Oasis confirm Richard Ashcroft as special guest for 2025 UK and Ireland reunion tour
Oasis have confirmed Richard Ashcroft as a special guest for their 2025 UK and Ireland reunion tour.
The singer-songwriter and former frontman of The Verve is set to open for the Britpop band at each date of the trek next summer – which includes seven nights at London’s Wembley Stadium and five gigs at Manchester’s Heaton Park.
- READ MORE: Who’ll be supporting Oasis on their reunion tour? Fans and artists share theories and requests
It follows recent reports that Ashcroft would be joining Liam and Noel Gallagher on the road for Oasis Live ’25, along with Cast (who have not yet been announced).
In a statement about the forthcoming massive support slots, Ashcroft said: “As a fan from day one I was buzzing for many reasons when the news of Oasis’ return was announced.
“I can say with no exaggeration that the songwriting talent of Noel and Liam’s pure spirit as a lead singer helped to inspire me to create some of my best work. It was the perfection of ‘Live Forever’ that forced me to try and write my own.”
He added: “They dared to be great, made the dreams we had real and I will always remember those days with joy. Now it’s time to create more memories and I’m ready to bring it. See you next summer. Music is power.”
Details about the rest of the support line-up for Oasis’ 2025 UK and Ireland shows will be revealed in due course, according to a press release.
Ashcroft has a long history with Oasis, serving as the inspiration behind their 1995 song ‘Cast No Shadow’. One of Liam and Noel Gallagher’s first national tours was as the support act for The Verve back in 1993, ahead of their 1994 debut album ‘Definitely Maybe’.
In 1995, The Verve opened for Oasis at The Bataclan in Paris before featuring as special guests at Scotland’s Irvine Beach. Ashcroft later provided backing vocals on Oasis’ single ‘All Around The World’ from 1997’s ‘Be Here Now’.
Liam and Noel have both remained close friends with Ashcroft. In 2021, the ex-Verve singer enlisted Liam for a collaboration on an acoustic version of his 2000 song ‘C’mon People (We’re Making It Now)’ – which appears on his reimagined 2021 album, ‘Acoustic Hymns Vol. 1’.
Additionally, Ashcroft played a surprise support set when LG headlined London’s Finsbury Park in 2018.
Earlier this month, Liam told his followers on X/Twitter that it would be either Ashcroft or Manic Street Preachers supporting Oasis in 2025. “All we need now is to be CAST away on our jolly travels,” he added.
In a separate update, the frontman said Oasis “never set sail without the one and only RICARDO”, adding: “He’s our boy from day DOT come aboard Rkid.”
When asked if Ashcroft could appear at Oasis Live ’25 last month, Liam enthusiastically replied: “That would be BIBLICAL.”
It was reported last month that the Oasis frontman was in the process of seeking “established acts” to appear at next summer’s huge gigs.
Ashcroft’s ‘Acoustic Hymns Vol. 1’ peaked at Number Two in 2021, and followed 2018’s ‘Natural Rebel’. His upcoming slots on Oasis’ comeback tour will follow his headline performance at Blenheim Palace in June.
Oasis have confirmed that their 2025 UK and Ireland dates will be the only European shows of their reunion world tour. They later told fans that plans were “underway” for further performances around the globe.
They have since announced concerts in the US, Canada, Mexico and Australia. A third and final gig in Melbourne was added to the latter schedule last week due to “phenomenal demand”.
NME exclusively revealed that Oasis would be playing in Sydney and Melbourne in a report last month. The article also listed upcoming appearances in other international territories such as South Korea, Japan, Brazil, Chile and Argentina – none of which have been confirmed yet.
Elsewhere, Oasis have ruled out a headline performance at Glastonbury 2025 and said they would not be appearing at any other festivals next year. Liam and Noel have shot down rumours of a return to Knebworth in 2026 too.
Blossoms recently spoke to NME about whether they could be supporting Oasis at their Live ’25 dates. Currently, it looks unlikely that Suede or Fontaines D.C. will be on the line-up after Liam hit out at both bands online.
In other news, Liam has said that he and Noel have no plans to do any joint interviews around their long-awaited comeback. “We’re scared of the media asking us intrusive questions and trying to pick holes in our relationship,” he reasoned.
Oasis’ full 2025 UK and Ireland reunion tour dates are:
JULY
04 – Cardiff, Principality Stadium (SOLD OUT)
05 – Cardiff, Principality Stadium (SOLD OUT)
11 – Manchester, Heaton Park (SOLD OUT)
12 – Manchester, Heaton Park (SOLD OUT)
16 – Manchester, Heaton Park (SOLD OUT)
19 – Manchester, Heaton Park (SOLD OUT)
20 – Manchester, Heaton Park (SOLD OUT)
25 – London, Wembley Stadium (SOLD OUT)
26 – London, Wembley Stadium (SOLD OUT)
30 – London, Wembley Stadium (SOLD OUT)
AUGUST
02 – London, Wembley Stadium (SOLD OUT)
03 – London, Wembley Stadium (SOLD OUT)
08 – Edinburgh, Scottish Gas Murrayfield Stadium (SOLD OUT)
09 – Edinburgh, Scottish Gas Murrayfield Stadium (SOLD OUT)
12 – Edinburgh, Scottish Gas Murrayfield Stadium (SOLD OUT)
16 – Dublin, Croke Park (SOLD OUT)
17 – Dublin, Croke Park (SOLD OUT)
SEPTEMBER
27 – London, Wembley Stadium (SOLD OUT)
28 – London, Wembley Stadium (SOLD OUT)
Meanwhile, Liam Gallagher has become one of the faces of Berghaus’ new jacket line, ‘ICONS’.
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Tom Skinner
NME
