Babyshambles Celebrate Patrick Walden at Their Massive Brixton Concert

image

Babyshambles have honored the “fragile” and “beautifully volatile” Patrick Walden as they made their return to London for a huge Brixton show.

After months of hinting at a comeback tour, the band’s current line up of Pete Doherty, guitarist Mick Whitnall, bassist Drew McConnell and drummer Adam Ficek began their long awaited reunion run in Hastings earlier this month.

Last night, November 16, the indie veterans revisited the O2 Academy Brixton and filled the venue with a run of beloved classics, marking their first time back after more than a decade away.

Reflecting on the night, Ficek thanked the audience for their support and admitted that he had felt anxious to the point of dissociation. “This show was a big one for me, I was actually dreading it,” he wrote. “Thick with grief and the multi coloured emotional rollercoaster that loss invites. Deep deep sadness, anger, and a big hole reminding me of the unfairness and inevitability of life.”

“Patrick you were an incredibly sensitive, fragile, beautifully volatile, daft bastard and I will always miss you dearly. I wish you could have been there tonight. This show marked an important part of my own and the band’s grieving process. The energy in the room made it a very special send off.”

Closing his message, he announced: “We NOW begin the tour.”

Speaking to NME recently about the timing of their comeback, Doherty explained that the reunion only became possible once he and Whitnall had been clean for several years. He also shared that original guitarist Walden, who passed away in June, had been meant to take part in the return.

The singer songwriter said Walden’s death was “a real trigger to get it done.” “My first thought was of just seeing his face up there while we’re playing and that’ll be an important part of it,” he continued.

“There was always talk about it, there was always a desire to play those songs again,” Doherty told NME, “but the centrifugal point of it was addiction really, and the danger that me and Mick would be an unhealthy influence on each other. So it was people around us not wanting to meet up and probably us both knowing that it wasn’t a good idea.”

wanting to meet up and probably us both knowing that it wasn’t a good idea.”

Babyshambles’ setlist was:

‘Killamangiro’
‘Delivery’
‘I Wish’
‘Sedative’
‘Beg, Steal or Borrow’
‘There She Goes’
‘La Belle et la Bête’
‘Back From the Dead’
‘Unstookie Titled’
‘Carry On Up the Morning’
‘8 Dead Boys’
‘Baddie’s Boogie’
‘À rebours’
‘Albion’
‘Dandy Hooligan’

Encore:
‘Crumb Begging Baghead’ (With intro questionnaire regarding the crowd’s dogs)
‘The Man Who Came to Stay’
‘Pipedown’
‘Fuck Forever’

Babyshambles’ debut album was 2005’s ‘Down In Albion’, and was followed with two further studio albums: 2007’s ‘Shotter’s Nation’ and 2013’s ‘Sequel To The Prequel’. The band shared their first new single in 12 years, ‘Dandy Hooligan’, yesterday (Wednesday November 5).

You can find any remaining tickets for Babyshambles’ UK tour here, and see the full list of dates below.

Babyshambles’ UK tour dates for 2025 are:

NOVEMBER
26 – O2 Academy, Birmingham
29 – Mountford Hall, Liverpool
30 – O2 Victoria Warehouse, Manchester

DECEMBER
01 – Middlesbrough Empire, Middlesbrough
02 – O2 City Hall, Newcastle
04 – O2 Academy, Glasgow
05 – O2 Academy, Glasgow
07 – O2 Academy, Leeds
08 – Rock City, Nottingham
09 – O2 Academy, Bristol
15 – KOKO, London

The band recently announced a 20th anniversary reissue of ‘Down In Albion’. The remastered and expanded edition will feature numerous session tracks, rarities and B-sides from that era.

COMMENTS

Leave a comment

Everywhere At Once Adds Fatboy Slim, Lucy Spraggan, Gene, D Double E, And More To Massive Festival Bill

image

Fatboy Slim, Lucy Spraggan, Gene, D Double E and Westside Cowboy are among the latest artists added to the line up for Everywhere At Once, the new nationwide festival being described as a “Glastonbury replacement” during the festival’s fallow year.

The event is being organised by Music Venue Trust in partnership with The National Lottery and is scheduled to take place from June 26 to June 28. The dates coincide with what would normally have been Glastonbury weekend before the festival announced a break for 2026.

Rather than taking place at a single site, Everywhere At Once will spread across hundreds of grassroots music venues throughout the UK.

Across the three day event, venues from Inverness to Penzance will host performances from both major artists and rising acts. The goal of the festival is to reconnect fans with local independent venues while encouraging community support and music discovery.

