Gigs 2026

[The Picnic Wasp]

Fri 16th Jan
MICK MILLER, Bradford Tapestry ****
Sat 31st Jan
JACK CARROLL,
Halifax Grayston Unity ***

Fri 8th May
CLINTON BAPTISTE,
Bradford St George's Hall

Sat 23rd May
IRON MAIDEN, Athens OAKA Stadium

Sat 6th Jun
FM, Holmfirth Picturedrome

Wed 24th Jun
STEWART LEE,
Huddersfield Lawrence Batley Theatre

Fri 17th Jul
GARY DELANEY,
Huddersfield Lawrence Batley Theatre

Thu 17th Sep
JONATHAN PIE (WIP),
Huddersfield Lawrence Batley Theatre

Sat 26th Sep
JON ANDERSON & THE BAND GEEKS,
Manchester Opera House

Sat 21st Nov
U2UK, Leeds Old Woollen

Athens evening temperature at the end of May according to Google is usually around 18°C. That might just be a perfect night.

[Neillwith2Ls]

Quite a few booked for the year so far, my highest annual gig count since the heady days of 2008/09.

26/03/2026   Wildernesses, Rossi Bar, Brighton
08/04/2026   Idlewild, Concorde 2, Brighton
26/06/2026   Hawkwind, Reading Hexagon
01/07/2026   Counting Crows, Southampton Guildhall
16/07/2026   Dodgy, The Boiler Room, Guildford
16/09/2026   Voyage35, Shepherds Bush Empire, London
18/10/2026   Tom McRae, The Hope & Ruin, Brighton
28/10/2026   Steven Wilson, Royal Albert Hall, London
01/11/2026   The Bluetones, Concorde 2, Brighton
05/11/2026   Teenage Fanclub, Concorde 2, Brighton
20/11/2026   The Wallflowers, Shepherds Bush Empire, London
21/11/2026   Levellers, Hammersmith Apollo, London
22/11/2026   Del Amitri, The Roundhouse, London
24/11/2026   Shed Seven, The Dome Theatre, Brighton

(not including the cancelled Neil Young & Chrome Hearts gig at Blenheim Palace on July 3rd).

3 Rush gigs booked for 2027 also...

[Fishy]

Todd Rundgren 13th Sept Glasgow 😀

[Nickslikk2112]

Kraftwerk - Sheffield City Hall, 29th May
BEAT - Hammersmith Odeon, 8th June*
Opeth - Anfiteatro Degli Scavi del Parco Archeologico di Pompei, 10th July
Opeth - Piece Hall, Halifax, 1st August
Jon Anderson and the Band Geeks- Manchester Opera House, 26th September
Von Hertzen Brothers - Musikkatalo, Helsinki, 10th October
Steve Hackett - Royal Albert Hall, 26th October
Von Hertzen Brothers (Acoustic) - The Met, Bury, 31st October

* Will not be attended by the fragrant Mrs S

[Thenop]

David Eugene Edwards booked for November 22nd in Utrecht.

[pdw1]

The Gathering - London Shepherds Bush 19th May

[captainkurtz]

Sleaford Mods - Newcastle Boiler Shop - 5th February 2026    2/5
Fatboy Slim - Newcastle Boiler Shop - 12th February 2026    5/5
Suede - Newcastle City Hall - 14th February 2025  5/5
David Byrne - Glasgow Armadillo - 7/3/26  5/5
Paul & Suki improv - Tyne Theatre - 11th March 2026  1/5
Courtney Barnett - Sunderland Independent- 29th March 2026  4/5
To Kill a  Mockingbird - Newcastle Theatre Royal - 22nd April 2026 5/5
The Prodigy - Newcastle Arena - 2nd May 2026 4/5
The Lemon Twigs - Leeds Brudenell - 22nd May 2026
Kraftwerk - Stockton Globe - 27th May 2026
Scott Bennett - Tyne Theatre - 30th May 2026
Primavera - Barcelona - 4th - 6th June 2026
Metallica - London Stadium - 5th July 2026
The Spy Who Came in From The Cold - Newcastle Theatre Royal - 10th July 2026
Wolf Alice - Exhibition Park - 12th July 2026
David Byrne - Piece Hall - 18th July 2026
David Byrne - Edinburgh Playhouse - 20th July 2026
Jack White - Newcastle City Hall - August 29th 2026
Marillion - Gateshead Sage - 26th September 2026
Mercury Rev - Sunderland Fire Station - 10th October 2026
Courtney Barnett - Gateshead Sage - 14th October 2026
Alison Moyet - Gateshead Sage - 15th October 2026
Steve Hackett - Sage - 21st October 2026
Stewart Lee - Newcastle Tyne Theatre - 24th October 2026
The Strokes - Newcastle Arena - 25th October 2026
Phil Wang - Tyne Theatre - 14th November 2026
Ben Folds - Gateshead Sage - 16th November 2026
Tom Stade - The Stand - 6th December 2026
Rush - Manchester - 12th March 2027
Rush - Manchester - 14th March 2027
Rush - London - 21st March 2027
Rush - Helsinki - 10th April 2027

