Gig Review: Teenage Fanclub at Boiler Shop, Newcastle

Date: Tuesday 10 November 2026
Venue: Boiler Shop, Newcastle
Support: Euros Childs

On 10 November 2026, Newcastle’s Boiler Shop played host to Teenage Fanclub. The former Robert Stephenson factory was the perfect venue to host this historic band. Its 1800s construction and modern restoration allow new life to breathe into the city centre location. A crowd of loyal followers packed the venue and gave the band a faithful return to the city.

Euros Childs

Teenage Fanclub’s keyboard player, Euros Childs, kicked off the evening with a solo set accompanied by piano, giving the audience a look into his mind as he sang on a range of topics, from the desire to be a stuntman to painful unrequited love.

The 30-minute set was like watching a musical Jekyll and Hyde, as he swiftly switched between the two, with a comedic song morphing into one of pain and loss. His more serious works showed clear influences from the likes of Bob Dylan and Leonard Cohen through both his lyricism and vocal delivery.

Childs is one of the most unique opening acts I have ever seen perform at a gig.

Teenage Fanclub

On their return to Newcastle as part of their autumn tour, Teenage Fanclub showed their audience that they had never missed a beat.

As the hair fell across Norman Blake’s forehead, the hearts and souls of the crowd that had aged with them grew younger as classic hits from early albums, such as Bandwagonesque and Grand Prix, resounded around the birthplace of Stephenson’s Rocket. The ghosts of those who built Britain’s industrialisation were stirred by Beatles-esque harmonies and driving ’80s synths, creating a wall of sound that could only be the early ’90s indie sound of Teenage Fanclub.

Throughout the band’s set, lead singer Norman Blake told stories of past trips to Newcastle while touring, including one about how the band redecorated The Riverside’s dressing room in the early ’90s to cover up some harmful graffiti that had been painted on the walls.

Away from the storytelling, the band’s performance was one that would put younger bands to shame.

Lead guitarist Raymond McGinley’s Fender Jaguar sang melodic lead lines as memorable as those sung by Blake, with his gritty but articulate tone adding the jangle that the band is known for.

On multiple occasions throughout the set, the band broke out into four- and even five-part harmonies, creating a sound that was almost as thick as the instrumentation itself. This demonstrated the band’s ’60s surf rock influences and how they have shied away from their chaotic and noisy roots in favour of a cleaner, brighter sound, more akin to that of The Smiths as opposed to the likes of My Bloody Valentine.

Overall, Teenage Fanclub may no longer be a band close in age to teenagers, but they play with the same fire and fury as they always have.

Review by Max Swinney