Latest news with #MiltonKeynesBowl
STV News
04-07-2025
- Entertainment
- STV News
Wonderwall 101: College delivers Oasis masterclass for new generation of fans
A Glasgow college launched an Oasis masterclass ahead of the Britpop legends' much-anticipated reunion tour. Glasgow Clyde College has introduced a one-off course at the Innovation Centre on its Langside Campus, helping introduce the Manchester outfit to a new generation of gig-goers. The Gallagher brothers are kicking off their sell-out UK trek in Cardiff on Friday, which includes multiple shows in London, Manchester, Edinburgh and Dublin. Fans are predicted to fork out a total of £1.06bn to see the Oasis comeback – estimated to be the most popular and profitable run of gigs in UK music history. Two lecturers, who have attended more than 60 Oasis gigs between them, shared a passionate retelling of the band's rise to stardom with students and what it was like to witness them at their peak. 'It has been 16 years since the brothers last played on Scottish soil,' said curriculum manager Christopher Kennedy. 'So we want to give them an indication of what it was like back then and what to expect at the gigs in the summer. 'You've got, in some families, two to three generations of fans – or parents passing on the good music to children – and now they're going to see Oasis for the first time.' STV News Oasis at Loch Lomond, August 1996 The room was decked out in the band's signature look: mannequins sporting bucket hats, parkas, denim, and Adidas sneakers. Rock 'n' Roll Star played in the background as students were taken through the journey of how Oasis were discovered at Glasgow's King Tut's Wah Wah Hut by Alan McGee, after an impressive four-song set – including a Beatles cover. The moment was captured by a Japanese tourist and later shared with the world. From small venues to headlining stadium tours, their rise to fame was nothing short of spectacular. Their iconic feud with Blur was also explored. 'Oasis dismissed Blur as Chas and Dave chimney sweep music,' said Christopher, 'and Blur referred to their opponents as Oasis Quo.' Accounting lecturer Amy Butler also brought laughter to the session with her personal gig story. 'This is what you should not do at an Oasis show – I lost my bag in the toilet, which had my driver's license, purse, and phone,' she said. STV News Oasis are set to play at Murrayfield in August. 'I needed my driver's license to go to the next gig, which was at Milton Keynes Bowl, and I ended up taking the train. But disaster struck again – we missed the last train back and had to sleep at the train station.' Just when fans thought there would be 'Loads More', the band split in 2009. 'I really didn't know about why they split up,' said an eight-year-old attendee, accompanied by his dad. 'Oasis is the soundtrack to my life – Slide Away was the first dance at my wedding. I've seen them 20-odd times and been to every gig they've played here in Scotland,' said another fan. 'There was a lot of stuff you wouldn't know just through the music,' said a young attendee. 'So, it was good to get a bigger aspect on it.' Another said: 'I've seen Liam and Noel separately loads of times, but I've been waiting for this reunion for a long time.' More than 1.4 million tickets have been sold across 17 UK dates for the Oasis tour. Get all the latest news from around the country Follow STV News Scan the QR code on your mobile device for all the latest news from around the country
Perth Now
28-05-2025
- Entertainment
- Perth Now
Yungblud bonds with The Cure and Smashing Pumpkins over tackling high ticket prices
Yungblud has bonded with The Cure and Smashing Pumpkins over fair ticket prices for fans. The 'I Think I'm Okay' hitmaker - who is set to headline his second annual Bludfest event at the Milton Keynes Bowl on June 21 - is keeping ticket prices for the festival down at £65, and he's opened up on how his friendship with The Cure's Robert Smith and Smashing Pumpkins' Billy Corgan has been inspired by a desire to keep things affordable. He told the Daily Star newspaper's Wired column: "Me and Robert have such a mutual fire in us to be pioneers in making a change on ticket prices. "We've become really close and, whenever we meet up or email, we try to make a difference in any way we can. "Billy Corgan has become a good mate in changing how tickets operate too." Yungblud - whose real name is Dominic Harrison - insisted his concern is his own "community", rather than keeping ticket prices hiked up simply because it's how the industry works now. He added: "I was sick of being told, 'This is just the way things are' and have to accept that if that was how I'd have to live out my dreams. "I have no interest in that. All I care about is my community. I hate the apple-for-teacher mentality that's ingrained in British culture. "I can't be a**** with it." Meanwhile, the 27-year-old star still has lofty goals for Bludfest, as he aims to transform it into a global touring festival taking inspiration from Ozzy Osbourne's Ozzfest. He's already been speaking to venues in France and other countries, while he'd love 'Boys Don't Cry' singer Robert Smith to join the lineup one year. He said: "It's going worldwide, and it's going to be wild. It's amazing what you can do if you shout a mad idea into the void and a load of people shout back. "If The Cure can play it one day, that would be a dream, just unbelievable."
