Oasis guitarist Noel Gallagher says he’s been awestruck by the scale of the Manchester band’s reunion shows. Unfortunately, he says he isn’t built for playing stadiums, the venues in which the group is making stops on their reunion tour.
The Gallagher brothers buried the hatchet of their latest fallout, which escalated after their headline slot at V Festival in 2009, to return to the stage for the first time in 16 years this past July.
But the shock of returning to perform before thousands of fans took the guitarist by surprise, as he revealed to U.K.-based channel Talksport.
“I grossly underestimated what I was getting into,” he confesses. “It was after about five minutes, I was like, ‘All right, can I just go back to the dressing room and start this again?’
“I’ve done stadiums before, but I don’t mind telling you, my legs had turned to jelly after about halfway through the second song.”
The Oasis reunion launched on July 4 at Cardiff’s Principality Stadium, marking the first time the Gallaghers, guitarists Paul “Bonehead” Arthurs and Gem Archer, bass guitarist Andy Bell and drummer Joey Waronker have played together in years
It's estimated that around 14 million people scrambled to buy tickets to their U.K. tour when they went on sale last August, with only 1.4 million tickets available. The band has played to 80,000 fans each night across its five hometown shows at Heaton Park, including players of the band's beloved Manchester City.
But while Noel Gallagher may has been taken aback by the bombast of their return, his brother Liam is taking it in stride.
“Liam’s smashing it. I’m proud of him,” Noel says. "Having been fronting a band for 16 years, I know how difficult that is, and I couldn't do the stadium thing like he does it; it's not in my nature.”
“Was it worth the 40,000 pounds you paid for the ticket?” Liam had asked with a wry smile on opening night, referencing the fact that ticket demand — and Ticketmaster’s controversial dynamic pricing — saw tickets go for well above average prices.
Noel, meanwhile, has been making his own headlines. Details of the mystery, P-90-laced Les Paul he has been playing across the shows have now been revealed after becoming one of 2025’s most talked-about guitars. The Custom Shop electric guitar has now been given a production release.
The guitarist has also revealed what’s on his pedalboard, and there are some choice picks. He’s been embracing guitar solos on these new dates. Last year, he says his son asked him why he didn't shred, and the response he gave was hilarious.
Ultimately, though, he’s delighted to be back with the band that once claimed they were bigger than the Beatles — much to Paul McCartney’s derision.
“It’s great just to be back with Bonehead and Liam and doing it again,” he concludes. “I guess when it’s all said and done, we will sit and reflect on it, but it’s great being back in the band with Liam – I forgot how funny he was.”
