Only The Poets will become the first band to ever charge £1 for tickets for a gig at London’s O2 Academy Brixton in February.
The Reading four-piece will play the venue on February 2, 2026, just days after the release of their debut album ‘And I’d Do It Again’ on January 30 – pre-order/pre-save it here.
To celebrate, they will play the Brixton Academy and charge fans the same price that they charged for their first ever gig seven years ago, in an effort to make the show as accessible as possible.
As part of a collaboration with LIVE Trust, the initiative representing the UK’s live music and entertainment sector, a further £1 from every ticket sold will be donated to help protect grassroots live music in the UK.
Tickets go on pre-sale on Thursday (September 11), while the general on sale begins at 10am on Friday (September 12). You can get yours here.
Explaining the thinking behind the decision, frontman Tommy Longhurst has said: “We charged £1 for our first ever gig – back then we only had a couple of songs, so anything more felt like too much for us. We wouldn’t have been able to see half the gigs we went to if ticket prices were what they are now, so we wanted to make sure that this show was open to everyone.”
Guitarist Clem Cherry added: “Our fans know our shows are a safe space. This is about making sure anybody can come and have an amazing night in an iconic venue. It’s also a thank you to everyone who’s supported us to this point.”
Jon Collins, CEO of LIVE Trust, has said: “This is a wonderful, positive move by Only the Poets, giving back to the grassroots while giving back to their fans. Making this show accessible to all means everyone can enjoy the associated mental health, communal and emotional benefits.”
“Funds raised for the LIVE Trust will go directly to support artists, venues, promoters, festivals and more across the UK grassroots. A young band like Only the Poets stepping up while artists like Biffy Clyro and My Chemical Romance back the Trust at their arena and stadia shows is further evidence of the growing levels of support for the LIVE Trust across all parts of the live music scene.”
A £1 ticket levy campaign was launched by the Music Venue Trust in reaction to the news that 2023 had proved to be “disastrous” and the worst year on record with 125 grassroots music venues shutting their doors – a rate of two per week. The policy involves £1 from every ticket sold at an arena show or larger being put back into small venues.
Calls for the levy, which is similar to the one seen in football’s Premier League and is already in use in several countries across Europe, first surfaced in May 2024 before the government agreed to back it in November that year.
Back in January, it was also reported that 70.6 per cent of independent UK acts had never toured, while 84 per cent of unsigned artists simply can’t afford to, and many earn less than the minimum wage. In May, Wolf Alice’s Joff Oddie warned of music becoming “a middle and upper class sport”.
Speaking about the levy, Prime Minister Keir Starmer recently told NME: “I’m very supportive of this initiative, the £1 levy going back into grassroots [venues], because so much of our music is grassroots.
He acknowledged that smaller, independent establishments are “where a lot of people access their music”, adding: “It’s obviously where a lot of musicians start off, and therefore I’m hugely supportive of it. I’d like to see it expanded even more, but I want to support it in any way we can.”
Sam Fender, Coldplay, Katy Perry and Mumford & Sons are among the artists to adopt the £1 levy initiative, and it was recently reported that over £100,000 had been raised from Fender’s recent tour.
