Last year was the biggest ever for live music. Huge global tours from Beyoncé, Madonna, Elton John and Ed Sheeran brought in hundreds of millions. Next year looks set to be another huge hitter – the luckiest of you may already be looking ahead to Taylor Swift, and speculation is rife that Adele will announce rare UK live dates.
Yet all over the UK, 2023 was brutal for grassroots music venues. We’ve lost at least 125 of these vital cultural institutions in the last 12 months. Just a couple
