Alice Cooper pops into Manchester shop to buy Johnny Depp a T-shirt

  • Published
Jack Partington and Alice CooperImage source, Modern Streets
Image caption,

The shop owner said Cooper told him he "didn't like being stuck in hotels on tour"

A clothing shop's owner was left in "shock" when rock legend Alice Cooper popped into his store to buy film star and bandmate Johnny Depp a T-shirt.

The singer visited Modern Streets in Manchester on Saturday, while in the city to play a gig with Hollywood Vampires, a supergroup which also features Depp on guitar.

Owner Jack Partington said he and the star had "a good conversation".

He added that the rocker "didn't have any ego" and was "a real gentleman".

The 75-year-old was in the city to play at Manchester's AO Arena as part of a four-date tour of the UK and wandered into the store in shopping emporium Afflecks on the afternoon before the gig.

Mr Partington said at first, he did not believe it was the rock legend, whose five-decade career has seen him perform sell-out shows and top the charts across the globe.

"I thought 'he looks like Alice Cooper' and then I thought 'why would he be here?'" he said.

Image caption,

Cooper and Depp formed the supergroup with Aerosmith guitarist Joe Perry

However, he said that when he heard the rocker's friends' "American accents, I thought 'it's him'".

"I asked if they were on holiday and they said 'no, we're on tour'," he said, adding: "Then I knew for sure it was Alice Cooper.

"I said 'you're Alice Cooper' and we had a good conversation," he said.

"He didn't have any ego [and] he was a real gentleman.

"He told me he didn't like being stuck in hotels on tour and wanted to get out and meet people."

He said Cooper asked if he could buy a T-shirt for Depp and "we printed off a design he liked".

Image source, Modern Streets
Image caption,

Mr Partington said he was pleased to meet the man who inspired many of the bands he followed

However, he said that despite Cooper's legendary status, his unexpected appearance only drew a modest crowd.

"He stayed for around 20 minutes until he noticed a few more people were crowding in," he said.

"It's a long time since his first hit, so it wasn't like One Direction came in."

He said he was "pleased" to have met the singer, "because a lot of the bands I am into would not exist if we hadn't had Alice Cooper".

"It was only after he left that the shock kicked in," he added.

Cooper and Depp's group, which they formed with Aerosmith guitarist Joe Perry, has seen the trio work with a rolling roster of guest stars, including former Beatle Ringo Starr, Guns n' Roses' Duff McKagan and Foo Fighters' Dave Grohl.

On Friday, ahead of the band's show in Swansea, Depp was left "dumbfounded" by a visit to the birthplace of writer Dylan Thomas.

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