Oasis
Simon Emmett/Press
Ask a music fan about their plans for 2025 and they’re likely to already be booked and busy. This won’t come as much of a surprise. Following the pandemic, the industry has tilted heavily towards live experiences with concerts and festivals proving key to reconnecting with its audience. In 2023, 19.2 million fans attended live music concerts in the U.K., and it contributed a record £7.6 billion ($9.2B U.S.) to the economy. Last year also saw Taylor Swift’s massive Eras tour roll into town, likely providing a further boost to the final figures.
This year looks like it could be another boom for live shows in the U.K. and Ireland. There are big name reunions (Oasis, The Maccabees), hyped return engagements for international stars (Billie Eilish, Sabrina Carpenter, Usher) and a host of local talents stepping up to their largest ever stages (Fontaines D.C., Charli XCX). At the end of last year, there was a battle for attention with daily show announcements and the occasional mad ticket scramble.
There’s still issues to be rectified, however. Grassroots music venues are suffering massively and the Music Venues Trust and other allies are calling for immediate government action to protect these spaces. Some acts have taken the fight into their own hands, with Coldplay, Sam Fender and more all pledging donations to the scene from their ticket sales. New intervention to cap the value of tickets on reselling sites will no doubt be welcomed by fans.
As a massive year of music awaits, these are the biggest shows to look out for in the U.K. and Ireland across 2025, presented in alphabetical order.
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Billie Eilish
Following her hugely successful LP Hit Me Hard and Soft, Billie has thrown everything into the accompanying live show. With an in-the-round stage set, pyrotechnics (and sometimes Charli XCX), her run of U.K. and Ireland shows – including a whopping six nights at London’s O2 Arena – are set to be unmissable.
July 7 – Glasgow, Scotland @ OVO Hydro
July 8 – Glasgow, Scotland @ OVO Hydro
July 10 – London, England @ The O2
July 11 – London, England @ The O2
July 13 – London, England @ The O2
July 14 – London, England @ The O2
July 17 – London, England @ The O2
July 19 – Manchester, England @ Co-op Live
July 20 – Manchester, England @ Co-op Live
July 22 – Manchester, England @ Co-op Live
July 23 – Manchester, England @ Co-op Live
July 26 – Dublin, Ireland @ 3Arena
July 27 – Dublin, Ireland @ 3Arena -
Charli XCX
After an astronomical 2024, Brat Summer returns for a much-welcomed sequel throughout 2025, with Charli slated to headline numerous events across the globe. In June, she returns to the U.K. and Ireland with slots at the newly-minted Lido Festival in east London and Manchester’s Parklife Festival among others.
June 14 – Manchester, England @ Parklife
June 15 – London, England @ Lido Festival
June 17 – Dublin, Ireland @ Malahide Castle
June 18 – Belfast, Northern Ireland @ Ormeau Park -
Coldplay
Coldplay’s dates in the U.K. are seismic in many ways. The group’s 10-night stand at Wembley Stadium will set a new record for the longest residency held at the iconic venue, and Chris Martin and co. will donate aportionofthe revenue from that run to the Music Venues Trust to help safeguard the future of the grassroots music scene. A huge moment from an act leading the fightback.
August 18 – Hull, England @ Craven Park
August 19 – Hull, England @ Craven Park
August 22 – London, England @ Wembley Stadium
August 23 – London, England @ Wembley Stadium
August 26 – London, England @ Wembley Stadium
August 27 – London, England @ Wembley Stadium
August 30 – London, England @ Wembley Stadium
August 31 – London, England @ Wembley Stadium
September 3 – London, England @ Wembley Stadium
September 4 – London, England @ Wembley Stadium
September 7 – London, England @ Wembley Stadium
September 8 – London, England @ Wembley Stadium -
Dua Lipa
Speaking to Billboard U.K. last year, the pop superstar said that 2024 was the “best year of my life” and saw her rattle through her bucket list. Headlining Wembley Stadium (not once, but twice) will surely have been on her manifestation board, and the sold-out shows come slap bang in the middle of a global run. It’s going to be a fun one.
June 20 – London, England @ Wembley Stadium
June 21 – London, England @ Wembley Stadium
June 24 – Liverpool, England @ Anfield Stadium
June 25 – Liverpool, England @ Anfield Stadium
June 27 – Dublin, Ireland @ Aviva Stadium -
Fontaines D.C.
The Dublin band’s rise in the past few years has been a joy to witness. From tiny pubs to some of the U.K. and Ireland’s biggest arenas, their scintillating live show has gone from strength-to-strength. In 2025, they go to the next level at outdoor venues in London, Cardiff, Newcastle and Manchester.
