‘It’s like going to a match with 80,000 friends’ – Cork fans ready for Oasis return

Three Cork fans share memories of meeting, seeing, and celebrating Oasis ahead of the band’s long-awaited Dublin reunion gigs

Oasis super fan Shane Farmer wearing a Liam Gallagher jacket and a t-shirt for Sunday's concert in Croke Park. Picture: Dan Linehan

A Cork man who was among the first people to interview Oasis as part of an assignment for his college newspaper says he is “buzzing” to be attending their Dublin concerts this weekend.

Michael Fitzgerald was just 17 years old when he met with the group at Manchester University’s student bar in the early 1990s.

At the time, they had yet to release their first single and were playing pubs and clubs around England.

He said the first thing they did was place a pint in his hand to put him at ease for their interview.

The Killeagh native, who was studying aerospace engineering, had been writing for the Mancunion at the time in return for free gig tickets. The now 49-year-old recalled the excitement in the air on the night he first heard Oasis play live.

Now, three decades later, he is hoping to relive that same magic at both Croke Park gigs on Saturday and Sunday. The band’s 2025 reunion tour was announced in August last year, with tickets selling out in less than a day. It will be Oasis’s first time playing on Irish soil since 2028.

Michael recalls his first meeting with group.

“Tony McCarroll, who was the drummer at the time, brought me backstage and introduced me to the lead singer Liam. Liam was quite hyperactive and had an amazing energy about him. It was obvious he was on a trajectory. He told me that I should talk to his brother because ‘he writes all the songs’,” he said.

Noel told me that his influences were the Stone Roses and the Beatles. It was really nice to hear a young person flag these bands as musical influences. They were a breath of fresh air

He described Noel and Liam at the time as “your typical brothers”.

“They were like any other brothers really. One minute they were sitting with their arms around each other, the next they were having a cut off one other. They’ve had their ups and downs of course but that night, for me at least, it was like chatting with my own people.

“Liam was very personable and full of character. Noel was that little bit more introverted. It was while talking about music that he suddenly livened up and became a comedian.

“ A lot of his lyrics were like jokes or punchlines. You can tell from his television interviews that he’s a funny guy.”

The band left an indelible impression on Michael.

“The first thing Tony McCarroll did was put a pint in my hand. For a penniless Irish student like me, a pint at that time was a fortune.”

“They had the humility but also that working-class confidence. They had huge belief in their songs. I think the band bought into it as an opportunity to get out of Manchester, play music, and just explore the world.

“They embraced that opportunity early.”

Oasis fan Michael Fitzgerald said it was obvious the Gallagher brothers and the rest of the band were destined for stardom after he spoke with them for his college newspaper.

Michael said it was obvious the Gallagher brothers and the rest of the band were destined for stardom.

“Six months later, their first single came out. I couldn’t believe all the t-shirts and merchandise with their name. It inspired me to pursue a lot of my own dreams, even if they didn’t involve music.”

So how does he feel about this weekend’s gigs?

“I’ve already been to Wembley. There is always an unbelievable atmosphere at Oasis concerts.

“It’s like going to a match with 80,000 friends where everyone is singing for the same team. You have grandparents, mums, dads, and children. It’s quite special actually.”

Michael, who will be attending the concert with his sister, was determined to attend as many Oasis concerts as possible.

It’s like waiting for a bus for 16 years, and all of a sudden seeing three come along at once. I want to enjoy every minute

Also making the pilgrimage to Croke Park this weekend will be Shane Farmer, who has been a superfan of the band for as long as he can remember.

He will be attending Sunday night’s gig.

“I was 15 years of age when I went to my first Oasis concert in Páirc Uí Chaoimh. It was a massive buzz. I was lucky enough to be there both nights. My grandfather was working on the turnstiles. I snuck in as his helper, but I spent the whole gig on the stand watching Oasis.”

The experience was life-changing for Shane, who has taken to impersonating Liam on stage.

“I didn’t have to pay to go to the concert when I was a teenager, but I made up for that over the years with all the trips and concerts. I’ve entered karaoke competitions as Liam and won a trip to New York. On one occasion, I got a call from the production team at Stars in Their Eyes, BBC.

Superfan Shane Farmer, right, was 15 years old when he went to his first Oasis gig in Cork. Picture Dan Linehan

“They had seen videos of me performing and asked if I would be interested in travelling to the UK to audition for the show. I just froze. I decided against it in the end, because I felt it would just be stressful and take the fun out of it for me.

“I’m far from having a good singing voice, but Liam Gallagher has a very distinct sound that I did my best to try to recreate. I always dressed like him. He wore a zipped up top with a bucket hat, which is quite easy to put together. I’ve been wearing bucket hats since the nineties, so much so that friends often laugh at me. It’s all about the image. Even though I was a lot heavier than Liam Gallagher, it still worked out for me. I still wear the bucket hats to this day.”

Shane has enjoyed many Oasis highlights over the years.

“I was lucky enough to shake hands with Liam in Slane in 2009. It only lasted a few seconds, but I’ll always remember it. Another highlight was standing outside the front window where the album cover photograph for Definitely Maybe was taken.

“It was that song that kicked off my whole love affair with Oasis so to be standing outside that window was surreal.”

The 44-year-old’s love for the band has rubbed off on other family members too.

“My five-year-old son Kelvin knows their music because I play it in the garden all the time. He likes wearing bucket hats, but I don’t think he knows where that came from.”

Shane says he is well known locally for his love of Oasis.

“If you mention Oasis in Midleton, my name will always come up. If there’s ever a karaoke session I’ll be pushed up to sing Oasis.

“Friends told me I was foolish not to have gone for Stars in Their Eyes, but I just do it for the pure enjoyment.”

Kelvin Farmer with his Oasis superfan dad, Shane Farmer, proudly rocking a Liam Gallagher jacket. Picture: Dan Linehan

Meanwhile, many fans who weren’t lucky enough to secure tickets for Croke Park gigs have made alternative plans to mark the reunion tour.

Laura Aherne says she was keen to get her own “band” back together more than 25 years after they attended an Oasis concert in Atlanta together.

“I was at the concert with my friends Sinéad Kelleher, Margaret O’Mahony, and Lil O’Sullivan in Atlanta years ago. We all lived there at the time, but the four of us are back in Ireland so we really wanted to get the group back together to go to the concert.

“It was the four of us, all on our computers at the same time, the usual carry on. We couldn’t get tickets, so we went to see an Oasis tribute band in Bantry.”

The concert brought back fond memories for the gang.

“The tribute band was done very well. The concert we went to with the real band was a very different experience.

“The night we were in Atlanta, Liam threw down his instruments and walked off stage but Noel stayed on for a bit longer before telling us all to go home. I can’t remember his words exactly, but it was something along the lines of ‘go away the lot of you’, so more of a drunk rumble. It seemed to happen a lot.

“There was always one walking on and walking off. It was dreadful but fierce entertaining. We always wanted to see them again, but I’m glad we were able to mark their reunion in some way.”