Sometimes certain pieces of music are so immense that they go on to have a life of their own. One classic example is ‘Tubular Bells’ which was composed by Mike Oldfield and set loose into the world as the very first release on Richard Branson’s Virgin label on 25th May 1973.
Astonishingly, Mike Oldfield played more than twenty different instruments on the multi-layered recording, and the record went onto shift 2,760,000 copies in the UK alone! The ‘Tubular Bells’ title track became a Top 10 hit single in the USA after the opening was used in the iconic ‘The Exorcist’ in the same year as the album’s release. Today ‘Tubular Bells’ is considered to be a forerunner of the new-age music movement. ‘Tubular Bells II’ followed in 1992 and ‘Tubular Bells III’ was released in 1998.
Fifty years on from the release of ‘Tubular Bells’, it was announced in 2023 that Mike Oldfield had retired. Sadly, he only performed live in Brighton on one single occasion, this being at the Brighton Centre on Tuesday 13th May 1980. Thankfully I was in attendance in the second row and the setlist that evening was as follows:
‘Platinum, Part 1: Airborne’
‘Platinum, Part 2: Platinum’
‘Platinum, Part 3: Charleston’
‘Platinum, Part 4: North Star/Platinum Finale’
‘I Got Rhythm’ (George Gershwin cover)
‘Punkadiddle’
‘Incantations (Part 1)’
‘Incantations (Part 2)’
‘Incantations (Part 3)’
‘Incantations (Part 4)’
‘Tubular Bells, Part One’
‘Tubular Bells, Part Two’
‘Guilty’
‘Ommadawn, Part One’
‘Blue Peter’
‘Portsmouth’ ([traditional] cover)
‘Polka’
‘Radetzky March, op. 228’ (Johann Strauss cover)
‘Blaydon Races’ (Geordie Ridley cover)
‘Tubular Bells’ has now arguably outgrown the man and such is the demand for the music that it almost has a life of its own. Cue ‘The Best of Mike Oldfield’s Tubular Bells I, II & III’, the ultimate live celebration of this trilogy of legendary albums, as well as the gold standard for album revisit shows.
Robin Smith, the Grammy-nominated Musical Director of the ‘The Best of Mike Oldfield’s Tubular Bells I, II & III’ show, was completely mesmerised by ‘Tubular Bells’ the moment he heard it. He studied Composition at the Royal College of Music, spent several years touring the world as a piano player, and was the principal pianist of the National Youth Jazz Orchestra before meeting Mike Oldfield over 30 years ago.
Smith has collaborated with Oldfield for more than three decades, conducting performances of the ‘Tubular Bells’ albums at iconic locations such as Edinburgh Castle, Horse Guards Parade, and the 2012 Olympic Games Opening Ceremony.
There have now been sell-out tours throughout the UK, Europe, Australia and New Zealand over the past few years. The shows have gained many praises:
“Mesmerising, spellbinding, breathtaking, enthralling and electric” – Bournemouth Echo.
“Hearing the timeless music performed with such passion and love brought tears to the eye as the audience rode on waves of Oldfield’s magic. For fans of live music this was pure joy and, for fans of Oldfield, this was perfection” – Lancashire Evening Post.
Robin Smith is very much now at the helm and has stated:
“Following our incredible previous tours where we played sell-out shows at Cadogan Hall, the Royal Festival Hall, and Sydney Opera House, it’s a great pleasure and we are thrilled to continue our musical journey in the UK for 2027. This is a wonderful opportunity to visit new venues, connect with new audiences, and share Michael Oldfield’s beautiful music with long-time fans and new listeners alike. We can’t wait!”
There are a handful of dates for this coming October, including a show at the iconic De La Warr Pavilion in Bexhill-on-Sea on Friday 16th October (Tickets HERE) and then ‘The Best of Mike Oldfield’s Tubular Bells I, II & III’ is set for a major UK tour in Spring 2027 and will feature an expansive live group led and arranged by Oldfield’s long-term collaborator Robin Smith. Performances will include the whole of ‘Tubular Bells I’ in full, along with extended sections of ‘Tubular Bells II’ and ‘Tubular Bells III’, plus the worldwide hit single ‘Moonlight Shadow’.
There are two Sussex shows next March, the first is at the Eastbourne Congress Theatre on 8th March (Tickets HERE) and the second is at Brighton Dome on 22nd March (Tickets HERE).
October 2026 tour dates:
Friday 16th Oct – Bexhill De La Warr Pavilion
Saturday 17th Oct – Bromley Churchill Theatre
Monday 19th Oct – Aylesbury Waterside Theatre
Wednesday 21st Oct – Fareham Live
Thursday 22nd Oct – Southend Cliffs Pavilion
March 2027 tour dates:
Monday 1st – Nottingham Royal Concert Hall
Tuesday 2nd – York Barbican
Thursday 4th – Edinburgh Usher Hall
Friday 5th – Glasgow Royal Concert Hall
Saturday 6th – Gateshead Glasshouse
Monday 8th – Eastbourne Congress Theatre
Tuesday 9th – Guildford G Live
Thursday 11th – Basingstoke The Anvil
Friday 12th – Oxford New Theatre
Sunday 14th – Birmingham The Alexandra Theatre
Monday 15th – Sheffield City Hall
Tuesday 16th – Liverpool Philharmonic
Wednesday 17th – Manchester Bridgewater Hall
Friday 19th – London Cadogan Hall
Sunday 21st – Poole Lighthouse
Monday 22nd – Brighton Dome
Tickets for all concerts can be located HERE.
