N otsensibles roared out of the uncontrolled chaos of punk; booting footballs at The Clash when they supported Joe Strummer’s men at a legendary King George’s Hall gig, before their catchy, fun-packed, album Instant Classic took the indie charts by storm.

And days before Margaret Thatcher became Prime Minister in 1979, the boys from Burnley penned a satirical song about Britain’s first lady in Number 10 Downing Street.

“It was tongue in cheek – a bit of a laugh. We were just five ordinary blokes from a northern working class town having fun,” recalled singer Haggis about their cult single I’m In Love With Margaret Thatcher.

“At the time it was a throw-away ditty and still is, but it was about Thatcher’s Britain.

“It does say something about the social circumstances of the day and of today, though.”

When Thatcher died this year, the single roared into the official top 40 following an online campaign backed by Tory supporters, desperate to stop Ding Dong! The Witch is Dead reaching number one.

The irony was not lost on Haggis, who added: “I found the whole thing very strange, all these daft Tories appealing for their friends to buy it because they said it was a record supporting Thatcher.

“One MP, apparently, wrote on her Facebook page that Mrs Thatcher would have been proud of Notsensibles for their brilliant entrepreneurial skills.”

The single, released on Snotty Snail Records, also saw a resurgence when I’m In Love With Margaret Thatcher featured in the film Iron Lady starring Hollywood icon Meryl Streep.

The film’s supervisor, bizarrely, was a Notsensibles fan and Haggis said: “The film earned £35 million, and they played 85 seconds of the single. We are still waiting for the royalties.”

The old school pals grew up covering Slaughter And The Dogs tracks, and wearing their school uniforms with safety pins and punk dinner plate badges, they auditioned at the local Methodist Club.

“We couldn’t play a note – and it could be a hair-raising experience tramping through the streets of Burnley dressed as a punk!

“We’d play our songs at half speed in the hope that the promoter wouldn’t work out what was going on.

“Then we’d race through the set in front of 70 pogoing idiots and a room full of shocked blue rinsers.

“During the bingo break, he would slip us a few quid and we’d have to scarper.

“We were never a sneering punk band - it was all a bit of fun to us.”

The singalong mayhem, from songs like The Girl With Scruffy Hair to the Coronation Street Hustle, ensures their chaotic shows are still a must see three decades on.

“We did a gig at Letcliffe Park in Barnoldswick and it turned into a bit of a riot that one - and we are really looking forward to seeing some old mates at Queens Park.”

  • Sensies in the Park, Queens Park, Burnley, Saturday. Support from Clash tribute act Complete Control, and the Swamp Donkeys. Gates open at 5.45 pm, £7.