Remember when everyone started wondering why ‘Tony McCarroll’ was trending on social media before suddenly realising they might have cocked up getting an Oasis pre-sale code? Us too, and with just a few months until the band’s reunion tour kicking off, he’s sent a message to the boys.
For most Oasis fans, the idea of an actual comeback was something they’d long dreamt of, but one they had mostly resigned themselves to the fact that it was something that was probably never really going to come true.
With that in mind, one man who was not only there at the very start of the phenomenon that was Oasis but – for one day, at the very least – was perhaps the most Googled person on the planet, has shared a heartfelt message of support; here’s what Tony McCarroll had to say ahead of a truly massive summer:
Sharing a sentiment that many of us headed into the new year echoing after we’d learned of the Oasis reunion, the 53-year-old began simply saying, “2025 is shaping up alright, isn’t it?!
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“Almost a lifetime ago, a few Burnage lads got together and created something special. Something that time can’t out date, the start of a wave that’s evidently still rolling with the last real band before the world changed.
“Oasis captured the time and minds of the people; we were the same as them, and they felt it. The connection. Over the last year or two, I’ve noticed something new in the gig and QnA crowds…. youth. The circle has started again lads. A new generation ready to start a journey of listening.”
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The original Oasis drummer, who quit the band in 1995 and was replaced by long-standing replacement Alan White, confessed: “Actually, I’m a bit jealous of that blank canvas they’re about to start on”
“Lads, the world is excited to see this, it’s all people are talking about. The time ‘feels’ right, I can’t wait to see how it all goes down”, he went on to say.
Adressing Liam, Noel, Paul ‘Bonehead’ Arthurs and Gem Archer directly before adding, “I better stop there as I’m not sure who else”, McCarroll wished them the best of luck and reminding them to make sure they “stop and take it in”.
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As he touched on, the full band lineup for the Oasis reunion shows is yet to be officially confirmed but we’ve had pretty strong indications as to who we can expect to be returning.
Last but not least, he went on to quip, “If the drummer fancies a stage partner for ‘Supersonic’ at Heaton Park, give us a buzz” – now what a moment that would be, eh?
“What we started back in The Boardwalk days, has become this. Be proud. I f***** am! Enjoy it”, he signs off. Whether or not he has any regrets that he wasn’t part of the latter decade or so they spent as a bad or not, who knows? Even four years as part of one of the world’s biggest bands is quite something.
One thing that his message has proved for sure is that Tony McCarroll is just as excited to see Oasis come back this summer as every other fan on the planet and, original drummer, Alan White, Zak Starkey or otherwise, just hearing that first roar from the crowd is going to send chills down our collective spines.
For those of you lucky enough to grab tickets, what are you most looking forward to hearing?
Oasis promoters drop biggest Knebworth hint yet after securing license around key date
Danny Jones
Not that we’re the type to get carried away, but we’ll confess that our curiosity, interest and general levels of anticipation have been piqued, as Oasis’ main promoters have recently renewed the license to host events at the infamous Knebworth.
My word, is this it? Like the reunion, is it ACTUALLY going to happen?…
We’re sure the raw, uncontrollable excitement will come should it be fully confirmed, but for now, all we know is that our colleagues in music media, SJM Concerts, have renewed the land in and around Knebworth Park and House for live entertainment once again.
Moreover, the company have also done so on a rather fitting date decades on from the original and legendary outdoor gigs.
As can be found on the planning application section of the North Hertfordshire Council website – the county in which the storied Britpop gigs took place – a fresh license to hold new events.
If/when the announcement happens, the already granted permission will allow for a capacity of up to 125,000 and a curfew of 3am.
We know the original Knebworth shows were beyond iconic, but let’s say this would be nailed on to be nothing short of absolutely box office.
Besides having also helped promote Oasis’ colossal Live ’25 reunion tour last summer, it’s also worth noting that they secured said license just over a week before the 30th anniversary of the pair of nights back in 1996: 10-11 August, to be specific.
