Formed in 2006 by Liam Fray (lead guitar and vocalist), Michael Campbell (drummer and backing vocalist), Daniel Moores (rhythm guitarist) and Mark Cuppello (bassist) the Manchester based band have been a crucial part of the UK music scene for generations. The group have released Seven studio albums since their origin with all lyrics and music written by the bands frontman, Liam Fray, the lead has previously stated that all their creations are based on personal experiences. The groups 2008 debut album, ‘St. Jude’ was incredibly successful reaching Number 4 in the UK Albums Chart and has since gone on to achieve gold status.

The beloved group have announced a new compilation record dubbed, ‘God Bless The Band – The Very Best Of Courteeners.’ The record is set to commemorate 20 years of the band including hits from their seven studio albums and an exciting array of new music. This includes their daisy fresh single, “The Luckiest Man Alive” which is now widely available on all streaming platforms. The highly anticipated album is set to be released on August 28 2026.

This exciting release marks the bands first ever compilation album and follows up from their 2024 studio album, ‘Pink Cactus Café.’

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In support of this exciting music venture the group have shared the news of a nationwide headline tour. Before their headlining tour they will also make numerous festival appearances. Despite the group touring in 2025, these news shows are likely to sell out, Courteeners notoriously put on an incredible show, this is definitely one not to miss. Here’s everywhere you can catch Courteeners this year:

– July 23, Stoke on Trent, Victoria Hall

-July 24-26, Sheffield, Tramlines Festival

-August 27, Leicester, O2 Academy

-August 29, Manchester, Wythenshawe Park

-November 6, Leeds, First Direct Arena

-November 7, Cardiff, Utilia Arena

-November 13, Liverpool, M&S Bank Arena

-November 14, London, Alexandra Palace

-November 20, Glasgow, OVO Hydro

-November 21, Birmingham, AXS EventsBirmingham

Incredibly for their November 2026 run of shows, Courteeners are donating £1 (+VAT) from every ticket sold to the LIVE Trust, which is all the more reason to attend. The LIVE Trust is a new indicative dedicated to providing financial support to the grassroots music ecosystem. Under this wide umbrella are venues, artists, festivals and promoters. It’s no shock the band are choosing to support the LIVE Trust, as it’s a cause close to their heart. Courteeners loudly support grassroots venues, notably Manchester’s Night & Day.

As for grabbing your own tickets fans who pre order the new album from the groups official store before 5pm BST on Tuesday, April 14 will receive a presale code. This exclusive presale will occur on Wednesday April 15 at 10am. General sale then goes live on Friday, April 17 at 10am, best accessed through Ticketmaster.

The first single from the album, ‘Solitude Of The Night Bus’ has been released with a music video to go with it directed by Dom Foster. The video follows Courteeners frontman Liam Fray on the number 17 bus going on a cosmic journey as the artwork for ‘Pink Cactus Cafe’ coming to life around him during the bus journey.

The band originally formed in Manchester in the early 2000s and this will mark their first album in over four years with the band’s last album ‘More. Again. Forever.’ being released in January 2020.

Speaking in a press release about the song, singer Liam Fray said that “This came at a time of real questioning. Things weren’t going particularly well. No confidence. No direction. I think that’s why – whisper it – it’s on the fun side. This is the new us. I’d previously worked with Ola [Modupe-Ojo] on ‘Hanging Off Your Cloud’ and, like then, there was just a magic in the room that was irresistible.”

He continued talking about how his uncle influenced the track: “It’s a summer breeze. But it’s a winter’s night. Either way, sometimes you have to block out the noise. My late Uncle Pat loved a whistle so it’s a bit of a homage to him. Get on the bus; headphones in; go your own way. It’s the feel good, imposter syndrome hit of the summer.”

The upcoming record sees contributions from various friends of the band including Aussie indie band DMAs, Brooke Combe, and Pixey. You can pre-order the albumn in various formats including CD, LP and cassette along with signed albums and heavyweight and various limited edition and coloured vinyls. All vinyl formats come with a bonus track. Pre-order or pre-save ‘Pink Cactus Cafe’ here.

