New Order drummer Stephen Morris has said he does not know whether he will return to the band, revealing he is coping with an undisclosed illness he described as "pretty serious" and incurable. He spoke to Rolling Stone two months after New Order announced that Morris and his wife, keyboardist Gillian Gilbert, would step back from touring indefinitely for personal health reasons, confirming the pair will miss the band's upcoming South American tour and are unlikely to attend Joy Division and New Order's induction into the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame.

Morris said his condition prevents extended travel abroad, recalling that a short trip to New York for an Ian Curtis lyrics exhibition "ended in disaster." New Order's South American dates begin in São Paulo on 23 and 25 November before moving through Chile, Argentina, Peru and Colombia, while the Hall of Fame ceremony takes place in Los Angeles on 14 November, inducting Curtis, Gilbert, Peter Hook, Morris and Bernard Sumner. Despite the setback, Morris said he still plays drums and remains open to smaller, local gigs, with the interview coinciding with the release of Joy Division's 14-CD box set, Eternal (Live), out 25 September.