Neil Morrissey - Early Life

Early Life

Morrissey was born in Stafford to Irish parents. He and his brother Stephen (died 1997) were placed under a care order after they went on multiple theft and burglary sprees. They were legally separated from their parents, Larry and May, psychiatric nurses who often left their sons at home without an adult for many hours at a time, as a result. The boys spent much of their childhood in separate foster homes, Morrissey spending most of his time at the Penkhull Children's Home. While studying at Thistley Hough High School in Stoke, he advertised for foster parents and lived with his friend Mark Langston and his family for nearly two years after having left the children's home at 17 and was fostered. He studied for his A levels at the City of Stoke-on-Trent Sixth Form College. During this time he was a member of the Stoke Repertory Theatre, Stoke Schools Theatre, and Stoke Original Theatre, and performed at the Edinburgh Fringe. He subsequently gained an unconditional scholarship allowing him to study at the Guildhall School of Music and Drama.