The track listing for ‘Pink Cactus Cafe’ is:

‘Sweet Surrender’ (featuring Brooke Combe)
‘Weekend Shy Of A Feeling’
‘Pink Cactus Cafe’
‘Where Are We Now?’
‘The Beginning Of The End’ (featuring DMA’S)
‘Solitude of the Night Bus’
‘First Name Terms’ (featuring Pixey)
‘Lu Lu’
‘Love You Any Less’
‘Bitten By Unseen Teeth’

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Along with the announcement of the new album the group also told fans that they will soon be announcing dates for a UK tour this Friday (12th of July) in which they will play a homecoming gig in Manchester at a venue that they have never played at before. You can access the pre-sale for the tour by pre-ordering a copy of the album

Courteeners are getting ready for a string of big festival performances this summer, coming off the back of a set at Lytham festival. They are set to perform in Glasgow and TRNSMT Festival this Saturday (13th of July), followed by performances at Boardmasters on Friday the 9th of August and then they will take the stage at Victorious festival in Southsea on the 24th of August.

Boardmasters has dubbed Sam Fender one of the most-requested artists ever for the festival, and his appearance has been a topic of rampant speculation among fans. Joining other headlining acts Stormzy, Chase & Status, and Becky Hill, Fender is poised to fill the Saturday night headline slot.

This marks Fender’s third appearance at Boardmasters, a festival he first graced in 2014 at just 19 years old, playing on The View stage. Reflecting on his humble beginnings, Fender shared on social media, “I played in a little trailer, tiny stage at the bottom. It was almost off the cliff edge. I played Boardmasters more than any other festival, and now I’m going to headline it.”

The announcement comes hot on the heels of Fender’s collaboration with Noah Kahan on the single ‘Homesick’ and the release of his soulful track ‘Iris’ from the Jackdaw soundtrack. With his 2021 album ‘Seventeen Going Under’ still making waves, fans eagerly anticipate news about his third album.

Fender’s rise to headliner status is a testament to his skyrocketing success, marked by sell-out stadium shows, acclaim at major festivals across the UK and Europe, and two BRIT awards along with an Ivor Novello award. His 2021 release built upon the breakthrough success of his debut album, ‘Hypersonic Missiles,’ solidifying his status as one of Britain’s most celebrated musicians.

Newly joining Fender on the diverse Boardmasters 2024 lineup are other notable acts such as Courteeners, celebrating 15 years since their debut album ‘St. Jude,’ Declan McKenna with new album ‘What Happened to the Beach?’ on the horizon, electronic music duo Overmono, ‘Foundations’ vocalist Kate Nash, Cornwall’s own Wunderhorse, Irish indie rockers NewDad, and Scottish singer-songwriter Calum Bowie.

In addition to its stellar musical lineup, Boardmasters offers a plethora of activities and events, including surfing competitions, skateboarding exhibitions, and immersive art installations. With pre-sale tickets already available, fans are urged to secure their spots early. Last year’s sold out edition featured headliners Lorde, Liam Gallagher, and Florence + The Machine, drawing a crowd of 150,000 festival attendees.

With Sam Fender at the helm as the final headliner, Boardmasters 2024 promises to be “five sun-drenched days of surf, sounds & soul”, with a mix of established and emerging talents gracing the stages. From surf competitions to diverse music acts, the festival offers something for everyone. Secure your tickets here to ensure you don’t miss out on the excitement.

Victorious Festival 2024 will run from August 23-25 with Fatboy Slim and Snow Patrol co-headlining the event’s opening night. Jamie T and Biffy Clyro will then take the headlining spot for Saturday and Sunday night respectively. The 2023 instalment of Victorious Festival featured another star-studded line up as the likes of Mumford and Sons, Kasabian, Kaiser Chiefs, Jamiroquai and Ellie Goulding were amongst the big names of performers.

The festival also houses a comedy stage, and at next year’s event, leaders of the industry Russell Howard and Frankie Boyle will be headlining on Friday and Saturday night at Southsea seafront.

One of the most successful dance artists of all time, the Grammy and Brit award-winning DJ and producer Fatboy Slim will bring a memorable Friday night opening party packed full of hits. His attendance of the festival had previously been teased as a sign saying “Praise You”, in reference to his hit song of the same name, appeared at the event’s location.

Victorious Festival hints at 2024 headliner: https://t.co/85AAcyqY7K #FatboySlim #VictoriousFestival

— Neil Durham (@NeilDurham) November 27, 2023

In addition to these huge headliners, many other world class acts will be making their way down to Portsmouth for Victorious Festival. Other artists on the bill include Wet Leg, Becky Hill, Pixies, Courteeners, IDLES, Jess Glynne, Arlo Parks, Louis Tomlinson and Natasha Bedingfield. You can find the full line up below.

