Richard Hawley announces his final Sheffield Leadmill show: “The man who has played here more times than anyone else”

8 June, 2025

richard hawley

Richard Hawley has announced he will play one final show at the Leadmill in Sheffield this month, before its current owners are evicted.

Last month, the iconic venue was denied an appeal against their eviction notice from Electric Group and given three months to vacate the premises on Leadmill Street. Their final event will be held on Saturday, June 28.

Hawley, a Sheffield native with close ties to the venue, will play there for the last time on June 18. “One final time with the man who has played here more than anyone else,” the venue said in the announcement, describing him as a “Sheffield icon and Leadmill family member”.

Tickets for the show, which will feature support from Tom Hickox, will go on sale on Monday (June 9) at 10am and you will be able to find yours here.

Last month, Hawley spoke to NME about his “overwhelming sense of sadness” over the Leadmill’s closure, pleasing for the government to change the law to stop the same thing from happening to other venues.

“I’m trying not to get angry, but it’s very difficult because they say I’m the musician that’s played there the most by a long, long way,” said Hawley. “It’s probably true. I don’t want that to stop, and not just for me but other people. It’s a rite of passage. The people running it now are best placed to do so.”

He continued: “There desperately needs to be a change in legislation. If someone comes along and buys the land under your business and building and throws you out and turns it into flats – which happens all the time – or if they kick you out but steal your business, we’re talking about a serious moral issue.”

The current Leadmill owners have operated on the site since 1980 and have played host to local legends including Pulp, Arctic Monkeys, Self Esteem and Bring Me The Horizon, as well as the likes of Muse, Coldplay, The Strokes, Oasis and many more.

“We will miss our home more than words can say, but this isn’t the end for us,” they wrote in the announcement of their final show. “It’s just a new chapter in our story and yours. Let’s make these last weeks count.”

“To everyone who has supported us, whether from around the corner or across the globe: thank you. Our walls might be changing but our community isn’t going anywhere. See you on our dancefloor…one last time.”

Other acts set to play a show before the eviction include Miles Kane, The K’s, Dinosaur Pile-Up and King Creosote.

The venue was first served an eviction notice in 2022 – to the uproar of music fans and artists alike – when it emerged that Electric Group had bought the freehold for the site of the Leadmill in March 2017.

The Electric Group runs a number of venues across the UK, including Brixton Electric, and has vowed to keep the building as a music venue that will “continue to be a cornerstone of the live music scene in Sheffield, supporting artists, fans, and community projects for the next 100 years”.

Last year saw the UK lose one music venue every fortnight, with warnings that the rate would increase to one per week in 2025 without urgent government action – only adding to regional areas suffering from what has been called “the complete collapse of touring”.

Over the last few years, there has been an increased call for music venues to own their own buildings to prevent them from being kicked out by landlords. As a result, the Music Venue Properties scheme has been buying up buildings for beloved gig spaces and is now stepping up its efforts in what’s been described as a “National Trust for music venues” scheme.

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