The Laugharne Weekend with Robin Ince
2026-03-22 12:00 - 13:00 (Europe/London)
Fountain Inn
12.15 Daniel Rachel Discusses his provocative study of pop’s flirtations with Nazi imagery and ideology, This Ain’t Rock’n’Roll

Mike Joyce (The Smiths) in conversation
2026-03-28 20:00 - 22:00
The Drums: Mike Joyce – Book Tour

As a band, The Smiths need no introduction. Formed in 1982 and disbanded in 1987, all five of their studio albums reached the top five in the UK charts. They are widely lauded as one of the most influential bands of all time.

This is Mike Joyce’s open-hearted story of what it was like to play the drums in The Smiths. Throughout his honest and witty reflections, Mike answers the question ‘where did it all go right?’ – a question he and
bassist Andy Rourke used to often ask each other.

Rather than simply retelling the well-documented iconic moments of the history of The Smiths, in The Drums, Mike conveys ‘the feeling’ of his time in the band. His off-piste, frank perspective allows him to recontextualise the canonised stories with beautifully vulnerable, human insight.

Mike’s honest, entertaining and deeply human memoir truly conveys what it felt like to be a member of The Smiths when you are the self-confessed biggest Smiths fan in the world. He shares stories from his new book, in conversation with Daniel Rachel.

The Hub at St Mary’s
Lichfield

BBC 5 Live - Paul McCartney
2026-04-14 00:00 - 00:30
What are the greatest non-Beatle Paul McCartney songs?
Daniel joins the panel and selects his Top 5 Macca tracks…
Monday night feature “The Greatest”

Paul Weller evening
2026-05-13 19:00 - 22:30
The Long Play Sessions: Dan Jennings with ‘Paul Weller Dancing Through the Fire’
Wed 13 May 2026 7:00 PM – 10:30 PM ICMP (Queens Park Campus), NW6 6PA

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Join us for an intimate and expansive evening with award‑winning broadcaster and journalist Dan Jennings, as he discusses DANCING THROUGH THE FIRE: The Authorised Oral History of Paul Weller, the first fully authorised and definitive oral account of one of Britain’s most influential and enduring musical figures.

This event forms part of The Long Play Sessions, ICMP’s curated series celebrating transformative writers, artists and cultural voices who shape how we understand music, identity and creative expression. Each session opens a window into the stories behind the art — blending conversation, cultural history and lived experience.
In Dancing Through the Fire, Jennings traces the extraordinary creative life of Paul Weller, from the explosive urgency of The Jam, through the ambitious sophistication of The Style Council, to a prolific and uncompromising solo career spanning more than three decades. Built from over 200 hours of interviews with more than 250 contributors, including Weller himself; the book offers an unprecedented, collective portrait of a musician whose influence has defined generations.
Drawing on unique access to Weller’s inner circle of family, friends, bandmates, producers and collaborators, Jennings reveals the drive, discipline and restless creativity behind a career that continually resisted nostalgia and commercial complacency. The result is candid, generous and richly revealing — capturing not just the myth, but the man at the centre of one of British music’s most remarkable artistic journeys.
Far more than a standard biography, Dan’s book explores the realities of longevity, reinvention and creative survival. It reflects on class, culture, fandom and the personal cost of sustaining artistic integrity in the public eye, while charting how Weller became one of the very few artists to achieve Number One albums across five consecutive decades.
Paul Weller’s story — creative, uncompromising and continually evolving, speaks to anyone who cares about music as a cultural force. It asks what it takes to remain vital, curious and true to yourself when the world expects you to stand still.
Already hailed by critics as a landmark work of music journalism, Dancing Through the Fire is being recognised as the definitive account of one of Britain’s greatest artists.
What to Expect

A talk from Dan Jennings exploring the making of Dancing Through the Fire, the interview process, and the challenge of capturing a living legend through many voices
In‑depth discussion of creativity, longevity, reinvention and artistic integrity across five decades of British music
Behind‑the‑scenes insight into Jennings’ unprecedented access to Paul Weller and his closest collaborators
Reflections on class, fandom, cultural legacy and why Weller’s music continues to resonate across generations
Audience Q&A, offering the chance to engage directly with Jennings about his research, the writing process and Paul Weller’s cultural impact
Book signing — bring your copy or purchase one on the night

We look forward to welcoming you to The Long Play Sessions for a thoughtful, energising and unforgettable evening celebrating one of modern music’s most vital and uncompromising creative figures.

