Olympia London Cancels All December Shows Over Unforeseen Planning Issues
Olympia London has cancelled all live shows scheduled for December, including performances by Bloc Party, Interpol and Royal Blood, citing unforeseen planning issues. Jamie T's dates have been moved to the OVO Arena Wembley, while other artists face full refunds and uncertainty over rescheduling.
Olympia London has cancelled all live shows that had been scheduled for December, including performances by Bloc Party, Interpol and Royal Blood, after the venue was said to be facing unforeseen planning issues. The cancellations affect the 7,000-capacity Grand Hall in West Kensington and have left ticketholders facing refunds and uncertainty over whether the concerts will be rescheduled.
Royal Blood were due to perform at the venue on December 3 as part of their 2026 UK headline tour. The Brighton duo said in a statement on social media that they had been informed the venue was dealing with planning problems and had been forced to cancel all shows this year. «We are absolutely gutted that we cannot perform at Olympia as planned and know that this will be disappointing to our fans who've bought tickets and made arrangements to see us,» they said. The band added that despite exploring every option, there were no viable alternative venues in London on December 3, and that all tickets would be refunded in full rather than causing further disruption over the Christmas period. They are now working on a new London date for 2027.
Interpol and Bloc Party's co-headline concerts at Olympia London on December 4 and 5 are also listed as cancelled on Ticketmaster. The two bands are due to embark on a joint UK and European tour next month. It remains unclear whether those performances will be rescheduled or moved to another venue. Representatives for the groups and a spokesperson for Olympia London have been contacted for comment.
Jamie T's shows at Olympia London on December 11 and 12 have been moved to the larger OVO Arena Wembley on the same days. The musician, whose real name is Jamie Treays, is touring the UK this winter in support of his upcoming album «Ghosts (100 Days of Morning)».
The venue's official website still lists forthcoming gigs from Khalid on October 15, Puscifer on November 7 and The Damned on November 27 as going ahead. Those performances are set to take place at the new British Airways ARC, situated above the west exhibition hall, rather than in the Grand Hall affected by the December cancellations.
The disruption comes at a busy time for the UK live music calendar, with December traditionally one of the most lucrative periods for touring artists and venues. The loss of a full month of shows at a major London space is likely to have knock-on effects for promoters, crews and local businesses around West Kensington, as well as for fans who had already booked travel and accommodation.
Royal Blood's fifth studio album, «Dead Company», is due for release next month and features their latest track «Swallow The Bomb». Speaking about the record, frontman Mike Kerr described it as «pretty relentless», saying the idea was to make an album that never lets off. He added that every song was written with live performance in mind, describing playing live as the ultimate pay-off for the band.
The full extent of the planning issues at Olympia London has not been disclosed, and it is not yet known whether the December cancellations will affect shows scheduled for early 2027. For now, ticketholders for the affected dates are being advised to expect full refunds, while fans of Interpol, Bloc Party and other acts await news on possible replacement shows.
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