[The Picnic Wasp]

Sleaford Mods - Newcastle Boiler Shop - 5th February 2026    2/5
Fatboy Slim - Newcastle Boiler Shop - 12th February 2026    5/5
Suede - Newcastle City Hall - 14th February 2025  5/5
David Byrne - Glasgow Armadillo - 7/3/26  5/5
Paul & Suki improv - Tyne Theatre - 11th March 2026  1/5
Courtney Barnett - Sunderland Independent- 29th March 2026  4/5
To Kill a  Mockingbird - Newcastle Theatre Royal - 22nd April 2026 5/5
The Prodigy - Newcastle Arena - 2nd May 2026 4/5
The Lemon Twigs - Leeds Brudenell - 22nd May 2026
Kraftwerk - Stockton Globe - 27th May 2026
Scott Bennett - Tyne Theatre - 30th May 2026
Primavera - Barcelona - 4th - 6th June 2026
Metallica - London Stadium - 5th July 2026
The Spy Who Came in From The Cold - Newcastle Theatre Royal - 10th July 2026
Wolf Alice - Exhibition Park - 12th July 2026
David Byrne - Piece Hall - 18th July 2026
David Byrne - Edinburgh Playhouse - 20th July 2026
Jack White - Newcastle City Hall - August 29th 2026
Marillion - Gateshead Sage - 26th September 2026
Mercury Rev - Sunderland Fire Station - 10th October 2026
Courtney Barnett - Gateshead Sage - 14th October 2026
Alison Moyet - Gateshead Sage - 15th October 2026
Steve Hackett - Sage - 21st October 2026
Stewart Lee - Newcastle Tyne Theatre - 24th October 2026
The Strokes - Newcastle Arena - 25th October 2026
Phil Wang - Tyne Theatre - 14th November 2026
Ben Folds - Gateshead Sage - 16th November 2026
Tom Stade - The Stand - 6th December 2026
Rush - Manchester - 12th March 2027
Rush - Manchester - 14th March 2027
Rush - London - 21st March 2027
Rush - Helsinki - 10th April 2027

Serious question. I worry about volume at gigs now. On the infrequent occasion I watch a band I wear Alpine earplugs. Do you protect your hearing at all?

[captainkurtz]

Sleaford Mods - Newcastle Boiler Shop - 5th February 2026    2/5
Fatboy Slim - Newcastle Boiler Shop - 12th February 2026    5/5
Suede - Newcastle City Hall - 14th February 2025  5/5
David Byrne - Glasgow Armadillo - 7/3/26  5/5
Paul & Suki improv - Tyne Theatre - 11th March 2026  1/5
Courtney Barnett - Sunderland Independent- 29th March 2026  4/5
To Kill a  Mockingbird - Newcastle Theatre Royal - 22nd April 2026 5/5
The Prodigy - Newcastle Arena - 2nd May 2026 4/5
The Lemon Twigs - Leeds Brudenell - 22nd May 2026
Kraftwerk - Stockton Globe - 27th May 2026
Scott Bennett - Tyne Theatre - 30th May 2026
Primavera - Barcelona - 4th - 6th June 2026
Metallica - London Stadium - 5th July 2026
The Spy Who Came in From The Cold - Newcastle Theatre Royal - 10th July 2026
Wolf Alice - Exhibition Park - 12th July 2026
David Byrne - Piece Hall - 18th July 2026
David Byrne - Edinburgh Playhouse - 20th July 2026
Jack White - Newcastle City Hall - August 29th 2026
Marillion - Gateshead Sage - 26th September 2026
Mercury Rev - Sunderland Fire Station - 10th October 2026
Courtney Barnett - Gateshead Sage - 14th October 2026
Alison Moyet - Gateshead Sage - 15th October 2026
Steve Hackett - Sage - 21st October 2026
Stewart Lee - Newcastle Tyne Theatre - 24th October 2026
The Strokes - Newcastle Arena - 25th October 2026
Phil Wang - Tyne Theatre - 14th November 2026
Ben Folds - Gateshead Sage - 16th November 2026
Tom Stade - The Stand - 6th December 2026
Rush - Manchester - 12th March 2027
Rush - Manchester - 14th March 2027
Rush - London - 21st March 2027
Rush - Helsinki - 10th April 2027

