Frank Turner breaks world record for most shows played in 24 hours: “Proud. Tired. Grateful. Long live independent music”

5 May, 2024

Frank Turner has broken the world record for the most shows played in 24 hours, with 15 gigs in 15 different towns.

The artist was taking on the challenge in honour of the Music Venue Trust (MVT), playing every show at an independent venue, with all tickets sold by independent record shops.

The feat kicked off in Liverpool’s Jacaranda Baltic at 12:30pm on Saturday (May 4), with Turner working his way down the country, before finally completing the mission at Southampton’s The Brook at midday today (May 5).

The rules for the world record attempt were set out by the MVT, who clarified that each set had to last for at least 15 minutes, with no repeated venues and a minimum of 25 audience members at each show.

At the start of the journey, Turner posted an image of himself holding a sign saying “BEFORE”, writing: “Here we go friends. 15 shows, 15 town, 24 hours. This is a terrible idea. Thanks to the venues, my crew, the record shops and @musicvenuetrust – let’s do this.”

That was later followed up by a post from the final leg of the attempt, holding an equivalent “AFTER” sign. “Proud. Tired. Grateful. Long live independent music,” he wrote.

Turner also reflected on a time when he played even more shows in a short period, albeit in an unofficial capacity. “In 2009, for the music video for ‘The Road’, I played 24 shows in 24 hours – all in Greater London. House parties, venues, record shops and more. It was fun but kind of unofficial, and hard work. I didn’t think I wanted to do it again,” he explained.

“In the last 24 hours, accompanied by my crew (Doug and Tre and Mark), we played 15 shows in 15 different towns around the UK. According to the @musicvenuetrust rules, that’s the world record by 5 shows. Every show was at an independent venue, ticketed by an independent record shop. We did it.”

See the full list of shows that Turner played, and the full list of rules and criteria for the record attempt, below:

See some footage from Turner’s epic achievement below:

Turner has been a prominent advocate for the need for extra support for grassroots music venues, at a time when the MVT is calling for a £1 ticket levy on large scale concerts to help save smaller live music spaces.

Earlier this year, he told NME about the need for the industry to pull together to help the grassroots and independent sector. “We’re trying to remind people that going to independent gigs is fun, and teaching the kids who came of age in 2020 or 2021 that this is a cool thing to do,” he said. “My role in this is twofold – to shout about it whenever I can and be positive and say it’s a really fucking cool thing to go to indie gigs. Don’t fucking go to an arena gig where you get charged nine quid for a beer!”

Turner’s latest album ‘Undefeated’ was released on Friday (May 3) via Xtra Mile, his first record as an independent artist.

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