Yahoo
23-02-2025
- Sport
- Yahoo
What has happened at Abbey Stadium owner's other tracks and stadiums?
Abbey Stadium in north Swindon hosted speedway and greyhound racing until the end of the 2019 speedway season – which happens to have been won by the Swindon Robins. It still hosts greyhound racing, but Speedway officially left the venue in November 2022. Speedway looks unlikely to return to the stadium with a new company Swindon Motorsports, a joint venture between those behind Swindon Speedway and the owner of Abbey Stadium, Gaming International, proposing to build a new track on the edge of the borough at Studley Grange. Gaming International, which is also known as Stadia UK, was given planning permission to build a new stadium at the Blundson site, which is funded by significant levels of housing being built around it. Although partly built, the stadium is not ready to accept spectators, or indeed host speedway An investigation by Swindon Borough Council said that Gaming International said the company has completed "The minimums required through the granted planning permission to date, but nothing more' in terms of ensuring the houses being built were not in breach of requirements. But with recent survey work being carried out at Abbey Stadium and some staff members alleging they were told it was set to become housing, we have taken a look at some of Gaming International's other stadiums and what has happened to them. Poole (Image: Richard Crease) Gaming International also operates the council-owned Poole Stadium in the Dorset town. Like Swindon, it hosted both speedway and greyhound racing until recently. It is still the home of the Poole Pirates speedway team, but greyhound racing was discontinued at Poole in 2020 and has not returned. Milton Keynes (Image: Buck Free Press) Gaming International used to own the National Bowl in Milton Keynes, sometimes known as the Milton Keynes Bowl. Well-known as an outdoor concert venue, the bowl was operated by Gaming International from 1998 and in 2006 the company was part of a consortium which had significant development proposals for the bowl, including increasing the capacity, a new pavilion, a new skateboard park and a greyhound stadium right next door to the bowl Those plans never came off, and Gaming International handed back the bowl to the city council's development partnership in 2010. The 65,000-capacity outdoor amphitheatre fell into disuse for several years after 2016 but has recently started hosting events again. Gaming International still has a link to its, defunct, website for the bowl on its homepage. Gaming International's predecessor company BS Group also used to own the Milton Keynes Greyhound Stadium in Ashland in the city, buying it in the 1990s. Renamed as Gaming International, the company bought the Milton Keynes Bowl and made plans to move the dog track there in a proposed development of the concert venue site. The plans came to nothing and the stadium closed on Boxing Day in 2005. It became derelict and then suffered a major fire which resulted in the demolition of the site in 2006 before a housing estate replaced it in 2014. Bristol Gaming International's predecessor company BS Group was, it seems, named for the Bristol Stadium it owned in Eastville. Built in 1897, it was home to Bristol Rovers FC and also hosted speedway for two seasons in the mid-1970s as well as dog racing. The company now known as the BS Group sold Eastville for development, plans were announced for a new Bristol greyhound stadium but never came to fruition. The stadium closed on 27 October 1997 with the entire greyhound operation moving to the sister track Swindon. The site became an IKEA superstore. Reading (Image: Reading Chronicle) Opened in 1974 Reading Smallmead Stadium hosted both greyhound and speedway racing until 2008. It had been bought by Gaming International in 2002, and racing continued for six years until the local council refused to extend the lease, with the site being eyed up for redevelopment. At the time of the last races in October 2008 Gaming International was quoted in the local press as being keen on finding a new venue in the town. An application was even made with Reading Borough Council approving plans for the proposed new stadium in Island Road. The initial cost was said to be £8million. Thus far, that has not come to pass. Oxford (Image: Oxford Mail) The Bristol Stadium company also operated the dog track at Oxford between 1952 and 1975. The track was sold to Oxford City Council for housing in 1975, and the stadium was closed at the end of the year. There was significant local opposition to its closure and it re-opened in March 1976. It continues to host both speedway and greyhound racing to this day. Torquay (Image: TUFC) In a departure from its normal sporting interests Gaming International took over struggling Torquay United in the 2016-17 season, when the club was in the National league, the fifth tier of English senior football. Relegation followed, then promotion, and the Gulls were close to regaining league status, losing out on penalties against Hartlepool Utd in the play-off final in 2021. Sadly, Torquay was relegated back to the sixth tier two years later. Throughout this time the club had ambitions to move from its Plainmoor ground in central Torquay to a new ground in the area, but a site was never decided. In early 2024 club chairman Clarke Osborne, who is also the chief executive of Gaming International, announced he could no longer financially support the club, and it went into administration. It is now out of administration and still playing at its Plainmoor ground.
