Event guide: Ed Sheeran, Uncle Vanya and the other best things to see in Ireland in the week ahead
December 6th-12th, 2025: The best music, theatre, art and more coming your way this week
Neil Young
Steve Cropper, guitarist for Blues Brothers and Booker T & the MGs, dies aged 84
Stax Records great also backed Neil Young, Bob Dylan, John Fogerty and The Band’s Levon Helm
Saint Etienne on bowing out: ‘Some of the things people said got me crying. You don’t realise the impact you’ve had’
Sarah Cracknell and co are going out on a high with their 13th album. They talk about Britpop, their labelmates Kneecap and Gen Z’s strange yearning for the 1990s
Wunderhorse in Dublin: Young crowd delirious for one of the buzziest live acts around
Collins Barracks rocked to unflinchingly earnest guitar music made evocative by clever melodies
Wunderhorse at Collins Barracks: Stage times, setlist, ticket information, how to get there and more
Everything you need to know about the band’s upcoming performances in Dublin
Glastonbury 2025: All that Kneecap and Bob Vylan outrage drowned out the air strike on the cafe birthday party
The BBC’s coverage of the festival is a wonder. But this time around it became a morass of missed points and moral cowardice
Kneecap at Glastonbury: British police assessing videos of group to see if offences were committed
Belfast rap group member Móglaí Bap tells large audience: ‘The prime minister of your country, not mine, said he didn’t want us to play’
Neil Young and Van Morrison at Malahide Castle: Decades on, these voices have never sounded better
Van Morrison makes it funky while Neil Young strides through an inspiring celestial set to fans in Dublin
Neil Young with special guest Van Morrison at Dublin’s Malahide Castle: Set list, ticket information, how to get there and more
Everything you need to know about the singers’ concert on Thursday, June 26th
Glastonbury full lineup for 2025: eyes on Kneecap’s Saturday slot after gig cancellations
Paul Mescal and Dominic West among speakers, while mystery group Patchwork may be a decoy on the Pyramid Stage
‘We want to stop in our prime’: Saint Etienne on their final album and why pop is a dying art
The trio of Bob Stanley, Pete Wiggs and Sarah Cracknell are wrapping up after 13 albums
Neil Young to follow The Cure’s example in not using ‘bad’ dynamic pricing
Young says surge pricing a ‘bad thing that has happened to concerts worldwide’, citing The Cure’s Robert Smith
Glastonbury 2025: Olivia Rodrigo, Neil Young and The 1975 to headline
Young back on bill after withdrawing due to mistaken belief that festival was under BBC ‘corporate control’
Neil Young: Oceanside Countryside review – The sunny side of one of rock’s stormiest musicians
Neil Young has rarely sounded more laid-back than on this album of gorgeously relaxed recordings from 1977
Neil Young and Van Morrison to play at Malahide Castle this summer
The veteran rocker’s last Irish gig was with Bob Dylan in Kilkenny six years ago
Glastonbury 2025: Neil Young confirms he will play festival after ‘error in information’ led him to pull out
Earlier this week Young backed out of the festival claiming it was ‘under corporate control’ of the BBC
Glastonbury Festival doubles profits amid accusations of ‘corporate control’
Capacity at the famous music festival, which turns over much of its profit to charities, has increased to 210,000 people
Glastonbury 2025: Neil Young pulls out of festival claiming it is ‘under corporate control’ of BBC
Young says BBC wanted him and his band to ‘do a lot of things in a way we were not interested’
In 1975, Dylan, Patti Smith, Bowie and Marley woke up a cosseted music culture. It’s a 50th anniversary worth celebrating
2025 marks the golden jubilee of some fine records, to be sure, but also of a time when punk came to sack rock’s citadel and popular music began to go in new directions
Nightmare concerts: Nicki Minaj put on one of Ireland’s most disappointing gigs. Here are nine more disasters
Including gigs by Garth Brooks, Guns N’ Roses, Lauryn Hill, Swedish House Mafia and Barbra Streisand
Anamoe Drive: Breakfast in Bed – Like all your treasured singer-songwriters put through a sonic wringer
Thumper singer Oisín Leahy Furlong’s debut solo album is the yin to Thumper’s yang, a delicate, un-self-pitying collection of heartbreak songs
Buying records, DVDs and physical books: A 2024 resolution for culture lovers
Aoife Barry: I don’t want to leave the albums I love to linger in the digital air, untethered to me and my world, so that’s why I’m back buying vinyl
Foo Fighters, Oasis, U2, the Rolling Stones and more: Slane’s 15 greatest acts – in reverse order
