I GOT my first taste of it 17 years ago when Ginger Spice declared Margaret Thatcher as the 'original Spice Girl'.

Proving that popstars should never talk politics, the band said that the late prime minister was the first lady of girl power and in doing so outed themselves as Tory supporters.

They lost a fan in me that day - even at that age I knew the Tories were no use.

There are few things worse than being let down by your heroes.

Step up, Morrissey.

Despite providing shedloads of entertainment over the years and never shying away from controversy, (see his own tribute to Thatcher, the 1988 song Margaret on the Guillotine) the time has come to question Morrissey's pretention.

He was in the papers again last week as his much-anticipated tell-all story was released.

The former Smiths frontman and all-round British institution followed in the footsteps of Kerry Katona and Katie Price, who has written at least six autobiographies to document her life so far, to produce his own celebratory memoir.

And Morrissey being Morrissey didn't do it by half. The singer-turned-author somehow released his autobiography as a Penguin Classic.

We have come to expect this diva-esque behaviour from him. This is the man who said eating meat was "really on the same moral level as child abuse".

But how did he manage to secure a spot alongside Plato, Oscar Wilde, Thomas Hardy and other Penguin playmates?

In the lead up to the book's release last Thursday, a Twitter debate raged as some people called it a joke to boost publicity, while others described it as narcissism.

Penguin is standing by Morrissey, posting on its website that the star had been voted the second-greatest living British icon by BBC viewers behind natural history broadcaster David Attenborough in 2006.

This act of delusion has put the songwriter on my 'celebrities who think they're smashing but are actually annoying' list.

One of my (least) favourite sell-out moments in history was when George Galloway entered the Celebrity Big Brother house.

During his time in the fourth series of the reality show in 2006, the MP was ridiculed for pretending to be a cat with housemate, actress Rula Lenska.

Who knows if he's clawed back enough respect to be elected as London mayor as he seems to hope he has.

Meanwhile, Iggy Pop fans felt betrayed when he became the face and chest of a car insurance firm.

I'm left wondering, now the classic memoir has been penned, what's next for Morrissey?

A fitness video? A turn on Strictly Come Dancing? London mayor? Put the pretension to bed and embrace the world of celebrity, Morrissey.

You know you want to.