July 5 – London, England @ Finsbury Park
July 13 – Newcastle, England @ Exhibition Park
July 30 – Cardiff, Wales @ Cardiff Castle
August 15 – Manchester, England @ Wythenshawe Park -
Glastonbury Festival
It wouldn’t be Glastonbury without a headliner hoo-ha. In January, Neil Young said that he was withdrawing from the festival due to alleged BBC interference and called it a “corporate turn-off.” Days later, he did a u-turn and blamed an “error” in information that caused his huff. He’s back now, and will headline the Pyramid Stage come June; Olivia Rodrigo, The 1975, Stevie Wonder, Sam Fender and more are all considered candidates to join him.
June 25-27 – Somerset, England @ Glastonbury Festival
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Kylie Minogue
The Aussie pop icon’s Tension era has been a complete smash so far: She’s nabbed two No. 1 albums in the U.K. with the titular LP and its 2024 sequel, as well as a worldwide hit with the joyous “Padam Padam.” Now, finally, comes a full supporting tour across the globe which hits these shores in the spring.
May 16 – Glasgow, Scotland @ OVO Hydro
May 17 – Newcastle, England @ Utilita Arena
May 19 – Manchester, England @ AO Arena
May 20 – Manchester, England @ AO Arena
May 22 – Liverpool, England @ M&S Bank Arena
May 23 – Sheffield, England @ Utilita Arena
May 26 – London, England @ The O2
May 27 – London, England @ The O2
May 30 – Nottingham, England @ Motorpoint Arena Nottingham
May 31 – Birmingham, England @ BP Pulse Live
June 2 – London, England @ The O2
June 3 – London, England @ The O2
June 5 – Birmingham, England @ BP Pulse Live
June 6 – Glasgow, Scotland @ OVO Hydro -
Lana Del Rey
2025 is set to be a special one for Lana: She’s poised to release new album The Right Person Will Stay in May, and a month later stadiums across the U.K. and Ireland beckon. Following her cover of the song in 2020, hopefully she’ll bust out Liverpool F.C.’s club anthem “You’ll Never Walk Alone” when she plays their home stadium Anfield on this hotly-anticipated run.
June 23 – Cardiff, Wales @ Principality Stadium
June 26 – Glasgow, Scotland @ Hampden Park
June 28 – Liverpool, England @ Anfield Stadium
June 30 – Dublin, Ireland @ Aviva Stadium
July 3 – London, England @ Wembley Stadium
July 4 – London, England @ Wembley Stadium -
Linkin Park
After an epic comeback in 2024, the U.S. rockers will return with a global run at some of the biggest venues on offer. That includes London’s Wembley Stadium in the summer, and follows a brace of arena shows in the capital this past November.
June 28 – London, England @ Wembley Stadium
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The Maccabees
Indie fans of a certain age will have been immensely satisfied (but not wholly surprised) when The Maccabees announced they would return for a one-off show at London’s All Points East festival in August 2025. The band split in 2017, but there was a lingering sense that the bigger stages were yet to be conquered. This show at Victoria Park will be one of them.
August 24 – London, England @ All Points East
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Oasis
This summer Noel and Liam Gallagher will return as Oasis, performing their first gigs together in over 15 years – you may have heard about it. Before the unlikely reunion heads around the world in the second half of 2025, it all kicks off in the U.K. and Ireland for a string of sold-out dates. It’s going to be biblical.
July 4 – Cardiff, Wales @ Principality Stadium
July 5 – Cardiff, Wales @ Principality Stadium
July 11 – Manchester, England @ Heaton Park
July 12 – Manchester, England @ Heaton Park
July 16 – Manchester, England @ Heaton Park
July 19 – Manchester, England @ Heaton Park
July 20 – Manchester, England @ Heaton Park
July 25 – London, England @ Wembley Stadium
July 26 – London, England @ Wembley Stadium
July 30 – London, England @ Wembley Stadium
August 2 – London, England @ Wembley Stadium
August 3 – London, England @ Wembley Stadium
August 8 – Edinburgh, Scotland @ Murrayfield Stadium
August 9 – Edinburgh, Scotland @ Murrayfield Stadium
August 12 – Edinburgh, Scotland @ Murrayfield Stadium
August 16 – Dublin, Ireland @ Croke Park
August 17 – Dublin, Ireland @ Croke Park
September 27 – London, England @ Wembley Stadium
September 28 – London, England @ Wembley Stadium -
Olivia Rodrigo
Following the global success of her SOUR run, Rodrigo nabbed Billboard’s Touring Artist of The Year for 2024. The run is now set to continue throughout 2025 and includes a headline slot at BST Hyde Park and (as rumour has it) potentially a slot at Glastonbury in June.
