Wedding daze - the top five cult things perpetrated by Blossoms...
Kidnapping gorillas… Moz-baiting… blocking the road outside 42s nightclub… Blossoms are masters of the daft. As their sixth album Songs from the Wedding Cake heads towards Number 1, Jools Taylor (editor of @the_setlist24) takes a look at the top five cult things Stockport’s favourite five-piece Blossoms have done over the years. They’re no strangers to leaving their fans with their jaws on the floor thinking… well, I didn't see that coming. Photos by Neil Summers.
1. Dragging Gary the gorilla around the Peak District.
In 2023 an eight-foot-tall fibreglass statue of a gorilla was abducted from a Scottish garden centre. Blossoms wrote a song about it - ‘Gary’ - telling the story of the event, and re-enacted it in a music video starring Rick Astley as ‘Mr. Scott’, the concerned garden centre manager. Blossoms posed as Gary’s kidnappers and as part of the filming they dragged a replica gorilla around the Peak District, as our exclusive pictures show. Blossoms also named their fourth UK number one album Gary, with the gorilla becoming the band’s (and maybe even the town of Stockport’s) unofficial mascot.
2. Blossoms X Rick Astley.
In 2021, Blossoms teamed up with 80s icon - and now frequent collaborator - Rick Astley, for two live shows in London and Manchester, where they only performed songs by The Smiths. This wasn’t a combo anyone saw coming - but the Rick-fronted Blossoms surprised fans and critics alike by doing the songs justice with unpredictable, yet undeniably terrific performances. They’d later return to play a surprise set at the Woodsies stage at Glastonbury in 2023, with Astley sporting a giant Moz-esque quiff.
3. Inventing the ‘pubcast’
Never afraid to innovate, Blossoms created a match made in heaven: podcasts and a trip to the local with your mates. The Blossoms Pubcast originally started off being recorded live in their hometown at The Blossoms pub (the inspiration for their name). The podcast saw the band having a laugh, talking about life in the studio, on the road and occasionally chatting to some special guests - everyone from Fearne Cotton to Irish band Inhaler.
4. The Five Nights in Manchester ‘tour’
In 2024, after a 20-plus date headline tour across the UK and Ireland in support of their previous album Gary, Blossoms decided to bring it all back home with five back-to-back sold out dates at some of Manchester's most famous venues. These took in The Academy, Albert Hall, O2 Ritz, Victoria Warehouse and concluded with a what felt like a legendary performance at the O2 Apollo (which I was able to witness from the back of the bar when I worked there…). It was a great way of showing that they hadn’t forgotten their roots - and of getting home nice and early after each show.
5. The 42s pop-up gig
On Saturday 20 June 2026, Blossoms pulled up outside their favourite nightclub 42s (as mentioned multiple times in their track ‘Mothers’) and delivered an impromptu traffic-stopping performance in the middle of Deansgate from the back of a truck. This played out much to the pleasure of unsuspecting fans - and to the equal displeasure of many an angry Uber driver. But die-hard Blossoms followers and unsuspecting passers-by got a brief but unforgettable set of fan favourites and a taster of their new album. I know - I was there and shot this video! For those who are curious, the gig's setlist was:
Your Girlfriend
Gary
Joke About Divorce
There's A Reason Why (I Never Returned Your Calls)
Honey Sweet
Charlemagne
Oh, and they know a decent cult website when they see one, too...
Blossoms’ new album Songs from the Wedding Cake is out now and available to purchase and or stream here.
