He revealed that Damon Albarn had asked him to appear on a track with his collective.

Johnny told the Daily Star: “They gave me a bell but the answer was ‘no’. I really don’t want to be dabbling in other people’s gene pools.

“I’ve worked with so many so-called famous people over the years but it’s never been for any deliberate financial motivation.”

He added: “If I did it wouldn’t be a business phone call followed by a management agreement and then for an album manufactured and marketed as to what the current popular trends were.”

Working with Gorillaz may have reunited Lydon with punk contemporaries Paul Simonon and Mick Jones- who were both in The Clash.