Influential Camden music venue Barfly is set to reopen, with Frank Turner headlining the opening night on June 22.
Initially operating from 1996-2016, the venue saw iconic early performances from the likes of Coldplay, Muse, Amy Winehouse, The Libertines, and many more. Ed Sheeran famously played four shows in one night on their stage in 2011. The location was also featured in an episode of the cult Simon Pegg comedy series Spaced.
Financial pressures saw the Camden flagship close down in 2016, but a comeback has been announced under new ownership. Dan Ickowitz-Seidler and Richard Buck, co-founders of company Propaganda Independent Venues, have joined forces with Camden resident Chris McCormack to revive the venue, starting with a night headlined by Frank Turner on June 22.
The new look Barfly will include a listening bar, a wall of fame reflecting the venue’s history, and a revamped PA system. Tickets are accessed via sign-up only and are on sale from 9am on Monday June 22. Click here to sign up.
Ickowitz-Seidler said in a statement: “Barfly means so much to us all, and we’re honoured to be starting a new chapter in its story. We’ll be announcing more very special shows shortly, but Frank Turner is the perfect artist to relaunch the Barfly stage. He embodies everything Barfly stands for.” Turner first played at Barfly with his band Million Dead in 2001, and played a record six shows there as a solo artist.
The news is a welcome boost to the grassroots music scene, which has been under increasing pressure. A report in April estimated that five local music venues had closed per day since 2019, with a further 2,000 feared to close by 2030. The same study estimates 1.5million young people had given up on a career in music because of the scarcity of places to start out.
With over half of all grassroots venues failing to turn a profit in 2025, Ickowitz-Seidler sees the return of Barfly as a call to action for supporters of new artists. “I hope live music fans will come out and support not just Barfly, but grassroots venues across the country,” he said. “Before so many of today’s biggest artists were filling arenas and headlining festivals, they played at Barfly. You could be watching the next festival headliner on our stage on any night. Before the arenas, they were here!”
One figure who has been vocal about the need to save live music venues is Kate Nash, another former Barfly headliner. In 2024, she spoke to NME about the need for action, saying: “The reality is that touring is making losses, not profit. The grassroots is in absolute crisis. Venues are closing, festivals are being cancelled. People are thinking, ‘What’s the point in starting a band?’ and ‘How can I as an artist carry on?’”
She continued: “Because of the massive inflation that everyone is experiencing outside of music, so many artists are asking themselves, ‘Is this just a hobby or a passion project?’ ‘Am I going to cross the threshold or is it time for something to get done on a governmental level?’”
A £1 levy on gigs of arena size or larger was introduced by the LIVE Trust and backed by the government in 2024, although recently politicians have been accused of “swelling the coffers of the Treasury” by raising VAT money from the charge.