Ziggy's origins

References to our published work on the life and work of the sociologist Zygmunt Bauman, and to a lengthy interview that we gave to Alison Utley, upon which she relied heavily in her interpretation of Bauman, were apparently removed editorially from her article "Ziggy in an age without stardust" (THES, May 15). Thus, our considerable contribution towards the shaping of this article, alas, went unacknowledged. The article drew freely on the introduction to our edited volume Culture, Modernity and Revolution: Essays in Honour of Zygmunt Bauman, Routledge, 1996; an interview with Bauman that we conducted; and others of our articles about him.

For the record, Bauman's statement at the end of the main body of the article is verbatim from our published interview, and has been added, unreferenced, to the immediately preceding material, giving the clear impression that it was part of Utley's recent interview. Even the David Bowie hook has been taken from our introduction. Readers interested in following up the Bauman phenomenon will find helpful the section on his work in Theory, Culture and Society, Vol 15, No.1, February, 1998 particularly articles by Stefan Morawski, Dennis Smith, Hans Joas and Ian Varcoe.

Richard Kilminster School of sociology and social policy University of Leeds