June 24 – Dublin, Ireland @ Marlay Park
June 27 – London, England @ BST Hyde Park
June 30 – Manchester, England @ Co-op Live
July 1 – Manchester, England @ Co-op Live -
RAYE
2024 was a breakthrough year for the singer-songwriter, which saw her land a record-breaking six BRIT Awards in a single night and take her talents to the global stage. This year she’ll bring it all back home, curating a stellar lineup at London’s All Points East festival alongside Tyla, Doechii and Jade Thirlwall.
August 23 – London, England @ All Points East
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Sabrina Carpenter
The last proper headline show Carpenter played in the U.K. was at London’s Eventim Apollo in 2023, a modest theatre venue that’s now well below her stature. In March, her dates will run through a slew of big cities including Dublin, Birmingham, London, Glasgow and Manchester before she returns with a massive show at London’s BST Hyde Park in July.
March 3 – Dublin, Ireland @ 3Arena
March 4 – Dublin, Ireland @ 3Arena
March 6 – Birmingham, England @ Utilita Arena
March 8 – London, England @ The O2 Arena
March 9 – London, England @ The O2 Arena
March 11 – Glasgow, Scotland @ OVO Hydro
March 13 – Manchester, England @ Co-op Live
March 14 – Manchester, England @ Co-op Live
July 5 – London, England @ BST Hyde Park -
Sam Fender
In February, Fender will release his highly-anticipated third album, People Watching, produced by The War On Drugs. Ambitious tunes – like the titular lead single – demand bigger venues to hold them, and the Geordie musician will head to the 75,000-capacity London Stadium for a headline appearance and a trio of homecoming shows at Newcastle’s St. James’ Park.
June 6 – London, England @ London Stadium
June 12 – Newcastle, England @ St James’ Park
June 14 – Newcastle, England @ St James’ Park
June 15 – Newcastle, England @ St James’ Park -
Scissor Sisters
The band’s self-titled debut was an instant hit in the U.K. and ended up being 2004’s best-selling LP. It feels fitting, then, that the trio (Ana Matronic will not be partaking) felt it only right to end their 12-year hiatus in the place that loves them dearly. Expect one of the biggest and most fabulous nights of the year when it hits the road in May.
May 16 – Nottingham, England @ Motorpoint Arena
May 17 – Glasgow, Scotland @ OVO Hydro
May 19 – Bournemouth, England @ Bournemouth International Centre
May 20 – Cardiff, Wales @ Utilita Arena
May 21 – Manchester, England @ Co-op Live
May 23 – London, England @ The O2
May 24 – Leeds, England @ First Direct Arena
May 25 – Birmingham, England @ Utilita Arena
May 27 – Belfast, Northern Ireland @ SSE Arena
May 28 – Dublin, Ireland @ 3Arena -
Tyler, the Creator
For a number of years, the rap titan was unable to enter and perform in the U.K., having been banned by then-Prime Minister Theresa May on spurious grounds for his lyrical content. That ended in 2019, but this year will bring his first full tour in over a decade and follows the huge success of Chromakopia, his maiden No. 1 on the U.K. Albums Chart.
May 17 – Birmingham, England @ Utilita Arena
May 19 – London, England @ The O2
May 21 – London, England @ The O2
May 22 – London, England @ The O2
May 24 – Dublin, Ireland @ 3Arena
May 25 – Dublin, Ireland @ 3Arena
May 27 – Manchester, England @ Co-op Live
May 28 – Manchester, England @ Co-op Live
May 30 – Glasgow, Scotland @ OVO Hydro
May 31 – Glasgow, Scotland @ OVO Hydro -
Usher
The R&B king’s Past Present Future tour has been a hot ticket during its run through North American arenas and in 2025 he returns to the U.K. for his first performances in over a decade. He’ll take up residency at London’s O2 Arena for 10 nights between March and May – strap in.
March 29 – London, England @ The O2
April 1 – London, England @ The O2
April 2 – London, England @ The O2
April 5 – London, England @ The O2
April 6 – London, England @ The O2
April 8 – London, England @ The O2
April 9 – London, England @ The O2
April 11 – London, England @ The O2
May 6 – London, England @ The O2
May 7 – London, England @ The O2