Big News!

We’re SO excited to announce @FatboySlim@snowpatrol , @jamietmusic , and @BiffyClyro are headlining VF24! Plus the incredible @wetlegband@BeckyHill@PIXIES@Louis_Tomlinson@jessglynne@arloparks@thecourteeners@idlesband & loads more!… pic.twitter.com/O6GEwuXxBP — Victorious Festival (@VictoriousFest) December 5, 2023

Victorious’ lead booker Andy Marsh said in a press release: ‘‘This is the first year we’ve released all our headliners at once and we’re thrilled to be able to announce the acts after months of planning. Victorious 2024 is going to be bigger than ever and it’s not just the headliners people need to look out for, we have booked hundreds of acts across the weekend spanning multiple genres. We can’t wait for August, it really will be a year to remember!” Early bird weekend camping tickets are now on sale from £180, while day tickets are priced at £65 each. For tickets and more information, you can visit the official website for Victorious Festival here.

Their debut album has become a modern indie classic spawning some of the band’s biggest anthems like “Not Nineteen Forever”, “Cavorting” and “What Took You So Long?”. The expanded version of St. Jude will be released on January 13, 2023 with pre-orders available here. The band shared the news of the sell-out via a Twitter post that read “Heaton Park — sold out. Thank you all for the love we can’t fucking wait! x”. You can see the Tweet in full bellow.

HEATON PARK – SOLD OUT. THANK YOU ALL FOR THE LOVE WE CAN’T FUCKING WAIT! X pic.twitter.com/ZHc2n9PvHZ

— Courteeners (@thecourteeners) September 2, 2022

As quoted in the Manchester Evening News vocalist Liam Fray said of the anniversary “They grow up so fast, can’t believe our darling ‘St. Jude’ is 15 next year. Think it’s time for a celebration and we all know that great things come in threes – The Star Wars Trilogy, Sooty, Sweep & Soo and now, here we are, with the third instalment of ‘Courteeners at Heaton Park’.” Fray then went on to say “June 2015. June 2019 and now June 2023. This time to celebrate the 15th anniversary of its release we’ll be playing ‘St. Jude’ (in full) plus (of course) THE HITS. I can’t think of any better way to celebrate than to make the pilgrimage to Heaton Park with like-minded souls and lose ourselves like it’s 2008. And, because we’re good like that, we’ve remastered the original album. God bless the band. God bless the fans. Omne Trium Perfectum.”

Selling out tickets fast doesn’t seem to all that rare for The Courteeners. Back in 2021 they sold out the Emirates Old Trafford cricket ground in 2021 to over 50,000 fans in just 90 minutes, so it’s no surprise there was high demand this time around.

On September 1, the band projected the artwork from their debut album across Manchester in honour of the record’s upcoming show and anniversary. Last month, Courteeners also debuted a new song titled ‘Lie Back And Think Of England’ during an intimate headline show in London. Additionally back in November, Courteeners also released a concert film of their huge Heaton Park homecoming gig from June 2019.

UP THE FUCKIN’ BORO

Little warm up.

Tix onsale Friday. HWFG.
https://t.co/SUj6nftyiG pic.twitter.com/CzEvHD4pZL

— Liam Fray (@What_Liam_Said) May 3, 2022

The gig will be a good warm-up for the band, who will be following it up with an appearance at Neighbourhood Weekender 2022 the very next day. Courteeners will be appearing alongside the likes of Kasabian and Blossoms (whose latest music video you can read about here). Tickets can be gotten here. The band are a big part of Neighbourhood Weekender’s history, having headlined at their inaugural edition back in 2018.

Courteeners headline @NBHDWeekender, Victoria Park, Warrington on Saturday 28th May 2022. Tickets are on sale now from https://t.co/Bv83MtcCFJ #NBHDWKND22 pic.twitter.com/jhszGDjcrn — Courteeners (@thecourteeners) February 3, 2022

Aside from this, they also have an appearance due for Y Not Festival in Derbyshire on July 30^th, tickets for which can be gotten here. Among the other acts appearing alongside them include Stereophonics and Manic Street Preachers.

Courteeners headline @YNotFestival, Pikehall, Derbyshire 29th – 31st July 2022. Tickets are on sale now from https://t.co/uIfAw5P3xH #SummerIsComing pic.twitter.com/PZWdKWeNqg

— Courteeners (@thecourteeners) February 22, 2022

Last year the group shared their 2019 performance at Heaton Park on their YouTube channel. The event had them performing to 50,000 people in Manchester, being supported by Mancunian rock band James, Australian three-piece DMA’s and indie rock group Pale Waves (who’ve recently announced the upcoming release of a new single).

