Heavy metal icons announce 50th anniversary greatest hits tour including their biggest ever UK headline show
THEY are the most famous metal band of all time and now Iron Maiden are going bigger and better than ever before.
I can reveal the British rockers will today announce a mammoth two-year tour to mark their 50th anniversary — and they will play all of their biggest hits for the first time in years.
It will be called the Run For Your Lives tour, a nod to their 1982 hit Run To The Hills.
The huge celebration will kick off in Budapest on May 27 next year and will include their biggest ever open-air UK headline show at London Stadium on June 28.
There will be three other shows in Birmingham, Manchester and Glasgow, as well as an open-air show at Malahide Castle in Dublin on June 25.
I’m told Iron Maiden have developed the most spectacular production of their careers for the shows, which have been years in the making.
Frontman Bruce Dickinson said: “Next year is a very special one for Iron Maiden and we’re going to be giving our fans a once-in-a-lifetime live experience.
“This is a tour that’s gonna put a smile on your face and a cheer in your throat.
“If you’ve seen us before, then get ready to take that experience to a whole new level.
“And if you’ve never seen us before, then what the hell have you been waiting for? Now’s your chance to find out what you’ve been missing.”
The UK and European dates will be announced today, with the world tour continuing in 2026.
Their new show will include classic songs from the Eighties and early Nineties as they play hits from their self-titled debut album all the way up to 1992’s Fear Of The Dark.
The band formed in East London in 1975 and have since released 17 studio albums, the most recent of which was 2021’s Senjutsu.
They have had five No1 albums and 17 Top Ten singles, including 1991’s Bring Your Daughter . . . To The Slaughter, which soared to No1 despite being banned from the airwaves by the BBC.
Five decades into their career, they are proving to be just as popular as ever.
That really is rock’n’roll.
Sofia your new squeeze, Heidi?
HEIDI KLUM and Sofia Vergara have a combined age of 103, but you wouldn’t guess it by looking at them here.
The German model gave the Colombian-American actress a squeeze on the red carpet before part one of the America’s Got Talent finale on Tuesday night in California.
The duo, who are judges alongside Simon Cowell and comedian Howie Mandel, will return next Tuesday to see the last set of acts battle it out for the show’s prize money of $1million.
That’s peanuts for these two, though, who are worth more than £250million.
No wonder they look so happy.
Bit wide of the Marr-k, Morrissey
JOHNNY MARR has hit back at Morrissey, deepening his feud with his former bandmate from The Smiths.
The singer this week claimed guitarist Johnny had secured the rights to the band’s name and could hire a new vocalist to replace him.
But now Johnny’s manage-ment has said he only trade-marked the name in 2018 after a third party tried to use it and that he offered joint ownership to Morrissey, but Morrissey has not accepted it.
In another brutal blow, Johnny, also slammed Morrissey’s claim that he failed to reply to an offer to reunite The Smiths and go on tour next year.
Johnny said: “I didn’t ignore the offer, I said no.”
I don’t blame him.
Big up. Whitney
WHITNEY HOUSTON is being brought to the big screen next month for the 30th anniversary of her historic concerts in South Africa.
More than 200,000 people saw her perform there in 1994 and now the shows are coming to cinemas on October 23 and 27.
A live album, The Concert For A New South Africa (Durban), will be put out on CD and vinyl for the first time on November 8.
Zayn back in game
IT was a rare public appearance for Zayn Malik when he was spotted out in New York on Tuesday – but the world will soon be seeing much more of him.
The singer has announced his first ever solo tour – almost a decade after he walked away from One Direction – having finally tackled his fear of performing live.
But while former bandmates Harry Styles and Niall Horan are more used to playing stadiums and arenas, Zayn will be keeping things intimate for his first outing.
He will kick off a six-date run at Edinburgh’s O2 Academy on November 20, before further concert hall shows in Leeds, Manchester, London, Wolverhampton and Newcastle.
Pre-sale tickets will be available this morning while general tickets go on sale on Saturday.
After all these years, I’m sure tickets will be in hot demand.
Chris and Liam to rock heads
THEIR old rivalries are certainly well documented, with Liam Gallagher once describing Chris Martin as “looking like a geography teacher” and likening him to a “plant pot”.
Now tension could be stoked once again, as Oasis and Coldplay go head to head with their huge Wembley Stadium shows next summer.
