Grab your Parkas and your Bucket Hats because Oasis are back r’kid

What can I say about the Oasis reunion that hasn’t already been said. Probably not much, but I feel like I need to put words to paper (so to speak), purely to help me process my own emotions about the night.

I could say everything I want to say in one word. Biblical. But I will explain why. We laughed, we cried, we danced, we made friends, it was… BIBLICAL.

The atmosphere was absolutely electric, from the train to Manchester, the pubs in Manchester and then arriving at Heaton Park. You could spot the Oasis fans from a mile away, repping adidas, bucket hats and parkas: the Oasis uniform. 

The rain was coming down for most of the day, but as soon as we arrived at Heaton Park, the rain had stopped. You could see the sun trying to break through the clouds.

As soon as Cast started playing, the clouds pushed each other out the way and the sun appeared. This was it. Britpop was back, and we were living the biggest day of our lives. Cast and Richard Ashcroft were brilliant, they really set the scene and got the crowd ready for Oasis. Especially with Ashcroft ending on Bittersweet Symphony.

We had 30 minutes between Ashcroft finishing and Oasis starting, so my sister, Cayley and I, braved the queue for the toilets. They were long but moving quickly but time felt like it was moving even faster and we were growing increasingly more anxious about getting back to the boys (Mckenzie and Evan) in time. 

We managed to battle through the crowd and find our spot and then ‘I am the Resurrection’ came on. Having seen Liam Gallagher four times before, I knew what was coming next. The screens changed and ‘Fuckin’ in the Bushes’ came on as they made their way to the stage. ‘This is not a drill’ and ‘this is really happening’ plastered the screens, as well as old clips of the band. This really was happening!

Liam and Noel came on the stage hand in hand, the crowd went crazy. 15 years of waiting, finally over, the great reunion. Liam went to his mic and shouted, “Manchester vibes in the area.” Before kicking off the show with Hello. 

The first few songs set the vibe for the rest of the show, Morning Glory, Acquiesce, Some Might Say, Bring it on Down and Cigarettes and Alcohol, one after the other. Pints were flying (and we think most of it landed on Cayley), flares were painting the sky, and everyone was jumping. 

During Morning Glory, I got on my boyfriend’s (Mckenzie) shoulders, and WOW. I got an aerial view of the whole park, it was celestial. There is no other feeling than standing in a muddy field surrounded by strangers listening to your favourite music live, and no one will be able to convince me otherwise. It’s a feeling I crave all year round and chase all summer. And seeing that from above, has further solidified that.

Then it was Noel’s turn, Talk Tonight was dedicated to the ladies which received a very loud scream, but it wasn’t until Half the World Away that it really sunk in, this was Oasis. I looked around at Evan and Mckenzie, two brothers watching their favourite band arms wrapped round each other, I turned to Cayley who had tears down her face shouting “this is MY song.” This is what it was all about.

I think through the whole set there were maybe three songs where none of us were crying, because then Liam dedicated Slide Away “to all the love birds in the house”, and it felt like a full circle moment. Mckenzie and I probably wouldn’t be together if it wasn’t for Oasis, so being there with him in that field, listening to the music that has been a soundtrack to our relationship, was like nothing I could have ever dreamed of.

Live Forever started and the water works began all over again this time it was all of us, everyone was hugging everyone. Evan had tears streaming down his face and instead of hugging one of us or his brother, he hugged the stranger he shared his chips with earlier in the day, the stranger that put his arm round my sister whilst I was on Mckenzie’s shoulders, the stranger that made our day even better than it would have been without him there.

After the encore, Noel came back on and introduced the band before dedicating The Masterplan to the Irish. Don’t Look Back in Anger was next, and again, the view from above was just magical, then Wonderwall, which hits different live, and I am not ashamed to admit I sobbed the whole time. I’m not sure if it was the anticipation of the end or just the emotions riding high, but I cried all the way into the next song. 

Champagne Supernova was the song I was dreading, not because I don’t like the song, but because I knew it meant that in less than 10 minutes, it was going to be over. It was the song I have been crying at, thinking about that moment for weeks before. The fireworks came on just before the song ended and lasted about five minutes, which is something I’ve never seen before. Everyone stood still, calm after the storm. 

Everyone hugged again, taking their last pictures before leaving, saying goodbye to strangers that will live on in our hearts, taking in what we have just seen. Processing one of the greatest moments in modern music history. I said to someone a few weeks before the gig that I wish the gig just wouldn’t happen so that I could live in the excitement forever, and now it’s over, I want to relive it again and again.

The 19th of July will never be just another day to me, it will always be the day that I realised we really were going to Live Forever.