Back Page For One Night Only!: Phoebe Green curates her dream gig

I was born in Blackpool, it’s an amazing venue, I had to do it. We used to go to Blackpool Tower quite a bit and we’d go to the circus, and I went to a few gigs at the Tower Ballroom. It’s just such a nice, unique venue.

I’ve put a lot of thought into this! I probably wouldn’t have a specific headliner, but I’d have a cabaret-style situation. For the afternoon/early evening, I’d have drinks at sit-down tables. The first person on would be CMAT, because I think she’s amazing and such a great performer. She’d really set us off on a good vibe. And then we’d have St. Vincent and Chappell Roan – this is still just the afternoon into evening, by the way.

By night-time, it’d get a bit darker, tables would get moved, and we’d have Yves Tumor, Tyler, The Creator, and Lady Gaga. It’s a big day – a huge day! They’re all dressed as some kind of elevated version of themselves – which I think is quite hard, considering the characters I’ve chosen are already pretty elevated. But it’d be like their personal style, mixed with Blackpool ballroom glam. Sequins! It’d just be a very interactive, camp, ridiculous event.

I probably wouldn’t send out invites or anything like that – I feel like the right people will turn up… it’d take a special kind of person to attend. But I’d have my own table with my family, my girlfriend, and my friends. Then as soon as it got to the bit where we’re moving the tables out of the way, mum and dad would definitely go home, and I’d be left with my sisters and my friends.

This is such a dream concept, and I’ve heard it before, because I never would’ve thought of it myself: bring your own booze, but you can take whatever you bring with you to the bar and ask for a specialised drink. As in, you can turn up with a bottle of tequila and ask for a margarita at the bar.

When I used to go to Blackpool Tower, there was this dinosaur ride that just kinda goes around, but then there’s this giant T-Rex – in my memory, it falls towards you, or lunges, or opens its mouth or something. It’s quite jarring, but I loved it. So we’d go on that ride, and then if the circus is on, that’d be amazing. As long as it’s not harming animals and is all ethical…

There’s quite a few rooms – obviously, it’s Blackpool Tower. In one room, we’ll have karaoke. You’re not gonna believe this, but I’ve never done karaoke. I know, I can’t believe it either! It’s such a ‘me’ thing. But now I’ve put it off for so long, it’s like losing my virginity; I want to wait for the right time. If I did have a karaoke song though, I think it’d be ‘Speechless’ by Lady Gaga. And then in another room, there’d be a DJ set from James Blake, but all of the other acts are also allowed to jump in and out.

Obviously, we’re in Blackpool – there are three different piers, so whatever rides people want to go on, we’d do. I feel like it’d be quite a bad idea after drinking to go on the waltzers, but if you have a strong stomach, I would say we’d hit up the pier after the party for an all-nighter. That’d be amazing. I wouldn’t advise swimming in the sea in Blackpool, but in an ideal world it’d also be amazing to do a cold plunge in the morning.

Phoebe Green’s new EP ‘The Container’ is out 21st March.

Tags: Features, February 2025, From The Magazine, Phoebe Green