ABC's Martin Fry reveals how the band's merchandise has changed over four decades
It's had an upgrade over the years!
Following the exciting news that ABC will be going on tour next year, Ken Bruce welcomed Martin Fry into the studio for Golden Years, where they talked about David Bowie, Top of The Pops and how the band's merchandise has changed over the years.
ABC formed back in 1980, with the line-up of Martin Fry, Mark White, Stephen Singleton, and David Palmer, and Martin told Ken how things have changed over the years.
Talking about his upcoming tour, Martin said: "When we first started, we made an album called 'The Lexicon of Love', with Trevor Horn producing and Anne Dudley walked into the studios and played some piano, and we became friends then."
He continued: "All these years on, you go round to Anne's house there's like Oscars hidden away in the corner, she's very understated, and will be very embarrassed if I say these things. She's scored incredible films, Netflix series, TV shows and she was in the Art of Noise as well.
"But she was also instrumental in some of the early ABC records, 'The Look of Love' and 'Poison Arrow', so we hooked up, and we've been playing an orchestral show for a good few years now, so we get a chance to start off in Brighton February 5th, all the way through to the London Palladium on February 17th."
Martin then went on to comment about the merchandise they have at the shows saying: "I've noticed though in recent years that the merchandise has changed for us, we kind of released the super deluxe version of 'The Lexicon of Love', which came out 40 years ago, and all that, but I can't really do the T-Shirts and caps anymore.
"It's gone a lot more luxe now, when it comes to see ABC and their full-blown orchestra show, so, yeah, if you need a wallet or a tuxedo, come to the show! It's all about the celebrity endorsed merch these days, I'm told!"
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ABC’s February 2024 UK tour dates:
JANUARY 2024:
Wolverhampton The Civic at The Halls - Thurs 25th
Manchester Bridgewater Hall - Fri 26th
York Barbican - Sat 27th
Southend Cliffs Pavillion - Mon 29th
Stoke Regent Theatre - Tue 30th
FEBRUARY 2024:
London Palladium - Thurs 1st
Cardiff St David's Hall - Fri 2nd
Bournemouth Pavillion Theatre - Sat 3rd
Brighton Dome – Mon 5th
Nottingham Royal Concert Hall – Tue 6th
Sheffield City Hall – Thu 8th
Glasgow Royal Concert Hall – Fri 9th
Gateshead Sage – Sat 10th
Birmingham Symphony Hall – Mon 12th
Bath Forum – Tue 13th
Liverpool Philharmonic Hall – Thu 15th
Manchester Bridgewater Hall – Fri 16th
London Palladium – Sat 17th
Truro Hall For Cornwall - Mon 19th
Portsmouth Guildhall - Tues 20th
London Palladium - Thurs 22nd
Take a look through tours coming up this year and beyond:
ABBA - 'ABBA Voyage'
ABBA's virtual tour 'ABBA Voyage' started in May 2022. The tour sees the ABBA avatars accompanied by a 10-piece live band, all taking place in a custom-built arena at Queen Elizabeth Olympic Park, London.
The shows were due to run until October 2022, but due popular demand from fans, they will now run until 2026.
Wet Wet Wet with special guest Heather Small
Wet Wet Wet have announced they will be going on touch in 2025 with special guest Heather Small. The band will be touring in January, February and October 2025.
Toto
Toto, the band behind hits such as 'Africa' and 'Rosanna', will grace the UK early in 2025 for a headline arena tour. Opening at Glasgow OVO Hydro on Saturday 1st February, Toto play Birmingham BP Pulse Live (Sun 2nd Feb), Manchester AO Arena (Tue 4th February) and London OVO Arena Wembley (Thu 6th Feb) on the short trek.
Jason Donovan
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Alison Moyet
Known for her solo hits 'All Cried Out', 'Is This Love?' and 'Love Letters', Alison Moyet will be taking her hits on the road in 2025. The singer will start in Dublin on 16th February 2025, before performing across the UK, ending in Aberdeen on 22nd March.
Cyndi Lauper
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Mike + The Mechanics
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Kim Wilde
'Kids in America' singer, Kim Wilde, has announced a brand new tour for 2025 - shortly after the release of her 15th studio album, 'Closer'. The UK leg of the tour, of the same name, will kick off in Birmingham on 14th March - and will span nine dates, including in London, Liverpool and Glasgow.
Gabrielle
Gabrielle has announced a tour for 2025 called 'A Place In Your Heart'. The singer will be playing 10 UK dates, starting in Glasgow on 2nd April 2025, playing at locations such as Newcastle, Birmingham, Manchester, and more before ending in Bournemouth on 19th April 2025.
Gary Barlow
Take That frontman Gary Barlow has announced he'll be taking his new 'Songbook Tour' across the UK and Ireland in 2025. He'll be heading to venues in London, Bournemouth, Liverpool, Manchester and many more in April, May and June, singing songs from his illustrious 35 year career.
Bryan Adams
Chart-slaying Canadian rocker Bryan Adams has announced a nine-date UK arena tour. Part of the 'Roll With The Punches' world tour, Bryan Adams' headline trek opens at Newcastle Utilita Arena on Thursday 8th May 2025 and visits Manchester, Leeds, Aberdeen, Glasgow, London, Liverpool and Nottingham before concluding at Birmingham bp pulse LIVE on Sunday 18th May 2025.