NME said of the Heaton Park gig that “As [Courteeners] depart to mass euphoria and a flurry of Carlsberg bottles tossed in the air like mortarboards at a graduation, you feel Liam’s annus horribilis has been cathartically washed away.”

Among some of the more unusual news concerning the band, last year saw Fray announce his new restaurant – The Smithfield Social. You can find out more on the website here. If you fancy an assortment of cocktails, brunch and small plates, Fray’s your guy.

The band, which formed back in 2006, consists of Fray on vocals/guitar, Daniel Moores on guitar and Michael Campbell on drums. They haven’t had much in the way of new music lately, with their most recent studio album being 2020’s More. Again. Forever. – their sixth studio album.

The album got its own fair share of positive reviews, with NME awarding it four stars and saying “‘More. Again. Forever’ strikes a mature balance. It’s escapist in its sound but humane in its approach to the world. It’s experimental but familiar, and tests what the band are capable of while proving to be their most focussed work to date.” The album reached number 2 on the UK Albums Chart and number 1 in Scotland.

Despite the lack of new music, you’ve got all their live dates to make the most of before the band pop out another single or album, so you might as well get ticket hunting while you still can.

COURTEENERS @EmiratesOT Manchester.
Saturday 25th September 2021.
Special Guests@Johnny_Marr, @BlossomsBand, @TheBigMoon & @ThisIsZuzu.
Tickets on sale 9am Friday 11th June from https://t.co/iKfDfoTIWy pic.twitter.com/DrdMyuKkb9

— Courteeners (@thecourteeners) June 8, 2021

Courteeners who formed in 2006 quickly became popular and from starting off playing in small clubs, they now selling out big arenas. They debuted in 2008 with the album “St Jude” that peaked at No.4 in UK Charts. After that they have released six more studio albums, where the last one “More.Again.Forever.” from 2020 reached No.2 on the Charts.
The latest album received great reviews, with NME award it four stars and calling it: “their most focussed and adventurous work to date” and The Guardian described it: “a solid and dependable, rather than a source of head-spinning shocks and thrills: it knows its audience, and it knows better than to confound them if you want to keep bucking trends and filling arenas”.
Meanwhile, Liam Fray has partnered with The Smithfield Social and opened a new restaurant on 12th April in Manchester’s Northern Quarter. He partnered up with friends – Jobe Ferguson of the Liar’s Group and TNQ, and Anthony Fielden also of TNQ. Fielden commented on the project: “We’ve all had a huge input in all elements of the project, Liam and Jobe have got really involved in the food side. We’ve basically done everything together.”

This year Courtneeners will also play at the TRNSMT festival on the 10th of September alongside Little Simz, The Ninth Wave and more. Tickets to that show can be purchased here.

5,000 lucky fans will get to witness Zulu, The Lathums and Blossoms take over The Big Top inside Liverpool’s historic park, which before the pandemic was welcoming crowds of 7,500. attendees will need a negative Covid test to access the  event on May 2nd. Anyone hoping to attend will also have to provide contact details for test and trace, as well as taking a Covid test after the event-  Blossoms have a dedicated army of fans, so tickets will sell fast for this one.

Tickets are on sale now, but only adult residents of the Liverpool City region are eligible. This is an incredibly exciting moment for the prospect of live events returning: we’ve all watched live-stream concerts of our favorite artists, but without the sweat, shouting and pint-spilling, its difficult to capture the ‘lightning in a bottle’ spirit of seeing a band in the flesh.

We’re excited to be appearing at the Sefton Park Pilot event in Liverpool with @thelathums & @thisiszuzu on Sunday 2nd May. Tickets limited to Liverpool City Region residents only.
For full ticket eligibility/info visit:https://t.co/3bseB3rcDG
Ticket link:https://t.co/T6fbIM3NYF pic.twitter.com/QC59NGd5d7

— B L O S S O M S (@BlossomsBand) April 18, 2021

Blossoms have had a productive 2020, releasing a brilliant double album, ‘In Isolation / Live From The Plaza Theatre, Stockport’ which included a variety of covers, acoustic versions and collaborations with indie-legends Miles Kane and Courteeners. The second part of the double album is a superb live set, jam packed with their strongest tracks. They also put out their third studio album, ‘Foolish Loving Spaces’ in January, which was met with a great reception from their fans.

