National Lottery announces line-up for free music event during Eurovision
It comes after tickets to the National Lottery’s United by Music Tour sold out in less than four minutes.
The Lightning Seeds, Miles Kane, Girls Don’t Sync and Michael Aldag will take to the stage for a one-off show at the Eurovision Village in Liverpool to “meet the demand” from fans, the National Lottery and Music Venue Trust (MVT) has announced.
The free gig forms part of the National Lottery’s United By Music Tour of Liverpool, which saw tickets sell out in less than four minutes, and will celebrate the city’s hosting of Eurovision.
Tickets to the 15,000-capacity show will not be sold in advance. Fans will need to arrive at Eurovision Village at Liverpool’s Pier Head at midday on Wednesday May 10 with spaces assigned on a first come, first served basis.
There will be a “range of performances in the build-up to the evening show”, including appearances from some of the acts competing in Eurovision 2023, with the gig starting at 6.30pm until around 10pm.
Ian Broudie, lead singer of the Lightning Seeds, who are set to perform, said: “We are delighted to be supporting a campaign that is backing so many music venues across Liverpool, one of the world’s leading cities for music.
“To play a part in providing Liverpool with a whole week of music is incredible and we’re thankful for the National Lottery and the Music Venue Trust for making it possible.”
Mark Davyd, chief executive of the Music Venue Trust (MVT), said the charity was “completely blown away” by the response to the National Lottery’s United by Music events.
He added: “Liverpool is still the home of live music and we simply couldn’t meet the demand from local audiences to be part of a celebration of everything the city has to offer.
“So we have spoken with some of the key artists taking part and found a way to bring even more music to Liverpool, with a fantastic free entry event. Please get down early to secure your place!”
There will be more than 20 gigs at 20 music venues across Liverpool to “showcase the city’s music scene” and to “support the grassroots music venues that remain the lifeblood of UK music”, organisers said.
They will take place in the week of Eurovision, from May 8, featuring a range of headline artists from Liverpool, including The Coral, Jamie Webster, Crawlers and The Mysterines, as well as rock band the Lightning Seeds – co-creators of classic football anthem Three Lions – and indie rocker Kane.
It is the third year the National Lottery has partnered with MVT “underwriting the full touring and production costs of artists participating”, as part of its commitment to the grassroots music sector.
