Lots of us have had some version of a ‘stuck in a room playing videogames until 3am’ period in our lives, but it turns out The 1975 frontman Matty Healy is having his right now, only right in the middle of making the band’s next album, and the game in question is ARC Raiders.
For the non-gamers among you, or even the more casual amongst you who mainly stick to the likes of Call of Duty or FIFA (sorry, EA FC*), you’ll be forgiven if you haven’t heard of ARC Raiders yet.
As for those of you who still regularly sweat it out in online lobbies, either with the boys or solo – this online shooter has quickly proved ideal for either – chances are you’ve at least considered buying it if you’re not already a ridiculous level.
Well, as it turns out, Matty Healy is one of those people, as the local lead singer, songwriter, multi-instrumentalist, and producer says he’s been spending most nights staying up very late in and around recording sessions on the next 1975 outing. More than that, he wants to play with fans.
That’s right, whilst he insists that the group are hard at work on their sixth studio LP, he’s also been spending a lot of time playing the third-person multiplayer game “religiously” and getting very little sleep.
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In fact, as you can see in the post above, it almost been part of this album’s lifecycle and the music-making process, much to even Healy’s own surprise.
Positioned and already being reviewed as one of the best extraction advantages ‘ever’, the game by Embark Studios over in Stockholm, Sweden, is just the second-ever title by the studio, having previously made the FPS (first-person shooter) The Finals, which released early after ARC Raiders was delayed.
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It’s taken the development team nearly seven years to create the game, which was initially teased as an even more ambitious project as early as 2021, and this also included a major rework after they realised they weren’t getting the kind of single-player or co-op experience they had been aiming for.
And that back-to-the-drawing-board step certainly seemed to pay off, as not only was it the most searched game of 2025, but it is already holding over 6 million weekly players online so far this year – and the Wilmslow musician is one of them.
The 36-year-old, opinionated and often opinion-splitting performer is certainly no stranger to roping in various pop culture references and aesthetics into his art, but we can’t think of many other examples where he’s made a nod to gaming. For now, this is literally as much as we have on the next ’75 LP:
Nevertheless, if you want to try and kill a few hours between instalments in their discography and you happen to dabble in the joysticks and/or a mouse and keyboard from time to time, then we’d keep an eye on that Reddit thread for updates.
Healy mentioned that he obviously doesn’t want to flood rounds and his own network with loads of traffic, but he is asking for feedback on how to make raiding the post-apocalyptic wastelands with fans possible very soon.
As much as we’d relish a famous Northerner to team up with (yes, we’re hooked as well), we’d be remiss if we didn’t remind him to GET ON WITH IT and finish this album already, as Being Funny in a Foreign Language feels like forever ago.
This is the kind of stuff we’ve been busy filling our days with whilst waiting for the next 1975 drop…
Erling Haaland has named his four favourite films… and fans have a lot to say on it
Emily Sergeant
Erling Haaland has answered the all-important question.
The question heard around the world, the question on everyone’s lips, a question that has absolutely nothing to do with football whatsoever… that’s right, he’s answered Letterboxd’s famous question of ‘what are your four favourite films?’.
If you’re unaware of what Letterboxd is, it describes itself as being an ‘online diary platform and app for film lovers’ and it gives users the chance to display their four favourite films at the top of their profile for all to see (and judge).
An extension of this has then been Letterboxd asking celebrities in press junket interviews and on red carpets what their ‘four faves’ are – and it’s gone on to become something of a phenomenon in the film world.
Everyone from massive A-list movie stars, to indie darlings and up-and-coming names have answered this question before, and now (it appears) to be Erling Haaland’s turn.
He’s not the first footballer to be tasked with question though, as the entire Spurs team was ambushed with it by former player – and famously massive cinephile – Alfie Whiteman last year, but it’s fair to say that after the summer he’s had with Norway at the World Cup, achieving international fame in the process, that Haaland is one of the most high-profile to answer it in a long while.
So, what’s on Erling’s list then?
Well, to self-confessed ‘film bros’ out there, you’re not going to find any deep cuts in this selection unfortunately, and you’re probably not going to get any recommendations for movies you haven’t seen before either, but come on, he is only a footballer after all.
Erling Haaland has named his four favourite films… and fans have a lot to say on it / Credit: Letterboxd
First up for the Manchester City striker is a pretty common pick by straight white men, it’s The Wolf of Wall Street, and he doesn’t give much of a reason for it, other than just suggesting: “I think you understand why”.
He then follows that up with Ridley Scott’s classic Gladiator, calling it ‘amazing’, before naming 2004’s epic Troy, and then rounding it out with a Christmas favourite for many, Home Alone, adding that he ‘watched it a lot as a kid, and then again now’.
As for fan reaction to Haaland’s four favourites, let’s just say it’s been mixed.
Among the 1,000+ comments on the Instagram video, you’ll find just as many people called him ‘king’ and saying he has ‘goated’ taste, as you will comments like this: “He has the most male gazed top four in history of Letterboxd.”
Noel Gallagher reveals his and Liam’s children are now ‘best friends’ after the Oasis reunion
Emily Sergeant
Noel Gallagher has revealed that his and Liam’s sons had never met each other before the Oasis reunion last year.
But now? Well now they’re ‘best friends’, apparently.
Unless you’ve been living under a rock, then I’m sure you’ll know by now that Oasis reunited last year for the first time since they disbanded back in 2009 to bring the world the long-awaited Oasis Live ’25 reunion tour – including five nostalgia-drenched gigs here in Manchester at Heaton Park, which saw more than 300,000 people descend on our city.
It was undeniably one of the biggest cultural events of the 21st century so far, given the fact most fans presumed the Gallagher brothers‘ feud meant they would never meet each other again.
Now though, it’s been revealed that some Gallaghers actually hadn’t met before last year.
According to those lucky fans who have already had the chance to see the Oasis: Don’t Look Back In Anger documentary concert film – which premiered first at the 2026 Venice Film Festival this past weekend, and then had its world premiere in London last night (7 September) – Noel Gallagher shares a story about how his two sons, Donovan and Sonny, had never met Liam’s sons Lennon and Gene prior to the reunion tour.
Noel Gallagher reveals that his and Liam’s sons had never met before the Oasis reunion:
Noel has three children – 26-year-old daughter Anaïs from his first marriage to Meg Matthews, and then two sons, 18-year-old Donovan and 16-year-old Sonny from his second marriage to Sara MacDonald.
Liam, on the other hand, has four children – daughter Molly, 28, two sons Lennon and Gene, aged 26 and 25 respectively, as well as a 13-year-old daughter named Gemma, who he is yet to meet.
Speaking on the relationship between his kids and their cousins, Noel said: “When my kids met his kids they didn’t know each other.
“Donovan and Sonny had never met Gene and Lennon. Lo and behold they’re best friends now.”
Oasis: Don’t Look Back In Anger is set to show the meteoric rise of Oasis through rare footage and untold stories as the band reunites for Oasis Live ’25, chronicling their journey from Manchester streets to global rock stardom.
It releases in cinemas nationwide, including in IMAX, this Friday 11 September.
Danny Jones -
13th February 2026 
