At the end of last week, Pink Floyd drummer Nick Mason was interviewed for the UK's Teletext service. This is part of the ITV television network, and is a text-based precursor to the Internet, being broadcast alongside the TV signals, and viewable on most TVs in the UK.

The interview, by Alistair Clay, seems to contradict most of the other recent interviews undertaken by Nick. Starting with the assertion that "rock veterans Pink Floyd will regroup to record new material, predicts drummer Nick Mason", he is quoted as saying:

      "We're not working on any new material at the moment but there is stuff already written that we will take a look at. Our next project is to put together a DVD of the band and then promote that, but we will tour again, just not quite yet."

Nick then talks about Syd Barrett:

      "Syd's mental state meant there was no way he could function in a working band, and at the time we found that very frustrating. I don't think it was the rock lifestyle that got to Syd, I think he was naturally prone to schizophrenia. The last I heard about Syd was from about 12 months ago and he was getting the care he needed from people who were looking after him."

      On his "charmed" life: "To be ridiculously overpaid to show off for 40 years has been amazing, and it would be churlish to say otherwise. There have been few downsides. And I'm sure we're not finished yet. If you haven't grown out of it by the time you're 50 then there's no hope."

      On The Beatles, and Ringo Starr: "Ringo was perfect for The Beatles, so I'm not trying to take anything away from him, but I wanted to be like Keith Moon and Ginger Baker, drummers who really drove the band and were up there at the front; I didn't want to be stuck at the back in the shadows."

      On Pink Floyd's influence of current bands: "I love bands such as Radiohead and U2. If people say that we had a hand in influencing them then great. People are too quick sometimes to say the current music scene is rubbish, there are still some great bands around."

Our thanks to Adam who spotted the interview on Teletext's Star Talk pages, and let us know about it, along with his screen captures.