Vicious died of a heroin overdose in February 1979 following his arrest for the alleged murder of his girlfriend, Nancy Spungen. Over the next few months, the three remaining members recorded songs for McLaren's film of the Sex Pistols' story, The Great Rock 'n' Roll Swindle. In January 1978, at the final gig of a difficult and media-hyped tour of the US, Rotten announced the band's break-up live on stage. Their only album, Never Mind the Bollocks, Here's the Sex Pistols (1977) was a UK number one and is regarded as seminal in the development of punk rock. 'God Save the Queen' was banned by the BBC and nearly every independent radio station in Britain, making it the most censored records in British history.

They swore live on-air during a December 1976 television interview, while the lyrics of their May 1977 single 'God Save the Queen' described the monarchy as a 'fascist regime', instantly popularizing punk rock in the UK. Under the management of Malcolm McLaren, they generated widespread media controversies bringing them to the attention of the mainstream British press. The Sex Pistols' first line-up consisted of vocalist Johnny Rotten (born John Lydon), guitarist Steve Jones, drummer Paul Cook, and bassist Glen Matlock, with Matlock replaced by Sid Vicious (born John Simon Ritchie) in early 1977. The band initiated the punk movement in the United Kingdom and inspired many later punk, post-punk and alternative rock musicians, while their clothing and hairstyles were a significant influence on punk image. Although their initial career lasted just two and a half years, they were one of the most culturally influential acts in popular music.

The Sex Pistols were an English punk rock band formed in London in 1975.

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