Becky Hill, Tinie Tempah, The Lathums, Rizzle Kicks, The Divine Comedy and Master Peace had already been confirmed for the event. Now, Music Venue Trust has revealed another wave of performers joining the line up.

Fatboy Slim, Glenn Tilbrook, Lucy Spraggan, Gene, D Double E, P Money and Westside Cowboy are among the newest additions. Tilbrook is set to appear at Theatreship in Canary Wharf, East London, while Spraggan will perform at The Sub Rooms in Stroud.

Gene will also play shows in Southampton, Newport and Lancaster. D Double E is heading to The Brickworks in Nottingham, P Money will perform at Suki10c in Birmingham, and Westside Cowboy are scheduled for a hometown performance at Manchester’s Low Four.

The Lathums have additionally confirmed another date at Preston venue The Ferret after their two previously announced shows sold out within minutes.

Details surrounding Fatboy Slim’s appearance and ticket information are expected to be announced closer to the festival weekend.

Everywhere At Once line-up. CREDIT: PRESS

Speaking about the initiative, Fatboy Slim reflected on the importance of small venues in shaping artists and music culture.

“I’ve been lucky enough to play huge stages all over the world, but grassroots venues are where it all started for me and where music scenes really begin, where artists learn their craft, where communities form, and where people come together purely for the love of it. Without grassroots venues, independent promoters and local crowds taking a chance on something new, none of this exists,” he said.

“These spaces are vital for culture and for local communities, so if there’s anything I can do to help shine a light on them and help keep that spirit alive, I’m more than happy to be involved. And if you care about music, go out and support your local venues, buy a ticket, discover somebody new, and be part of keeping those scenes alive.”

Glenn Tilbrook also shared his thoughts on the value of grassroots venues, reflecting on how important they were during the early years of Squeeze.

“50 years ago Squeeze started out in the small venues of South East London. Later this year we will be playing our biggest UK tour, including at the O2 Arena across the Thames from the Theatreship. I still go out and play solo shows at grassroots venues and some of the best nights I’ve ever had playing music have been in tiny rooms packed with people who just love live music,” he explained.

“These venues don’t just support musicians, they become part of the fabric of local communities,” he added. “They give people a place to meet, connect and discover something new. We need to cherish them, if we lose them, we lose far more than somewhere to see a band. So show your support for your local venue, you never know where the next great artist, or the next great night, might come from.”

 

Lucy Spraggan also spoke about the wider impact grassroots venues have on the music industry, calling live music an “ecosystem”.

“Each night a venue supplies a stage for an artist, that artist is supported by their crew, just as the venue is supported by their staff. You can see the network of livelihoods that entwine through the umbrella that is ‘live music’, it’s pretty endless,” she said.

“There is a career for musicians, crew, artists, tour managers from smaller projects all the way to Taylor Swift sized projects, but only if we have the venues to support them,” she continued. “Grassroots venues give opportunities to a plethora of people and we, as artists and gig goers, breathe life back into the venues. We are all an important part of the ecosystem.”

The festival is being led by Music Venue Trust, Save Our Scene and the Association of Independent Promoters, while The National Lottery continues its support for the grassroots music sector. Their partnership first began in 2021 to help revive live music following the pandemic shutdowns.

During the three day event, fans will also have opportunities to support charities including War Child, Nordoff and Robbins, Help Musicians UK and Teenage Cancer Trust.

The launch of Everywhere At Once comes during a difficult period for the UK live music industry. Recent reports revealed that 30 grassroots venues permanently closed between July 2024 and July 2025, while more than half of the remaining venues operated without profit last year and over 6,000 jobs disappeared from the sector.

 

To help support smaller venues and developing artists, industry leaders have continued pushing for a ticket levy system. Under the proposal, a portion of ticket sales from arena and stadium shows would go toward helping grassroots venues survive and supporting touring artists.

The industry has until June 2026 to ensure that at least 50 per cent of major live events voluntarily contribute to the levy before the UK government considers making it mandatory through legislation. Live Nation has faced criticism for not moving as aggressively as some other companies.

Live Nation, which previously supported Harry Styles donating £1 from every ticket sold for his upcoming Wembley Stadium residency to the LIVE Trust, responded by saying it “supports artists’ choices on charitable donations, and has worked with numerous artists who have contributed to the voluntary levy, from Coldplay to Biffy Clyro, and will continue to do so.”

The levy proposal has often been compared to the financial structure used in Premier League football and received backing from the UK government in 2024.

Earlier this year, grassroots venues also received some relief after the government reversed a planned increase in business rates and introduced additional support measures for pubs and live music venues.

COMMENTS

Leave a comment