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Bonnie Greer, Playwright and criticHe’s a very interesting man and he’s not a phoney. That’s what makes him a hero for me because there are so many phonies out there. He says what he feels and in this day and age that’s an heroic stance. People consider Geldof to be a controversial figure and that makes me wonder whether what he says carries any sort of weight. But I think he creates talking points and that’s very valuable. What Geldof has done is put forward something that a lot of people are feeling. I don’t agree with it, but I think that a lot of people feel that way because we are at a crossroads with relationships.

He is the guy in the pub who opens his mouth and everyone turns around and says: ‘Oh my God I can’t believe he said that.’ Bea Campbell, AuthorOn the issue of divorce and mothers he is outrageous, arrogant, stupid, unhelpful and furious. What his own fury blinds him to is that women are impoverished by their mothering. The conditions in which women do the work of care are a national disgrace. So the question is, what is his problem? Why doesn’t he direct his anger at the institutions which have done virtually nothing to address the things that really assail children and domestic life – the poverty and disrespect that mothers have to put up with; a culture of employment that demands of men that they become providers rather than parents; the fact that thousands of children have to witness their father being violent to their mother? These are the real issues that children face. Bob Geldof has been given a platform because we have a very misogynist government which is not interested in empowering women.

Here you have a bloke who has been paid to say whatever he likes It’s bilge and yet it’s given a massive airtime. Why? Because it’s in the service of something that has great currency at the moment which is rage against women and rage against things that women have exposed and illuminated and tried to sort out Nobody with any sense takes this stuff seriously. Rod Liddle, Political commentatorIt’s hard to criticise a man for trying to help, but I think Bob Geldof is wrong about what to do with Africa. He knows a lot about Africa and overseas development, and he’s very intelligent, very astute. His “give us the fucking money” attitude towards politicians seems to work too, but I just think he’s wrong. I don’t think the problems that Africa currently faces are necessarily a failure of the US, the UK and the rest of the world to subsidise Africa even further.

Postcolonial guilt makes us look at Africa in a different way, but most African countries – all but four or five – are run by despotic regimes, who rule with a mixture of incompetence and wickedness. Much of what needs to be done is down to the African governments themselves We’ve been too indulgent in the past. Obviously he’s a decent man, and very likeable, and I’d agree with him about fathers’ rights – it’s one of the few bits of sexism left in our judiciary His music’s shite, though. Midge Ure, Pop star and, Live Aid founderI learned that when standing next to Bob it’s best to try to block out whatever he is singing.

Bob’s not the best guitar player in the world because he’s got no timing at all You could see that if you watched the Boomtown Rats. When he jumped up in the air he was supposed to hit the floor just as the song finished, but generally he landed five seconds before it ended, or three seconds after the band finished.In the weeks leading up to Live Aid I felt increasingly sidelined. For the six months since Band Aid it had been the two of us – Bob Geldof and Midge Ure. All of a sudden it was Bob everywhere while I had been relegated to the same stature as every other artist. I wasn’t doing Live Aid to get patted on the back but I did feel increasingly edged out; the ranks had closed and I was nowhere to be seen. The machine that had built up around Bob had decided that my job was done, which pissed me off. Bob became the face of Live Aid while I was just another guy at the Trust meetings.