As Harry Styles limbers up for this year’s gig, on Saturday, we pick our favourite performances at the castle since the inaugural Slane Festival, in 1981
Graham Nash: ‘Most of the sad songs are about my relationship with Joni Mitchell’
The Crosby, Stills and Nash singer on the wild early years, feuds, divorce and ego
Aldous Harding: Warm Chris – Well crafted but anchorless
An admirable showcase of various roles, some of which work better than others
Sting sells songwriting catalogue for estimated $300m
Deal covers copyrights for more than 600 songs and future music earnings
Neil Young may have given Spotify the kick it has long deserved
Exit by veteran rocker amplifies both streamer’s misinformation and artist exploitation
Spotify forecasts weaker-than-expected first quarter subscriber numbers
Music streaming company posts 18% rise in active monthly users
Joe Rogan apologises after Spotify clamps down on Covid misinformation
Streaming app to provide accurate information amid backlash over podcast content
Ian O’Riordan: Swimming not the same thrill without the danger of hypothermia
Swimmers set to take part in Ice Man challenge of 45 minutes in five degree sea water
Thousands of students have experienced sexual violence or harassment - study
Welcome to the Student Hub weekly digest - a selection of stories, reviews and podcasts
WHO chief backs Neil Young in dispute with Spotify over Covid misinformation
Streaming service removing musician’s songs after ultimatum over Joe Rogan’s podcast
Neil Young demands Spotify remove his music over Joe Rogan vaccine misinformation
‘They can have Rogan or Young. Not both,’ writes musician in open letter
Mother and baby home controversy overshadows work of Frank Duff
Legion of Mary founder a tireless worker in aiding single mothers to raise own children
Bruce Springsteen sells catalogue to Sony in $500m deal – report
US star becomes latest singer to monetise career’s work
Neil Young and Crazy Horse: Barn – veteran rockers enjoy their hay day
Into their late ’70s, Young and his band have no intention of turning down the guitars
Warner Music in talks to purchase David Bowie’s songwriting catalogue
Songbook being sold by star’s family is among the biggest on the market
Facebook files’ saga, Lubov Chernukhin and Bond’s triumphant return
Planet Business: For sale, thousands of songs, much-streamed
Don Juan’s date with destiny – Frank McNally on another great liberator with Kerry roots
An Irishman’s Diary
David Crosby on Stills, Nash and Neil Young (‘probably the most selfish person I know’)
At 80, the superstar musician has survived heroin addiction, illness and tragedy
Hipgnosis forecasts higher streaming earnings after strong year
Pandemic accelerated move to online listening for music lovers
Fifty years of Martyn Turner cartoons: ‘I have always been a liberal bigot’
The Irish Times satirist on the X case cartoon, those worms and his inability to draw
Vicar Street recorded operating profit of almost €740,000 before Covid
Owner Harry Crosbie says venue has full year of gigs lined up for when it reopens
Tielemans’ thunderbolt seals Leicester’s maiden FA Cup triumph
Brendan Rodgers’ team beat Chelsea in front of 21,000 fans at Wembley Stadium
Paul Simon sells song catalogue to Sony for undisclosed sum
Singer-songwriter joins Bob Dylan, Neil Young and more by cashing in on their intellectual property
Johnny Rogan obituary: One of the most well-regarded music biographers of his generation
London Irish writer’s tenacity and attention to detail did not always please his subjects
Stuart Staples: ‘The wrench of leaving a small town was very defining’
Tindersticks singer on Nottingham, TV Personalities cover, Eimear McBride and new lp
'Queen of Latin Music' Shakira tunes in to trend of selling music rights
Colombian popstar becomes latest artist to sell back catalogue of songs
Carlos Vinícius hat-trick helps Spurs drown out Marine’s giant-killing hopes
Side from England’s eighth tier almost took a shock lead in FA Cup third-round tie
Rocker times release of his take on Trump’s America to perfection
Former Creedence Clearwater Revival leader John Fogerty’s song emerges as riots occur in Washington
Neil Young sells 50% of entire song catalogue rights to Hipgnosis
Deal comprises Young’s song catalogue of 1,180 compositions
Phil Lynott: ‘I didn’t know how shy he was, how awkward, and scared of rejection’
In Songs for While I’m Away, Emer Reynolds shows the Thin Lizzy star in a new light
Crosswords & Puzzles
Crosswords & puzzles to keep you challenged and entertained
Stardust
Inquests into the nightclub fire that led to the deaths of 48 people
Common Ground
How does a post-Brexit world shape the identity and relationship of these islands
Family NoticesOpens in new window
Weddings, Births, Deaths and other family notices