In previous years, the likes of The Cure, Paul Weller and
Coldplay have offered their time to play for free and raise money, and this
year is no different...
This year’s series will begin with
Roger Daltrey &Friends. Which friends I hear you ask? Well... we don’t know just yet, it’s all
a bit of a surprise, but if you look back over previous gigs that Roger has played
for Teenage Cancer Trust, you’re most definitely not going to be disappointed,
with stars such as
Noel Gallagher, Kelly Jones of Stereophonics, Bryan Adams
and Paul Weller all taking to the stage for a truly unique and special evening.
And the stars just keep on coming, and to be fair, they don’t
get much bigger than Macca himself! After completing his ‘On The Run’ tour,
Paul McCartney will be heading to The Royal Albert Hall to blow everybody away
with hits from The Beatles, Wings and his solo material. If anyone managed to
catch him just before Christmas, you’ll know just how EPIC this will be.
The TCT shows always manage to get the mix of new and
classic artists, and the first to fly the flag for the new breed of UK
superstars is
Example, with support from Devlin and Fenech Soler.
Example has
earned his place as a headliner, after working his way up since his early work
on Mike Skinner’s label The Beats, right the way to selling out arenas across
the country.
The fourth night is my personal favourite. This year NME
announced that this year’s recipients of The Teenage Cancer Trust Outstanding
Contribution Award were...drum roll...
Pulp! And to celebrate their massive
achievement and long history of supplying decades of anthems to us all, Jarv,
Steve, Russell, Candida, Mark and Nick will be gracing us with a night of pure,
undiluted indie brilliance. If that was not all, they’ll be supported by the
fantastic Cat’s Eyes, featuring Faris of
The Horrors.
So let’s check the list...surprise guests with the legendary
a legendary curator? Tick. A night with one quarter of the biggest band in
living history? Tick. A night with the
UK’s hottest electro/hip hop star? Tick. And a night with Brit Pop royals? Tick.
Is there much more to say? Oh yes...
Following all that is someone no less than a pop sensation.
Jessie J will be taking to the stage and reminding everyone why she gives the American
pop queens a true run for their money. 2011 was the year she burst into our
ears and onto our festivals after winning The Brit’s Critics Choice award, and
there has been no stopping her. The biggest question on everybody’s lips
is....well exactly that! What amazing lipstick art will she throw out this time!
Beat that Gaga!
The shows haven’t always just been crammed with the pinnacle
of musical genius, and 2012 has a very special line-up of comedy led by the one
and only
Jason Manford, with his buddies
Jimmy Carr,
Tim Minchin and
JonRichardson. You’d be a very brave person to go for front row tickets!
So, just as you thought that there is literally nothing else
you could do to make the concerts any better, along comes
Florence. Fresh from belting
out already anthemic catalogue of magical, inspiring songs, causing mass
sing-your-heart-and-lungs-out moments both this side of the pond and in the
states. And in order to give us all a chance to warm up for the best closing
act anyone could ask for,
Miike Snow and
Big Deal are set to get everyone
dancing and throwing an arm or two up in the air.
Some of the shows, as you’ve probably guessed have already
sold out, so don’t hang around getting your hands on tickets before they’re all
snapped up! The only thing better than this line-up is knowing that having an
amazing night out will help amazing young people out there dealing with something
as devastating as Cancer.