When the ‘scariest Gallagher’ was ‘the nicest man in showbusiness’: Irish Oasis fans share memories

The brothers behind Oasis, Liam and Noel Gallagher, have not performed together in more than 15 years, but the Mancunian pair with strong Irish links are due to reunite next summer with concert dates announced for Dublin, and tickets going on sale this weekend.
The Irish Times asked readers to share their memories of going to see Oasis live, or encounters with the band.
For Mimi Murray, from Dublin, the Oasis comeback announcement brought back a fond memory of a brief encounter with the “scariest Gallagher”.
“The swagger was unmistakable. The mod haircut even more so,” she recalled. “As the younger of the two Gallagher brothers made his way downstairs to use the loo in the Covent Garden bistro, my English mate, who was well on her way with the Picpoul De Pinet, said ‘we are so nabbing Liam when he comes back up’.”
As girls who came of age in the late 90s, the two friends listened to Definitely Maybe on repeat and had seen the band live several times, Murray said.
When Liam returned, Murray’s friend explained they were “huge fans” and asked for a photo with him.
“What I expected to be a couple of expletives, an ‘I’m busy’, or just a shrug of the shoulders before he disappeared into the lunchtime crowds, turned into one of the nicest encounters with a pretty down to earth bloke from Manchester.”
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Murray explained she was Irish and that her husband was nearby in Covent Garden shopping and as a huge fan, would love to meet him too.
“Could he possibly hang around while I called him and told him to get his arse back STAT,” Murray recalled asking.
“Initially there was a no, but then a sort of a shrug before he said: ‘I’ll be outside on the footpath having a smoke’ ”.
Frantic calls on a Nokia 6210 ensued, but sadly Murray’s husband didn’t make it to meet the singer on time.
“He may well be known for his rock star antics and unruly behaviour, but to me, that day, he was the nicest man in show business and I’ll be front and centre when he belts out rock’n’roll star in Croker next summer,” she said.
Etain Finn, who grew up in Kells, Co Meath, had fond memories of seeing the band live in Páirc Uí Chaoimh with her dad and younger brother in 1996.
It was the summer after primary school and Finn queued for tickets on the morning they were released at a music shop on Farrell Street in Kells, where she also bought the Definitely Maybe and What’s the Story Morning Glory tapes.
“I clearly recall getting a big white Oasis T-shirt for £5 on the way in and just feeling a buzz and getting an atmosphere even on the way into the grounds. I can’t recall any ostensible messiness, just really good humour and the stadium vibrating as the Prodigy started the support set,” she said.
“I saw older teenagers from Kells making their the way in the crowd from the stands and was convinced as they saw me too, I had now cemented my local status as a very cool person.”
When Oasis came on, it was “literally electric, and it was from start to finish, and everyone sang their heart out,” said Finn, who is now living in Co Dublin.
“Even leaving the stadium with my ears ringing and a long journey home felt joyful”.
It was a similar memory for Dave O’Mahony, who also saw the band in 1996 at Páirc Uí Chaoimh, though the end of his story went a little differently.
It was his first concert, “at the tender age of 15″.
“I cannot tell you the absolute excitement and delight I felt at being able to see my favourite band in my own city,” he recalled.
“Being underage and not allowed into pubs, myself and my friends decided to soak up the atmosphere in Bishop Lucey Park (People’s Park) in Cork City centre. There was a photographer taking photos and we happily obliged him by posing for a photograph,” O’Mahony said.
“Being a clown of a young fellah, I posed for the photo with a cigarette in my hand, something I knew my parents would disapprove of”.
Off they went to what was “an amazing concert”. The next day, word had spread on O’Mahony’s street that he was “pictured in ‘de paper’ at the Oasis concert no less”.
O’Mahony rushed to the local shop to make the purchase.
“To my horror, there I was, posing with a cigarette in my hand. My mother is going to kill me, I thought! But, I came up with a brilliant idea! I licked my finger, rubbed the photograph in the paper and gently smudged out the cigarette in my hand, no one would ever know,” he said.
But his mother was “no fool” and “immediately copped what I had done”.
“In my defence, I pointed to my friend who had a can of beer in his hand, which I tried to make out to be a far worse crime. She was having none of it! Thanks for the memories Liam and Noel.”
Nadine Forde, from Co Cork, also went to see Oasis aged 15, and recalled wearing her “blue Adidas retro zip top and purple flares” as she went along with her schoolfriends.
“Oasis were the band of our generation and I was so lucky to see them on home ground and at such a great time of my life,” she said, adding: “Tickets won’t be £22.50 this time around!”