Location
ICMP (Queens Park Campus), NW6 6PA

Hackney History Festival: Rock Against Racism in Victoria Park
2026-05-17 12:00 - 13:00
Rock against Racism in Victoria Park.

1978. 100,000 music fans walked seven miles from Trafalgar Square to Victoria Park. To protest against the National Front. To rejoice in the music of punk and reggae. And to watch X-Ray Spex, Steel Pulse and the Clash. This was Rock Against Racism. Anti-racist, Anti-sexist. And a warning to the divisive rhetoric of rock gods like Eric Clapton, Rod Stewart and David Bowie.
Daniel Rachel, author of Walls Come Tumbling: the music and politics of Rock Against, 2 Tone & Red Wedge in conversation with Andrew Harrison.
Sun 17 May 2026 12:00pm
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NOTE: Hackney Half takes place in the morning with some road closures and disruption to buses, so you are advised to travel by train to Homerton Station or walk/cycle.

Location
Chat’s Palace, E9 6DF

Oasis night
2026-05-28 19:00 - 21:00
The Long Play Sessions: A Sound So Very Loud – Oasis

Thursday, May 28 • 7 PM – 10:30 PM

The Long Play Sessions present the epic story of Oasis as we relive the anthems that made them legends in this unforgettable author talk.

Join us for an unmissable night celebrating the music, madness, and enduring legacy of Oasis — one of Britain’s most explosive and influential bands.
Through the lens of A Sound So Very Loud — the definitive new book by acclaimed music journalists Ted Kessler and Hamish MacBain — this immersive evening dives deep into the songs, stories, and chaos that defined a generation.
The evening will be hosted by Daniel Rachel, former musician-turned-award-winning and bestselling author whose previous works include: Isle of Noises: Conversations with Great British Songwriters, Walls Come Tumbling Down: The Music & Politics of Rock Against Racism, 2 Tone and Red Wedge and most recently This Ain’t Rock ‘n’ Roll: Pop Music, The Swastika and The Third Reich (nominated for The Penderyn Music Book prize).
The night includes:
🎤 Book Talk & Q&A
Go behind the music with two writers who were there from the start. From Supersonic to Champagne Supernova, uncover the real stories behind Oasis’s biggest hits, and the creative friction that made them legendary. Signed copies of A Sound So Very Loud will be available for purchase.
🎧 Listening Party
Lose yourself in the anthems, deep cuts, and hidden gems that shaped the Britpop era. Expect nostalgia, sing-alongs, and maybe even a surprise or two.
👥 About the Authors
Hamish MacBain
A former writer at NME from 2004 to 2010, MacBain had a front-row seat to the breakup of Oasis. He penned the words in the band’s final official tour programme and was en route to review their last UK show when it was cancelled. He co-authored Any Road Will Get Us There (If We Don’t Know Where We’re Going) with Noel Gallagher in 2018, and his sleevenotes for the Be Here Now reissue were featured in the Chasing the Sun: 1993–1997 Oasis exhibition.
Ted Kessler
Kessler was on staff at NME from 1993 to 2003 before joining Q magazine, where he worked for sixteen years, including four as editor. He first interviewed Oasis in 1994 around their debut single Supersonic, and his final interview with the band was in Amsterdam in 2009, just before their split. Since then, he’s written five Liam Gallagher cover interviews and remains one of the most trusted voices on the band’s legacy.
The Long Play Sessions
This event forms part of The Long Play Sessions, a curated series hosted by ICMP celebrating some of the most influential voices writing about music today. Each session goes beyond the page, offering live conversation, cultural context and creative insight into the stories that shape music history. Head to our Ticket Tailor profile page to view other upcoming Long Play Sessions.
We look forward to welcoming you to The Long Play Sessions for an essential evening exploring one of the loudest, boldest and most influential moments in British music history.

