Oasis shocked by death of fan at London concert

LONDON – The death of a man at an Oasis concert in London on Aug 2 has cast a pall over the long-awaited reunion tour of the 1990s Britpop band, which began with fanfare in July.

The concertgoer, whose name was not released, apparently fell from the upper tiers of Wembley Stadium when the show was winding down, based on initial assessments.

“We are shocked and saddened to hear of the tragic death of a fan at the show last night,” the band said in a statement on Aug 3 that was reported by British news media. “Oasis would like to extend our sincere condolences to the family and friends of the person involved.”

The band played another concert at Wembley on Aug 3, their last show in London this month. The band’s management company did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

The Metropolitan Police said that officers working at the stadium, medics and ambulance service workers responded to reports of an injury around 10.20pm. The concertgoer was in his 40s and had “injuries consistent with a fall”, the police said in a statement. He was pronounced dead at the scene.

The authorities were seeking information from the public to help them determine what happened.

“We believe it is likely a number of people witnessed the incident, or may knowingly or unknowingly have caught it on mobile phone video footage,” the police statement said.

Wembley, the largest arena in Britain, seats 90,000 people. The seating is divided into three levels, with those in the highest tier situated about 50m above ground.

Some people who said they had been at the show posted about the death on social media. A person posting on Reddit as Nickibee described being seated in the top tier, and said the floors were extremely wet and slippery from spilled drinks – “like an ice rink”.

Other attendees said the floors in the middle and upper tiers were also treacherous. Some noted that the timing of the man’s death coincided with the end of the concert, when people might have been rushing out.

Oasis have sold out their shows at Wembley and beyond. The concert on Aug 2 was the fourth of five performances scheduled there for this leg of the tour, and the band are to return for two more shows on Sept 27 and 28.

Oasis were formed in 1991 in Manchester, England. The band were part of a 1990s movement called Britpop, joining groups like Blur and Pulp in producing catchy rock music with a 1960s influence. From 1994 to 2007, they produced seven albums.

The band had not performed together since 2009, when Noel Gallagher, the lead guitarist, songwriter and singer, quit the group, declaring that he could no longer stand to work with Liam Gallagher, the lead singer and his brother.

The Gallagher brothers’ online feuding appeared to play a role in the band’s continued following after they broke up.

The death at Wembley on Aug 2 seems to have been the first such fatality at that arena. In 2022, a Harry Styles fan fell from the top deck of Glasgow’s Ibrox Stadium, but was not seriously injured. Wembley Stadium did not immediately respond to a request for comment. NYTIMES