Coldplay this week confirmed my exclusive story from July, saying they would be playing six shows at Wembley, kicking off on August 22.
And Oasis will be warming up the stage for them, as Noel and Liam’s seven shows begin at the venue four weeks before on July 25.
While Coldplay are going all out with their eco-friendly ethos, using solar, wind and kinetic energy to power their huge shows, Oasis are a little more retro.
A source close to the band told me: “Oasis’ gigs will be powered by lager.
“Noel and Liam respect Coldplay’s dedication but it made them chuckle.
“They are more than happy to get Wembley ready for their shows and will be looking at their ticket sales with interest. Oasis’ shows sold out so quickly, the demand was unprecedented. Fans in the crowd for their Wembley gigs can expect some banter aimed at Coldplay.”
I don’t doubt it.
Liam and Noel have traded some barbs with Chris and co. over the years, but more recently that has been swept under the carpet.
Noel recorded a guitar solo on Coldplay’s 2015 track Up&Up and later said of Chris: “That f**ing guy can write a tune. And he’s hilarious, by the way.”
Liam kissed and made up with Chris too, after they performed Live Forever together at One Love Manchester in 2017.
Speaking about the moment they met backstage after the show, Liam said: “I went, ‘Listen, I’m sorry about all that s**t, that I keep f**ing slagging you off. You know I don’t f**ing mean it’.
“And he’s going, ‘No worries, we love it, mate, carry on!’. “He was cool. But I’ve not heard f**ing back from him since. He’s f**ed me right off now.”
May the ribbing commence . . .
Dolly to the rescue
DOLLY PARTON has defended the Country Music Association Awards after they controversially snubbed Beyonce in last week’s nominations.
Bey shot to No1 with country record Cowboy Carter, on which she covered Dolly’s song Jolene, earlier this year.
But asked about her being shut out, Dolly told Variety: “There’s so many wonderful country artists that I guess they probably thought, well, we can’t really leave out some of the ones that spend their whole life doing that.
“But it was a wonderful album. I think everybody in country music welcomed her.
“So I don’t think it was a matter of shutting out, like doing that on purpose.”
I’m not so sure, Dolly.
Maya’s fashion shin-dig
MAYA JAMA isn’t ready to let go of the summer just yet, turning up to Milan Fashion Week in a white minidress.
The Love Island hostess treated the streets as her catwalk as she strutted into the Alberta Ferretti show in the Italian city on Tuesday evening.
Across town, Jade Thirlwall and Raye sat side by side, on the front row at Fendi’s spring/summer show.
They will have had plenty to discuss, as I told yesterday how Jade is gearing up to release her new solo single, Midnight Cowboy, co-written by Raye.
And it must be one of the former Little Mix star’s favourite songs, as she has revealed it was written into her RCA record contract that she gets to pick her own singles.
She told Galore mag: “There’s been times you do feel backed into a corner with a decision on a song. I just never wanted to be in that position again with my own music. When I signed as a solo artist, it’s written in my contract that it’s my decision what music comes out.”
Flo's new bloke
FLORENCE PUGH has confirmed she has a new man, after my story earlier this month that she is secretly dating Peaky Blinders actor Finn Cole.
Asked by Vogue mag if she is in a relationship, she said: “I am. We are figuring out what we actually are.
“And I think for the first time I’m not allowing myself to go on a rollercoaster.
“I’m allowing myself to take time to let something evolve and let it be completely real to its core, as opposed to racing into it.”
Florence, whose relationship with actor Zach Braff ended last year, added: “Falling is the most amazing feeling but unfortunately if that’s the only thing that you know in a relationship, then that’s the thing that you chase. That’s not gonna last.”
Noel’s City kit is high flying
MANCHESTER City will be recruiting superfan Noel to design their kits for next season, after the strip he created this year became the fastest selling in the history of the club.
The High Flying Birds star used the iconic artwork from Oasis’ Definitely Maybe album (featuring the band in a sitting room) to inspire the pale yellow shirt, which has Definitely City stitched into the neck.
And players including Kyle Walker and Ederson, along with City manager Pep Guardiola, returned to the same sitting room to recreate the shoot while modelling the kit.
Man City have now confirmed it’s their best-selling kit of all time, and revealed the designs broke the record for the highest ever one-day sales for any clobber launched by the club.
Fashion week beckons, Noel.