Serious question. I worry about volume at gigs now. On the infrequent occasion I watch a band I wear Alpine earplugs. Do you protect your hearing at all?

After R30, which was just stupid, volume wise, I had some professional ones custom made for my ears.  They worked really well for a long time but eventually...just stopped working as they had done previously.  I occasionally wear expanding foam plugs, but not that often.  I do think the volume has been decreased a little at gigs over the last decade - but have recently been thinking I do need to invest in another pair...

[Thenop]

Serious question. I worry about volume at gigs now. On the infrequent occasion I watch a band I wear Alpine earplugs. Do you protect your hearing at all?

I have been wearing earplugs since the early days of me playing drums, and I use them at every gig I go to. These are custom made ones of course.
It helps me in the sense that it kept my hearing loss at a minimum (I like my music so I want to enjoy it as long as I can) and has the pleasant side effect that it really relieves the 'morning after fatigue' I experience after going out.

[Matt2112]

Fri 16th Jan
MICK MILLER, Bradford Tapestry ****
Sat 31st Jan
JACK CARROLL,
Halifax Grayston Unity ***

Fri 8th May
CLINTON BAPTISTE,
Bradford St George's Hall ****

Sat 23rd May
IRON MAIDEN / Anthrax
Athens OAKA Stadium

Sat 6th Jun
FM, Holmfirth Picturedrome

Fri 13th Jun
MADNESS, Halifax Piece Hall

Wed 24th Jun
STEWART LEE,
Huddersfield Lawrence Batley Theatre

Fri 17th Jul
GARY DELANEY,
Huddersfield Lawrence Batley Theatre

Fri 31st July
GARY NUMAN, Halifax Piece Hall

Thu 17th Sep
JONATHAN PIE (WIP),
Huddersfield Lawrence Batley Theatre

Sat 5th Sep
JIMMY CARR, Bradford Live

Sat 26th Sep
JON ANDERSON & THE BAND GEEKS,
Manchester Opera House

Sat 21st Nov
U2UK, Leeds Old Woollen

[Thenop]

The Gathering - London Shepherds Bush 19th May

I see this was with Anneke, nice. How was it?

[pdw1]

The Gathering - London Shepherds Bush 19th May

I see this was with Anneke, nice. How was it?

Yes billed as 30 years of Mandylion.
A smallish crowd (compared to the size of the venue) but very enthusiastic and vocal.
Great gig from the whole band. Anneke still has the voice of an angel.

[Thenop]

The Gathering - London Shepherds Bush 19th May

I see this was with Anneke, nice. How was it?

Yes billed as 30 years of Mandylion.
A smallish crowd (compared to the size of the venue) but very enthusiastic and vocal.
Great gig from the whole band. Anneke still has the voice of an angel.

She is seen as the godmother of this vocal style, all the female vocalists in Holland praise her, including Floor Janssen.

Some of her solowork is nice as well.

[pdw1]

The Gathering - London Shepherds Bush 19th May

I see this was with Anneke, nice. How was it?

Yes billed as 30 years of Mandylion.
A smallish crowd (compared to the size of the venue) but very enthusiastic and vocal.
Great gig from the whole band. Anneke still has the voice of an angel.

She is seen as the godmother of this vocal style, all the female vocalists in Holland praise her, including Floor Janssen.

Some of her solowork is nice as well.

Her solo work is more poppy but still great.