The licence is said to have come into effect this past Saturday (1 Aug) and is believed to be indefinite.
What added even more fuel to the fire of these well-established rumours over the past year was when Baroness Sharon Taylor of Stevenage told the House of Lords the band would be playing FIVE whole nights at Knebworth in the future, before later clarifying that she was speaking in “hypothetical terms.”
All that being said, it’s fair to say we’ll be keeping a very keen eye on socials over the next few days, in particular, just in case.
The Manc has reached out to SJM for an official comment (surprise, surprise), but we are yet to receive a response regarding the matter.
Your silence speaks volumes, just saying.
This coming Monday, 10 August 2026, will mark the official 30th anniversary of Oasis at Knebworth 1996, and with the likes of ‘Wonderwall’ seeing a chart resurgence as the go-to England anthem at this year’s World Cup, we’re choosing to be optimistic. What about you?
Blossoms deliver most rock and roll performance in years as Declan McKenna joins them on stage
Danny Jones
Last night, we were fortunate enough to be there in the flesh not only to see Blossoms play a special anniversary show in Manchester, but to witness Declan McKenna join them on stage.
A tiny part of us was wondering if we’d see Rick Astley roll out into the venue, but let’s just say we’ll absolutely take this.
Celebrating a decade to the day since the release of the self-titled debut LP – yes, we feel old, too – Blossoms announced the one-off intimate show at The Deaf Institute, a venue they hadn’t played in 12 whole years (good lord…), and it served as much more than a night of nostalgia.
But we’ll admit, the highlight was almost certainly seeing the ‘Brazil’ and ‘British Bombs’ singer join Tom Ogden, Charlie Salt, Josh Dewhurst, Myles Kellock and Joe Donovan on stage for their smallest gig since god knows when.
We’ve gotten somewhat used to seeing the Enfield-born solo artist popping up at random venues across the country and even performing DJ sets at local pubs.
If you haven’t seen that Kylie Minogue clip before, you really need to…
However, we don’t think anyone in the crowd was expecting this cameo, let alone hearing them perform a co-written track off the new record live in front of the audience for the very first time.
As if all of this wasn’t already a bit bonkers and left-field, the song in question, entitled ‘Additional Driver’, was self-admittedly so surprising in SO many ways that Tom felt he needed to explain the full story behind it and why Declan shouted “shoulda got the 192” before they started playing.
Yes, in some kind of Greater Mancunian fever dream, we’ve finally got artists writing lyrics about the region’s most infamous bus route that we’re sure most, if not all of you, can relate to.
But it wasn’t just this moment that had us debating in our heads, ‘are they the best Manc or maybe in Northern band full stop going right now?’, it was seeing them slip so seamlessly back into the more straight-down-the-line indie rock from their first chapter of studio material that did it.
Everyone knows and loves the biggest bangers from that inaugural outing: ‘Getaway’, ‘Charlemagne’, ‘At Most a Kiss’, ‘Honey Sweet’, etc.; but it’s hard to forget just how quintessentially rock and roll tunes like ‘Blow Rose’, ‘Cut Me and I’ll Bleed’, ‘Texia’ and even some of the other deep cuts/early releases are.
Don’t get us wrong, we love how much the dressing up (musically and quite literally) they’ve done over the years as their production, creativity and experimentation has increased, but it’s always hard to beat that feeling you get when finding an artist’s first album – especially one as good as Blossoms‘.
In fairness, listening back to ‘Deep Grass’ all these years later, we’ll still remember how spacey, psychedelic and downright different that intro felt back in the day; it now feels like a fitting end to that maiden outing and the perfect jumping-off point for what has been a real sonic exploration ever since.
For a lad born in SK2 and lucky enough to have seen these lads right from the start, stuff like this will never not feel surreal to me.
Long live ‘Blossoms from Stockport‘, and roll on Songs From The Wedding Cake this October.
Danny Jones -
8th April 2025 
