Sex Pistols announce ‘50 Years of Punk’ London shows – with Frank Carter at the front
Anarchy back in the UK
It’s the 50th anniversary of the birth of punk this year, and the Sex Pistols are celebrating in true punk fashion: by getting back on stage and bringing a touch of anarchy to the UK.
The Sex Pistols (now featuring former Gallows frontman Frank Carter) have announced a new run of UK dates for their ‘Anarchy In The UK – 50 Years Of Punk’ tour, taking the band around the country this December. The run includes shows in Portsmouth, Bristol and two big London dates: O2 Academy Brixton on 18th December and Eventim Apollo on 20th December.
Original members Steve Jones, Paul Cook and Glen Matlock will be joined by Carter on vocals, continuing the punk past-and-present collaboration that began in 2024 following the Sex Pistols' return to the stage.
And if you think having the young(ish) frontman standing in for John Lydon sounds like sacrilege, Carter himself would probably understand the concern. In our recent exclusive interview, he admitted that joining the band was initially something of a terrifying prospect. When Matlock first approached him about taking over vocal duties, Carter told us he was “really blindsided” – before shaking himself off and immediately taking the gig.
It helps that Carter isn't approaching the job as an impersonation exercise. The former Gallows frontman grew up idolising the Pistols, and says Lydon was one of the reasons he got into music in the first place. “I want to do them proud,” he told Shortlist, adding that without Lydon he wouldn't be in music at all.
Passing the torch
That sense of responsibility might be a bit of modesty on the singer’s part, given Carter's own punk pedigree. With Gallows, he helped drag British hardcore punk into the mainstream in the 2000s before fronting Frank Carter & The Rattlesnakes.
But Carter says the point isn't simply to recreate the past. He hopes someone young will come to a Sex Pistols show with their dad or grandparent, see “one guitar, one bass drum, and a singer sweating” and decide to start their own band.
That's probably the most punk justification for a 50th-anniversary tour imaginable.
Here’s that run of dates in full:
DECEMBER
- 4th – Leeds O2 Academy
- 5th – Newcastle NX
- 7th – 3Arena – Dublin
- 9th – Corn Exchange – Edinburgh
- 10th – O2 Academy – Glasgow
- 12th – Liverpool Olympia
- 14th – Birmingham O2 Academy
- 15th – Portsmouth Guildhall
- 16th – Bristol Prospect Building
- 18th – Brixton Academy – London
- 20th – Eventim Apollo – London
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