'A Hard Day's Night' with Samira Ahmed
2026-06-11 19:00 - 21:00
The Long Play Sessions : Samira Ahmed with ‘A Hard Day’s Night’
Thu 11 Jun 2026 7:00 PM – 10:30 PM The Venue and Refectory, ICMP (Queens Park Campus), NW6 6PA

Join us on 11 June at 7:00 pm at ICMP’s Queen’s Park venue for a special in‑conversation event with award‑winning journalist, writer, and broadcaster Samira Ahmed, as she discusses with Daniel Rachel her brand‑new book in the BFI Film Classics series:
A Hard Day’s Night – her deep dive into the Beatles’ groundbreaking 1964 film.
In this intimate interview, Samira will explore how A Hard Day’s Night—originally created to capture the Beatles’ explosive rise—has become a genuine cinematic classic. Drawing from her lifelong love for the film and her remarkable 2023 discovery of the earliest known full Beatles concert recording, Samira examines how the movie captured the shifting cultural landscape of 1960s Britain and redefined modern celebrity.
Expect insights into:

The film’s innovative blend of documentary realism and playful rebellion
How Beatlemania transformed ideas of fame, identity, and media
The film’s lasting influence on generations of artists, fans, and filmmakers
Samira’s personal connection to the Beatles and how the film shaped her own journey into journalism

About the author:
Samira Ahmed presents Front Row on BBC Radio 4 and Newswatch on BBC One, and has created acclaimed documentaries including Art of Persia and I Dressed Ziggy Stardust. In 2020 she was named Audio Presenter of the Year by the Broadcasting Press Guild. A Hard Day’s Night is her first book.
Whether you’re a Beatles fan, a film lover, or simply curious about the cultural forces that shaped modern Britain, this is an evening not to miss.

Location
The Venue and Refectory, ICMP (Queens Park Campus), NW6 6PA

Five Leaves Bookshop - Nottingham
2026-10-28 19:00 - 20:30
This Ain’t Rock’n’Roll: pop music, the swastika and the Third Reich, with Daniel Rachel

Wednesday, 28th October, 2026
7:00 pm – 8:30 pm

*Five Leaves Bookshop
14a Long Row, Nottingham, NG12DH

Tickets: £5.00 – £12.99
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In this illustrated talk, Daniel Rachel explores one of the last taboos in pop culture and asks why the Nazis, fascism and the Third Reich feature so prominently in the iconography of the artists that defined the twentieth century.
Over the last seven decades, some of rock ‘n’ roll’s most celebrated figures have flirted with the imagery and theatre of the Third Reich. From Keith Moon and Vivian Stanshall kitting themselves out in Nazi uniforms to Siouxsie Sioux and Sid Vicious brandishing swastikas in the pomp of punk, generations of performers have associated themselves in with the aesthetics, mass hysteria and even ideology of Nazism. Whether shock factor, stupidity, or crass attempt at subversion, rock ‘n’ roll has indulged these associations in a way not accepted by any other artform. But how accountable should fans, the media, and the music industry be for what has often seemed a sleazy fascination with the eroticised perversions of a fascist regime?
Daniel Rachel navigates these turbulent waters, asking us to look anew at the artists that have defined us, inspired us and given us joy – and consider why so many have been drawn to the imagery of a movement responsible for the twentieth century’s worst atrocities. Alongside a sensitive history of the Holocaust and an examination of the place it holds in our cultural consciousness, Rachel asks essential questions of actions often overlooked or underplayed, whilst neither casting sweeping judgement nor offering easy answers. In doing so, he asks us to reassess the history of rock ‘n’ roll and sheds light on the echoes of the Third Reich in popular culture and the legacy of twentieth (and twenty-first) century history as it defines us today.
Daniel Rachel is a former musician turned author. His previous books include Too Much Too Young, the 2 Tone Records Story; Isle of Noises: Conversations with Great British Songwriters; and The Lost Album of the Beatles: What If the Beatles Hadn’t Split Up? He has also written sleeve notes for many artists including the Kinks, Madness, Ocean Colour Scene, Ray Davies, and Bryan Ferry.
Booking essential
