ELBOW

War Child and O2 present PASSPORT BACK TO THE BARS The smallest gigs… to make the biggest difference February 16-24, 2015

War Child and O2 are proud to announce the incredible full line-up, dates and venues for Passport Back To The Bars, a week of one-off events offering incredible access to some of the biggest names in music in the most intimate venues – supporting War Child after an unprecedented year of violence for children in war zones.

Artists performing special shows include: Duran Duran, Elbow, Bastille, The Vaccines, You Me At Six and Ride (Mark Gardener and Andy Bell acoustic show). Each will be playing intimate venues including Duran Duran gracing the splendour of Wilton’s Music Hall, London’s oldest remaining Grand Music Hall; Mark and Andy from Ride performing their first show together for over 20 years in the iconic surroundings of The 100 Club; Elbow returning to perform a stripped down set at the 200 capacity Roadhouse in Manchester, where they played their very first gig as Elbow; and Bastille putting on an incredibly intimate show for 100 lucky people in a living room in North London.

Elbow have a remarkable career that encompasses over twenty years, that equally remarkably includes no changes to personnel. Elbow in 2015 are the same as Elbow in 1992, the band are all approaching their fortieth birthdays and have been together since their late teens. In those intervening 23 years Elbow have become the only band to score four consecutive 9/10 album reviews in NME and have collected Mercury, BRIT and Ivor Novello awards. Elbow have graduated from halls to arenas; inside pages to front covers; best kept secrets to globally recognised names; festival second stages to main stage headlines. This is a chance to see the 2015 band in their 1990s setting.

Produced by War Child, O2, the Music Managers Forum and part of BRITs Week 2015, these will be the smallest gigs making the biggest difference.

Tickets to all shows are available by lottery. Lottery tickets are available now from www.warchild.org.uk/passport or by texting the bands keyword to 88450. Each entry costs £4.50 and gives a chance of winning a pair of tickets to the chosen show. And each entry makes an important donation to War Child, with all profits going to help the child victims of war.

The full line up details:

February 16th: The Vaccines, Dublin Castle, London Text VACCINES to 88450 February 19th: Duran Duran, Wilton’s Music Hall, London Text DURAN to 88450 February 19th: RIDE, 100 Club, London Text RIDE to 88450 February 22nd: You Me At Six, Hoxton Bar & Kitchen, London Text YMAS to 88450 February 23rd: Bastille, Sofar Sounds House Party, London Text BASTILLE to 88450 February 24th: Elbow, The Roadhouse, Manchester Text ELBOW to 88450

Lottery tickets to all shows are available from www.warchild.org.uk/passport

All venues are tiny – between 100 and 300 capacity – giving fans amazing close-up access.

This marks ten years since War Child’s original Passport Back To The Bars shows for victims of the Iraq war, when acts included The Cure, David Gray, Elbow, Pet Shop Boys, Supergrass and Amy Winehouse.

All the money raised will support War Child’s vital work saving children from the brutal effects of war including Syria, Iraq and Gaza. These stripped back, intimate shows for a few hundred fans will have a life-changing impact for thousands of vulnerable children.

Elbow’s Guy Garvey says: “Elbow are proud to have been associated with War Child for over a decade. The work that War Child continues to do throughout the world is truly humbling. We were part of the original Passport shows, and to be able to participate again on its 10th anniversary is amazing. To return to The Roadhouse, our spiritual home in Manchester, just makes it even better.”