David Hockney: ‘Just because I’m cheeky, doesn’t mean I’m not serious’

At 77, and with two new exhibitions, David Hockney is more prolific and outspoken than ever. He tells us why he stopped painting after the death of his assistant – and why, despite a 9pm bedtime, he’s still a rebel at heartDavid Hockney has a fag in one hand, a mug of tea in the other, fish and chips and mushy peas in front of him, and he is surrounded by his own work. If this were a painting, it might be called The Artist In His Element.We are at his home in Kensington, where Hockney sits u