I can’t wait to see my favourite bands live again and I certainly hope that this event goes off without a hitch. It really feels as if we are within touching distance of getting to a gig again: with football fans in Wembley this weekend, it really feels like we are getting ‘back to normal’.

#TRNSMT2020 pic.twitter.com/mrtlqoKzHI

— TRNSMT Festival (@TRNSMTfest) March 19, 2020

“TRNSMT is still scheduled to go ahead as planned and we look forward to welcoming everyone to the event in 16 weeks. The health and safety of festival goers, staff and the surrounding community is our main priority and we are constantly monitoring the situation in accordance with advice from the World Health Organisation, Health Protection Scotland, UK and Scottish Government and local public health authorities. Love, TRNSMT x“

Currently, every corner of the world is undergoing such difficult time because of the outbreak of coronavirus. Apart from economy and politics, music industry has been equally affected by the pandemic. Numerous artists who planned to drop new music and musical events around the world have announced their postponement and cancellation in order to prevent the spread.

Glastonbury, for example, is one of the major music festivals that had to call off this year. In the long list of already cancelled events appear The Great Escape Festival, Download, Isle of Wight, Snowbombing, and even Eurovision, not to mention a plethora of concerts by many artists.

Amidst such tragedy and chaos in the music scene, TRNSMT decided to persevere in holding its third festival this year. Taking place in 16 weeks, the festival confirmed to kick off from July 10 to 12 in Glasgow Green, the huge park in the east end of the city.

The Courteeners are booked to headline the festival at the main stage on the first day, supported by Ian Brown, Sam Fender, and Blossoms. Meanwhile, the ex-Oasis Liam Gallagher will perform on the main stage as a headlining act on the second day, with Foals, Keane, and Vistas. Scottish sensation Lewis Capaldi will end the festival as the headline on the last day, joined by Rita Ora, Snow Patrol, and Dermot Kennedy. Check out the complete line-up here.

TRNSMT first happened in 2017 in Glasgow, Scotland. With about 120,000 attendees, the festival was crowned “Best New Festival” in December 2017 from the UK Festival Awards in London.

In 2019, the festival faced a backlash for its gender-unbalanced line-up, with only 20% of the performers being female. However, in spite of the aspiration to achieve 50-50 gender-balanced line-up, TRNSMT’s director Geoff Ellis said “it will be a while” because “there’s far, far less female artists”. Read the full story here.

Since the festival has determined to go on, those who wish to attend can get tickets from its official site. Standard tickets for Sunday 12th are now sold out.

The ‘Modern Love’ vocalist said: “We’ve been together for 13 years and I don’t want to just keep doing Courteeners albums and nothing else. People will have had enough if we do 10 albums in a row!”

He went on: “The band is brilliant, we all really get on, but we want to stretch our legs a bit by doing side-projects here and there.”

Fray has opened up on his plans to make an album with DMA’s and Bipolar Sunshine. Fray said: “I love his voice and I’d love to make a soulful record with him,”

Liam suggested that band drummer Michael Campbell may explore a vocalist role in the future, saying: “Campbell’s got a great voice – he should be the singer in Courteeners, really. Campbell loves 1950s rock & roll and doo-wop music, and we’ve talked about doing something in that style, where he sings.”

Fray added: “I’ve written one song for him – it sounds like it came off the soundtrack to Grease!”

Yesterday, Liam Fray criticized Eminem for lyrics referencing the Manchester Arena Terror Attack. The track ‘Unaccomodating’, references the suicide bombing that killed twenty-two people and wounded 139 others. Andy Burnham, the Mayor of Manchester, also criticized the US rapper.

Talking to the BBC about the lyrics. Liam said he “feels sorry” that Eminem had to “shock tactics”.

Liam added: “It all just felt like an old comedian who can’t get on the telly anymore just saying something outrageous,”

‘Music To Be Murdered By’ is Eminem’s eleventh studio album. It was released on the same day, (January 17), as The Courteeners sixth musical effort, ‘More. Again. Forever’.

In a positive review from NME on ‘More. Again. Forever’, it reads:

“‘More. Again. Forever’ strikes a mature balance. It’s escapist in its sound but humane in its approach to the world. It’s experimental but familiar, and tests what the band are capable of while proving to be their more focussed work to date.”