Kylie Minogue
Kylie Minogue has announced her latest tour will be called 'The Tension Tour' and will take place in the UK throughout May 2025. Speaking about her tour, Kylie said: "I am beyond excited to announce the TENSION TOUR 2025. I can't wait to share beautiful and wild moments with fans all over the world, celebrating the Tension era and more! It's been an exhilarating ride so far and now, get ready for your close up because I will be calling Lights, Camera, Action … and there will be a whole lot of Padaming!"
Eric Clapton
Eric Clapton will play four headline concerts in May 2025, his only UK dates of the year. Eric will return to his beloved London Royal Albert Hall for a three-night residency on Wednesday 21st, Friday 23rd and Saturday 24th May 2025. He will also play at Nottingham Motorpoint Arena on Sunday 18th May 2025, which is his first concert in the city for 17 years. Tickets are on sale now.
Bruce Springsteen
Bruce Springsteen & The E Street Band have announced a trio of concerts for May and June 2025. The Boss and his legendary band will kick off their short run of shows with two nights at Manchester's Co-op Live on Saturday 17th and Tuesday 20th May 2025.
They will then play an outdoor concert at Liverpool Anfield Stadium on Wednesday 4th June 2025.
Billy Ocean
Billy Ocean will start his UK tour in Manchester at the O2 Apollo on Wednesday 4th June 2025, before travelling across England, Scotland and Wales, ending his tour on 30th June in Nottingham, and the Royal Concert Hall.
Lionel Richie
Lionel Richie has announced several UK dates as part of his 'Say Hello To The Hits' 2025 tour. Starting in Glasgow's OVO Hydro on Wednesday 4th June, before travelling to London, Sheffield, Birmingham and Manchester, Lionel has already added extra dates to his tour before it went on general sale.
Holly Johnson
Holly Johnson will celebrate the 40th anniversary of Frankie Goes to Hollywood's debut album 'Welcome to the Pleasuredome' with a June 2025 UK tour. Opening at Birmingham Symphony Hall on Friday 6th June, Holly Johnson visits London, Bath, Newcastle and Glasgow before culminating with a massive homecoming show at Liverpool M&S Bank Arena on Saturday 21st June.
Billy Joel
'Piano Man' Billy Joel has announced two UK dates for 2025. The singer will be performing in Liverpool and Edinburgh, making it the first time in more than 45 years that he'll be playing in those cities! He will be performing in Edinburgh on Saturday 7th June, and Liverpool on Saturday 21st June 2025.
Sting
Sting announces UK dates for his 'Sting 3.0' world tour. The tour sees the singer enter a new 'dynamic era', showcasing some songs from his huge back catalogue. On tour, Sting performs as part of a trio, with Sting on vocals and bass, Dominic Miller playing guitar and Chris Maas on drums.
Simple Minds
Scottish band Simple Minds have now announced a series of 2025 shows taking place at several festivals and outdoor locations, including Live At The Piece Hall, Halifax and Lincoln Castle, taking place in June and July 2025.
Smokey Robinson
To celebrate the 50th anniversary of his 'A Quiet Storm' album, Smokey Robinson will be playing four shows in the UK in July 2025, marking the first time he's performed in the UK for a decade. Tickets are on sale now.
Oasis
Oasis have reunited and now announced a UK tour taking place in July and August 2025, performing in Cardiff, Manchester, London and Edinburgh.
Simply Red
Simply Red have announced they will be going on tour to celebrate their 40th anniversary in 2025. The band will be performing 12 gigs in September and October 2025.
Marti Pellow
Marti Pellow has announced he will be going on an arena tour in 2025 to celebrate 30 years of his iconic song 'Love Is All Around', which he released when he was part of Wet Wet Wet, back in 1994. The tour begins in Bournemouth on Friday 24th October 2025, ending in London on Sunday 2nd.
Speaking about the tour and the upcoming announcement, Marti said: "To think it's been 30 years since 'Love Is All Around' became such a huge part of my life is amazing. It's not just my song – it belongs to the fans. Celebrating this milestone with them is going to be incredibly special. And I've got something exciting planned around the song itself – I can't wait to share more soon!"
ABC
ABC will return with their much-loved 'The Lexicon of Love' orchestral tour in 2025, with a 16-date run seeing them perform their masterpiece 1982 album 'The Lexicon of Love' in its entirety, alongside other hits from ABC's back catalogue - accompanied by The Lexicon Sinfonia conducted by Anne Dudley. The tour opens at Bournemouth International Centre on Thursday 30th October 2025 and wraps up Blackpool Opera House on Saturday 22nd November 2025, visiting Cardiff, Brighton, Birmingham, Southend, Nottingham, Sheffield, London, Newcastle, Glasgow, Edinburgh, Liverpool, Bath and Manchester along the way. Tickets go on sale from Aloud.com at 10am on Friday 6th December.
Cliff Richard
Cliff Richard has announced six UK dates as part of his 'Can't Stop Me Now' tour, which will see him perform across Australia, New Zealand and the UK in November and December 2025.
Now read:
ABC add extra shows to 'The Lexicon of Love' orchestral UK tour
The biggest tours to look forward to in 2023
Everything you need to know about 'Madonna: The Celebration Tour'