Manic Street Preachers and Suede have just announced a co-headline tour of UK arenas this autumn. This marks the British rock groups’ third joint tour. The two groups played shows together in North America in 2022, and more recently a UK tour in 2024. Their first outing together was a 1994 tour of Europe. But the run to begin at the end of October will be their largest tour to date.
The tour begins in Glasgow at the OVO Arena and will head to Leeds and then Manchester’s Co-op Live Arena. They will spend two nights in Cardiff at the Utilita Arena before playing the O2 Arena in London. They’ll wrap up the run with nights in Birmingham, Nottingham and Bournemouth.
In a review of their joint UK run in 2024, Clash said, “As it transpires, one of the few allies Suede can count on in British music are Manic Street Preachers. Literate, devoutly non-laddish indie rock, the pair are honorary members of the awkward squad, influencing the mainstream while facing antithetically against it. Hence this tour: Manic Street Preachers and Suede on the bill, swapping positions dependent on who the ‘home team’ – the headliner – is deemed to be that night.”
The band’s parallels has been reflected not only in their sound but also in similar moments in their careers. James Dean Bradfield of Manic Street Preachers spoke about this to NME ahead of the band’s 2022 North American run. He recalled the 1994 European tour with Suede, “I vividly remember those gigs because Richey [Edwards, now missing guitarist] was coming back from what you might call his emotional event and was insisting that he wanted to come on the road.” He spoke to the ways band had to adjust, saying “we were treading softly with Richey at some points,” But found commonalities in this with their tour mates: “Suede had lost Bernard Butler as their guitarist and were going through the transition of Richard Oakes coming into the band.” Commenting on both their careers as well as their performance, Bradfield said “[Suede] kind of share the same path as us. They’ve been through a few things and they’re still here.”
In February 2025, Manic Street Preachers released their 15th studio album, ‘Critical Thinking.’ It peaked at Number 2 on the UK Official Album charts and received 4 out of 5 stars from The Guardian, The Times and NME.
Suede released their tenth studio album, ‘Antidepressants’ in September 2025. It also peaked at Number 2 on the UK Official Album charts, nodding again to the parallels in Suede and Manic’s careers. The album received a 9/10 from Line of Best Fit and an 8/10 from Clash.
Tickets go on sale at 9:30am BST Friday May 1. Find access to those here.
