Bands like Oasis honed their craft playing on sticky carpets in pubs, but with the sector struggling the future of live music is in peril too, says Mick Forster

The recent rush for Oasis tickets proved one thing – Britain’s love for live music is as strong as ever. It’s woven into our culture and puts the UK on global maps. British artists dominate global charts, our festivals and stadiums attract the world’s leading artists and the music industry contributes billions of pounds every year in tax receipts.

But go back 34 years and Noel and Liam weren’t selling out stadiums – they were bottom of the bill, playing on sticky carpets and a wooden stage at pubs in Manchester. Without venues like The Boardwalk allowing them to hone their craft, there would be no Oasis, no eight-hour ticket queues, no Wembley.

And they aren’t alone – Sam Fender, The 1975 and The Rolling Stones all built their careers in these spaces. Every stadium-filling act starts somewhere and for many, that’s in a pub........

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