Singer Noel Gallagher delivered a brutal swipe at the Royal Family as Oasis performed their opening night of seven spectacular shows at Wembley. The Manchester icons have been captivating audiences since launching their highly-anticipated reunion tour earlier this month in Cardiff.
Following their extraordinary five nights at Manchester’s Heaton Park, which left 370,000 devoted Oasis supporters spellbound, the band made their triumphant return to London on Friday night (July 25). Before a euphoric, sold-out capacity crowd of 81,000, Oasis delivered their first performance in the capital since July 2009. Once more, Noel and brother Liam stood united as they graced the stage, with years of acrimonious feuding seemingly consigned to history as Noel offered a respectful bow to his sibling.
Following the pattern of earlier performances, Liam rested his voice during the middle portion of the set whilst Noel delivered three of the legendary tracks his vocals helped immortalise.
Whilst the Gallaghers may reign as Manchester royalty, it was Britain’s actual regal family who became the target of Noel’s clever four-word barb as he introduced Half the World Away.
Taking a swipe at the Royal Family, headed up by King Charles and Queen Camilla, declared to the audience: “This next one’s for the Royal Family. The real Royle Family.”
Half the World Away achieved massive recognition in the late 1990s as the signature tune for beloved BBC sitcom The Royle Family.
The programme was conceived by comedian Caroline Aherne, whom Noel honoured in an emotional tribute during the Heaton Park performances. Oasis is set to entertain over 630,000 fans at Wembley Stadium with seven shows as part of their Oasis Live ’25 tour.
The band will be back on the Wembley stage on July 30, August 2, August 3, September 27 and September 28.