Seeing The Light - Peter Hook on 50 Years of Music and Memory
- MOVEMENT MAG
- Jun 1
- 6 min read
From the dark brilliance of Unknown Pleasures to the dance floor highs of Blue Monday, Peter Hook has been at the heart of some of the most influential music of the past half-century. With 2026 marking 50 years since the formation of Joy Division, Hook is back on the road with Peter Hook & The Light, celebrating the legacy he helped build. We caught up with him ahead of his Florida tour stops to talk about the past, the present, and the power of playing these songs live.
Questions by Matthew Caluder
2026 will mark 50 years since Joy Division formed and from reading your books about those times, it seems like it has been a wild ride! What has been one of your most memorable moments, and what is your secret to maintaining the long and robust career that you're enjoying?
50 years … WOW! Thanks for making me feel old! No, in all seriousness it has been a wild ride for sure and there are lots of moments that are memorable in very different ways. Losing our singer Ian Curtis so tragically and so young is certainly something that I will never forget, and it is my honour to continue taking his words and music around the world to new audiences as I do. But there are other moments which are memorable in positive ways such as us regrouping as New Order and going on to change the world of music again for a second time. Or opening the Hacienda nightclub
and introducing acid house to the UK. I got sober in 2005 and that has certainly been the catalyst that has allowed me to have this whole latest section of my career touring as Peter Hook & The Light. I would recommend it to anybody! I work out a lot and I run a lot, in fact I will be running the Manchester 10K at the weekend, 45 years to the day since Ian passed. Keeping myself fit makes me happy and keeps me able to perform.
When you decided to leave New Order in 2010, was it a spur of the moment decision or was it something that had been brewing for some time? What have you found to be the most positive things about leaving?
It was more like 2007 I think, and we actually split up completely, as a collective. It just was not working any more – and that’s OK. I mean, we had been together for over 30 years even back at that point, and it can happen that people can no longer work with
each other, it had been coming for a long time unfortunately, but then again that tension did also lead to some truly great music. We all decided that New Order would split and no longer be working together, which they then seemed to forget when they resurrected the name in 2011, probably as a response to what I had started doing with the Light and due to the failure of the Bad Lieutenant project. For me, the most positive thing would be that the split led to me forming Peter Hook & The Light and that truly has been a wonderful 15 years. My wife said to me that when I used to come
home from a New Order tour I would seem miserable, but when I come back from a Peter Hook & The Light tour I have a big smile on my face. And I think that says it all really!
Congratulations for your (Joy Division/New Order) Rock and Roll Hall of Fame nomination. Will you be attending? In the past it's been customary for new inductees to play at the ceremony, should this be your year, what are the odds of a reunion for that?
Thank you, it was great being nominated again but that’s the second time now that we’ve not been inducted! I’m not quite sure what to make of that! And so, because we’ve not gone in, then the awkward conversations about who’s attending or who’s playing can be put to bed for another year at least. I was always planning on attending
had we been inducted but don’t count on a reunion anytime soon.
Being decades on in the music business, what has been your biggest regret and your proudest moment?
I would say that my biggest regret is undoubtedly not fully realizing what was going on with Ian Curtis and his illness, because you always ask yourself, could I have done more? Could we have saved him? I regret what happened with Ian every day of my life. As for a proudest moment I’m just so happy to still be here doing it at 69, and it makes me so proud that there are still people who want to listen to our music all these years later. And that a lot of the people in our audience are so young!
Multiple part question: A few years ago you auctioned off a lot of your Joy Division/New Order/Factory memorabilia, was there any story behind the purge of that particular chapter of your life, or just cleaning out the closet? Did you get rid of everything, or could there be more to come?
I think it just felt like the right time, really. I had collected so much stuff over all this time and then it just sits there in a lockup or in the basement, and I just thought, what’s the point? It was time to let someone else have a look at it all instead of just me looking at it. And through the auctions I have also been able to support charities like the Epilepsy Society so that has been wonderful. Some of it was hard to let go of but then again some of it wasn’t because it had been tainted a little bit by the split and all the arguing since, so it was nice to let go of it all really for different reasons. So far, I have done a Joy Division one and a New Order one, and we are now planning a third one for all the Hacienda memorabilia. There will hopefully be some news on that soon.
You’ve been on the road quite a bit the past few years touring and playing venues all over the world, is touring something you've always enjoyed but didn't get to do as much in the New Order days? How much longer do you think you'll be on the road for?
I love touring, that’s no secret – I always have! It was indeed one of my main frustrations when I was in New Order that the rest of them simply would not play, or when they would, they would not tour properly or for very long. And then when we did tour we would turn into one of those bands that just plays the same 15 songs every night. It got boring, you know? Now with The Light I can tour as little or as much as I want and we can play upwards of 120 different songs at the drop of a hat. It is a lot more enjoyable, put it that way. I think I’ll just be on the road for as long as people want to come and see me play! My son is going to see Bruce Springsteen in a couple of days and he’s still doing 3 hours a night at 75, I think? Or 76? So I have got a long way to go yet.
It's been said that your ambition is to play every song ever written and recorded by Joy Division and New Order live. True? Have you fulfilled that goal or, if not, how close are you?
Yes, that was the goal that I started with when I formed The Light. There were just so many songs that had been overlooked time and time again by New Order. We are well on our way to achieving it actually – we are working our way through all of the albums chronologically starting with Unknown Pleasures back in 2010, and now on our current tour we are up to the Get Ready album, so we are about 12 albums in I think, with two more to go. But as well as playing the album we play a second set of classics right after, so there really is something for everybody.
Over the years you've worked with everyone from Billy Corgan of the Smashing Pumpkins and Hybrid to producing The Stone Roses, has there been anyone you have wanted to work with? Were there any opportunities to work with anyone in particular that just didn't work out?
I love collaborating with people but the one that has eluded me so far is Iggy Pop. I really would love to do a track with him one day.
What’s next? What is the possibility of some new music from you in the future?
I have some new music out at the moment actually, two collaborations with Wolfgang Flur, who is a founding member of Kraftwerk, and that just came out a couple of weeks ago, I think. As for what’s next, stay tuned and let’s see what happens after the tour!
Catch Peter Hook & The Light live in Florida on the following dates:
JUNE 11 - Jannus Live, Tampa, FL, USA.
JUNE 13 - The Plaza Live, Orlando, FL, USA.
JUNE 14 - Miami Beach Bandshell, Miami, FL, USA.
Tickets: https://link.dice.fm/Q012dc37e7b3
For the full tour dates visit
Questions by Matthew Caluder | Edited by Max Michaels
