Oasis superfan with Liam tattoo and £12,000 shrine shares reunion outfit | UK | News
An Oasis superfan who has a Liam Gallagher back tattoo and owns £12,000 worth of Oasis memorabilia is looking forward to the Gallagher brothers’ reunion tour in 2025.
John Smallbones, a 49-year-old shopkeeper from Andover, Hampshire and avid Oasis fan, expressed his excitement about the band’s reunion, calling it “the best thing that’s happened in a long time”. The business owner, who fell in love with Oasis in the early 1990s, now runs a window, door and conservatory business called Wall of Glass, after Liam Gallagher’s first solo single.
He said: “I always thought a reunion would happen,” adding: “I said it would happen in 2025 and I thought it had to happen because it’s the 30th anniversary.” His collection includes a duvet cover with Noel and Liam Gallagher’s faces, tambourines from the band’s 1994 album Definitely Maybe, and framed photos and canvases of the band throughout his home.
In addition to his Liam Gallagher tattoo on his back, he also sports several other Oasis-themed tattoos, including the words Definitely Maybe on maracas and a tambourine on his chest, as well as album names on its members. Mr Smallbones is determined to get tickets for the reunion tour in 2025, planning to wear a parka jacket, brown wig and hat – all elements associated with the band’s iconic style.
“I’m going to buy tickets to Wembley Stadium. I wouldn’t mind doing two nights there and one in Manchester,” he said. “I’ll buy them. Whether I have to pay on eBay or not, I’ll buy them. Even if I have to pay double, triple, whatever the price is, I’ll buy them.”
He’s already planned his outfit for the tour, he said, “We’re all in our parkas and hats. I’ve got glasses, wigs, hats, parkas, you name it, I’ve got it.”
Of the Gallagher brothers, Mr Smallbones admits that Liam is his favourite, seeing him “at least twice a year, every year”, but adds that seeing them play together “is the highlight”.
He added: “I think everyone can relate to their music… and their lyrics and the way Liam sings them. Even if he’s got a tambourine or maracas, he could be standing there with a triangle, it’s just beautiful.”
Like most Britons this week, Mr Smallbones is planning to get tickets to Oasis concerts. But one Oasis concert is not enough for John as he wants to go to Wembley Stadium in London and Heaton Park in Manchester.
“I’m really looking forward to it and it’s going to be just as good as it was a few years ago. To be honest, it can’t come soon enough next year,” he said.
