Impossible though it may seem, it’s been twenty years since Busted bounced into the charts with the irrepressible pop-punk energy of their debut single ‘What I Go To School For’. It kickstarted a succession of hits for the trio, including the #1smashes ‘Crashed The Wedding’, ‘Who’s David’, ‘Thunderbirds Are Go’, ‘You Said No’ and the Top 3 singles ‘Year 3000’, ‘Air Hostess’ and ‘Sleeping WIth The Light On’. Now Busted celebrate their 20th anniversary by announcing details of a major UK arena tour starting on the 2nd September in Plymouth, alongside a series of new versions of fifteen of their classic hits to be released in the build-up, with some very special guests.
The tour will see the original much-loved trio – James Bourne, Charlie Simpson and Matt Willis – play their hits and fan-favourites to a combined audience of 150,000 people over the course of fifteen shows this September. Supporting Busted will be the iconic Hanson for all the shows from Birmingham onwards. The pop trio brothers are behind hits including the number 1 smash ‘MMMBop’, ‘Where’s The Love’, ‘I Will Come To You’ and ‘Penny & Me’. The line-up will also feature New Hope Club, who scored a Top 5 hit with their self-titled debut album and have since exceeded 2 billion streams.
The first track to launch the 20th anniversary celebrations will be a new version of Busted’s song ‘Loser Kid’ featuring Simple Plan, which will be released on April 14th. Loser Kid featured as the final track on their self-titled debut album and was co-written by Bourne, Simpson and Willis. Pre-order/pre-save HERE.
Fans who sign up to Busted’s mailing list HERE will receive access to a pre-sale for tour tickets which opens at 9am on Wednesday, March 29th. Remaining tickets will then go on general saleHERE from 9am on Friday, March 31st. The dates are:
SEPTEMBER
2nd – Plymouth, Pavilions
3rd – Cardiff, International Arena
5th – Swansea, Arena
6th – Bournemouth, BIC
7th – Brighton, Centre
9th – Birmingham, Utilita Arena
10th – London, The O2
12th – Bridlington, Spa
15th – Nottingham, Motorpoint Arena
16th – Newcastle, Utilita Arena
17th – Leeds, First Direct Arena
19th – Aberdeen, P&J Live
20th – Glasgow, OVO Hydro
22nd – Liverpool, M&S Bank Arena
24th – Manchester, AO Arena
Busted’s many successes spread far beyond the singles charts. Three of their four studio albums also peaked at #2, with 4.5 million sales leading to eight Platinum certifications as well as a total of 25 weeks in the Top 10 and two 5x Platinum sellingalbums. They have won two BRIT Awards – Best Pop Act and Best British Breakthrough – while multiple sold-out arena tours have seen them sell more than 2 million tickets.
Busted’s 20th anniversary tour follows Charlie Simpson’s recent triumph as the winner of 2023’s ’The Masked Singer’, adding to his other projects which have included four solo albums and four albums with the rock band Fightstar. James Bourne is a renowned songwriter, with credits including McFly, The Jonas Brothers, 5 Seconds of Summer and The Vamps, as well as his band Son of Dork and two recent solo albums ‘Safe Journey Home’ (2020) and ‘Sugar Beach’(2022). After releasing his debut solo album, Matt Willis famously won ‘I’m A Celebrity… Get Me Out Of Here’ leading to a successful television career as well as acting roles which have included the recent West End hit ‘2:22 A Ghost Story’.
