THE WHO

Stage Times:-

The Who have announced an historic concert accompanied by an orchestra, hosted at the Royal Sandringham Estate in Norfolk on the August Bank Holiday weekend.

The momentous outdoor summer show will be a special finale to their The Who with Orchestra 2023 UK tour, and is part of the first extensive live music events to be held at the Royal Sandringham Estate, presented by Heritage Live. Special guests for the event will be Richard Ashcroft, and The Lightning Seeds.

Pete Townshend, Roger Daltrey and band will perform music from throughout the band’s nearly 60-year career, including sections devoted to classic albums Tommy and Quadrophenia as well as other beloved Who tracks and songs from their 2019 ‘WHO’ album, their first studio release in 13 years.

Pete Townshend said:

“ Very pleased and excited for The Who to be one of the first artists to perform at the Country Home of the British Royal family on The Sandringham Estate. Opening up the Estate to large scale concerts is a fantastic way of keeping us uplifted and enjoying congregation at what I’m sure will be a fabulous summer celebration. We can’t wait!”

Giles Cooper, Heritage Live Promoter, said:

“It’s been an ambition of us all at Heritage Live to stage a concert for the legend that is THE WHO. It doesn’t get any bigger and to have this iconic band accompanied by an orchestra following their tour's 5 star reviews in such a magnificent setting, will be the most amazing and magical experience. It will undoubtedly be a day and evening etched into the memories of all those who attend - for the rest of our lives!”

The show will feature The Who’s full live band comprised of guitarist / backup singer Simon Townshend, keyboardist Loren Gold, second keyboardist Emily Marshall, bassist Jon Button, drummer Zak Starkey, and backing vocals by Billy Nicholls, along with orchestra conductor Keith Levenson, lead violinist Katie Jacoby, and lead cellist Audrey Snyder; all alongside the Heart Of England Orchestra.

As the band were unable to play a promised Christmas concert for the Nordoff Robbins charity due to a scheduling conflict, they will be donating part of their fee for this show to the charity.

The Who wound up their The Who Hits Back! tour of the US in November last year having wowed audiences in over thirty cities, with media and fans agreeing that the band were as good as, if not better than ever and that the orchestral arrangements, most of which were done by the legendary David Campbell, brought a new depth and excitement to Pete Townshend’s music.

Richard Ashcroft is a two-time Ivor Novello winner (Songwriter of the Year in 1998 and Outstanding Contribution to British Music in 2019) who has released five Top 5 solo albums, including the #1 debut 'Alone With Everybody', and most recently last year his #2 album 'Acoustic Hymns'. He first came to attention with The Verve, with who he released one of the biggest albums of the era in the shape of 'Urban Hymns' (the UK's 18th biggest selling album of all-time) as well as a succession of anthems which remain staples of his live set today, including 'The Drugs Don't Work', 'Bittersweet Symphony', 'Lucky Man' and 'Sonnet'.

The Lightning Seeds are the brainchild of writer, singer, guitarist and producer Ian Broudie. In 1989 Ian as Lightning Seeds released debut album ‘Cloudcukooland’ featuring the hit single ‘Pure’. Second album ‘Sense’ followed before the release of the seminal album ‘Jollification’ in 1994 which has so far sold nearly 1 million copies. In 1996 the iconic single ‘3 Lions’ for the England football team topped the charts many times over.

Heritage Live will be actioning a sustainability plan across the Sandringham Estate concerts in order to adhere to the most up to date advancements in green large scale live music event staging.