Will Young is celebrating 25 years since his landmark Pop Idol victory with a new UK tour.
The much loved singer has announced The Evergreen 25th Anniversary Tour, a 16-date run across the UK with his full band, which will see him revisit the biggest songs from his more than two decades in music. The tour will begin in February 2027, marking a quarter of a century since Young became the inaugural winner of Pop Idol in 2002.
Will’s victory on the ITV talent show catapulted him to virtually overnight fame, with Pop Idol becoming a genuine television phenomenon and attracting an average of 10 million viewers. His debut single, a double A-side featuring ‘Anything Is Possible’ and ‘Evergreen’, went on to sell more than 1.7 million copies in the UK, making it the second-best-selling single of the 21st century in the country and one of the UK’s 20 biggest-selling singles of all time.
But Young’s career proved to have considerably more staying power than the reality-TV format that launched it. Guided by an instinctive approach to music and songwriting, he has gone on to release a string of successful albums and singles, earning four UK No. 1 albums, 11 Top 10 albums and 11 Top 10 singles, alongside two BRIT Awards and an Olivier Award nomination.
Over the years, Young has delivered a catalogue of enduring pop hits, including ‘Light My Fire’, ‘Leave Right Now’, ‘Your Game’ and ‘Jealousy’.
To mark the announcement, Will has also unveiled a new performance of ‘Evergreen’, titled ‘Evergreen (Live from The Evergreen 25th Anniversary Sessions)’, offering fans a fresh take on the song that helped launch his career a quarter of a century ago.
Will Young – Evergreen (Evergreen 25th Anniversary Sessions)
Commenting on both the tour and milestone anniversary, Will says: “To reach 25 years is a privilege and an honour. Who knew entering a competition by cutting out a piece from the newspaper would lead to the most exciting 20 weeks of my life in Pop Idol and a relationship with the public that has lasted for so long.”
“People voted and trusted me and that has forever been a dream come true. I can’t wait to celebrate with the full band and get to play ‘Evergreen’ as well as all the songs that have come since from ‘Light My Fire’ to ‘You and I’ to ‘Leave Right Now’ to ‘Jealousy’ and onwards. Can’t wait to see everyone who trusted in me during Pop Idol and since, at the anniversary shows.”
Tickets for the Evergreen 25th Anniversary Tour go on general sale Friday, October 2nd at 10am BST.
Check out the full list of dates below:
Saturday, February 20th – Manchester, O2 Apollo
Sunday, February 21st – Newcastle, O2 City Hall
Monday, February 22nd – Liverpool, Philharmonic
Wednesday, February 24th – Glasgow, Armadillo
Thursday, February 25th – York, York Barbican
Saturday, February 27th – Sheffield, City Hall
Sunday, February 28th – Nottingham, Royal Concert Hall
Tuesday, March 2nd – Bristol, Bristol Beacon
Wednesday, March 3rd – Birmingham, Symphony Hall
Friday, March 5th – Oxford, New Theatre
Saturday, March 6th – Brighton, Brighton Centre
Sunday, March 7th – Southend, Cliffs Pavilion
Tuesday, March 9th – Bournemouth, Bournemouth International Centre
Wednesday, March 10th – Plymouth, Plymouth Pavilion
Friday, March 12th – London, Eventim Apollo
Saturday, March 13th – Cardiff, Utilita Arena
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