmed to be facing closure earlier this month due to rising costs and a drop in grant funding.

To remain open, it must raise £250,000 by mid-November.The venue has been immortalised in pop culture since 1986 when The Smiths used an image of them in front of the establishment on the sleeve of their seminal third album.

Today, the centre continues to provide a safe space for young people from some of Greater Manchester’s deprived communities, offering activities such as sports six days a week.Now, Morrissey has joined over 1.1k people in raising funds to protect the venue, donating £50,000 to a public fundraiser that has been set up to protect the space on GoFundMe.His backing pushes the current total raised to £216,000, which will go towards the goal of keeping the club open for another year.Laura Slingsby, head of youth operations at Salford Lads Club told Manchester Evening News that they are “deeply grateful” for the donation. “His support is more than a financial contribution; it’s a powerful endorsement of our mission and a tribute to the club’s enduring role in the lives of young people and the cultural heart of Salford,” she said.Slingsby also revealed that the donation was initially anonymous, but was confirmed to be from Morrissey by his representatives. “He didn’t wish to make a statement but he is happy if it helps us to go public with it,” she added.It’s not the first time he’s helped out the venue.