The idyllic moment where success is not yet fame, is soon obliterated when the band shock the nation out of its tea-time torpor. The resulting media frenzy causes egos to explode. Steve is emotionally blackmailed by Malcom into replacing bassist Glen Matlock with glorious looking, but musically inept, Sid Vicious.

Malcolm tries to ruin the Pistols by touring in the South, where they're reviled; Sid becomes lead singer; Steve desperately tries to hold the band together, but Nancy is found murdered in a New York City hotel room, and Sid is the main suspect.