“Get ready to roll with it”This article contains affiliate links, we will receive a commission on any sales we generate from it. Learn moreOasis’ Liam Gallagher and Blur’s Damon Albarn go head to head in a charity football match back in 1996(Image: mirrorpix)

A new comedy based on the heavyweight 1990s Britpop battle between Blur and Oasis has been announced – and it will head to Manchester on a major UK tour before the West End.

The Battle is billed as a “new comedy based (mostly) on real events”. It will relive the heady summer of 1995 when Blur and Oasis went head-to-head in the “greatest chart battle of all time”.

Both bands released singles on the same day leading a race to who would claim the number one spot – between Blur’s Country House and Oasis’ Roll With It.

But it would go on to become much more than a battle for music supremacy – pitching on one side, clean-cut, art-school intellectuals from the South, and on the other the raw and unapologetic lads from the North.

The Battle is the first stage play by screenwriter and Sunday Times best-selling novelist John Niven (O’Brother, Kill Your Friends, How To Build A Girl). Directed by Matthew Dunster (2:22 A Ghost Story, The Pillowman).

The Battle heads to Manchester Opera House from March 17 – 21, 2026 as part of a major UK tour, prior to the West End, and theatre bosses say we should: “Get ready to roll with it.”

The publicity poster for the new play called The Battle(Image: The Battle)

From the chaos of the Brit Awards to the infamous chart war, The Battle is described as a “wickedly funny dive into one of the greatest rivalries in rock history”.

It will feature the legendary personalities and unforgettable clashes, as well as “power, pride, and uncontrollable competitiveness”.

Theatregoers can expect some of the fruity language that the Gallaghers are known for, as well as razor-sharp dialogue in the new comedy that puts you right at the heart of the feuding, the fame, and the fallout.

Writer, John Niven, says of his first stage play: “1995: a time long before music splintered into a billion different Tik Tok feeds. When music was so central to the culture that two pop groups could dominate the entire summer, the evening news and the front page of every newspaper in the country.

“We’re going to take you back there. I’ve never written for the stage before, and it has been an absolute blast to do so for the first time with a producer as supportive as Simon and a director as talented as Matthew.”

Director, Matthew Dunster, adds: “I remember the Battle of the Bands. I remember the charts that week. Music mattered. I remember being in my twenties in 1995. What a wild time. Full of energy, naughtiness and hilarity. Just like John Niven’s play. I’m so delighted to be working with John on such a punchy, hilarious and revealing comedy about two of the best bands of all time, Blur and Oasis.”

Producer, Simon Friend, continues: “Throughout my sister’s teenage years, she had an enormous poster of Damon Albarn on her wall, and I remember her falling out with friends over which band they loved more. Ever since, this story has been in the back of my mind, and I was delighted that John Niven agreed to write it because there is no more qualified or hilarious chronicler of this world, and combined with Matthew Dunster directing, we have a fearless team recreating the sweaty mid-‘90s carnage of The Battle of Britpop.”

The Battle is produced by Melting Pot, Birmingham Rep and Gavin Kalin, and it will get its world premiere in Birmingham before heading out across the UK.

The creative team also includes Fly Davis as Set and Costume Designer, Jessica Hung Han Yun as Lighting Designer, Ian Dickinson as Sound Designer, Tal Rosner as Video Designer and Casting Director, Claire Bleasdale.

How to get tickets

Tickets go on general sale on Friday May 2 at 10am via ATG here.

The Battle tour dates 2024

After its World Premiere in Birmingham the tour then visits: Leicester, Curve Theatre, Tuesday 10 – Saturday 14 March; Manchester, Opera House, 17 – Saturday 21 March; Bromley, Churchill Theatre, Tuesday 24 – Saturday 28 March; Woking, New Victoria Theatre, Tuesday 31 March – Saturday 4 April; Cheltenham, Everyman Theatre, Tuesday 14 – Saturday 18 April; Edinburgh, Festival Theatre, Tuesday 21 April – Saturday 25 April; Cardiff, Wales Millennium Centre, Tuesday 28 April – Saturday 2 May; Sheffield, Lyceum Theatre, Tuesday 5 – Saturday 9 May; Ipswich, Regent Theatre, Tuesday 12 – Saturday 16 May; London, Richmond Theatre, Tuesday 19 – Saturday 23 May; Glasgow, Theatre Royal, Tuesday 26 May – Saturday 30 May; York, Grand Opera House, Tuesday 9 – Saturday 13 June; Norwich, Theatre Royal, Tuesday 16 – Saturday 20 June; Nottingham, Theatre Royal, Tuesday 23 – Saturday 27 June; Milton Keynes Theatre, Tuesday 30 June – Saturday 4 July; Newcastle, Theatre Royal, Tuesday 7 – Saturday 11 July; Brighton, Theatre Royal, Tuesday 14 – Saturday 18 July; Chester, Storyhouse Theatre, Tuesday 28 July – Saturday 1 August.