The ’90s rivalry between warring Britpop bands Oasis and Blur has inspired a new play.
The production, titled The Battle, will premiere in February 2026 at England’s Birmingham Rep theater. It’ll then tour the U.K. before coming to London’s West End.
Said to be based on “mostly” real events, The Battle is set in 1995, when Oasis and Blur vied for the Britpop crown by releasing new singles on the exact same day.
“1995: a time long before music splintered into a billion different Tik Tok feeds,” says writer John Niven. “When music was so central to the culture that two pop groups could dominate the entire summer, the evening news and the front page of every newspaper in the country. We’re going to take you back there.”
You can watch a trailer for The Battle streaming now on YouTube.
Here in 2025, Oasis has reunited ahead of a world tour kicking off in July, ending the long-standing feud between members Liam and Noel Gallagher. Blur, meanwhile, is back on hiatus after reuniting for the 2023 album, The Ballad of Darren.
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