Deacon Blue Celebrate 40 Years in Style at Westonbirt Forest Live
- Sam Holt
- 1 hour ago
- 4 min read
Forest Live, Westonbirt Arboretum – 25th June 2026
WORDS / IMAGES SAM HOLT
Forest Live—or Forestry on Tour as it was originally known when it first took root back in 2001—has become one of Britain's great summer traditions. Twenty-five seasons later, the beautiful surroundings of Westonbirt Arboretum welcomed one of Scotland's most enduring bands. Fresh from a successful tour behind The Great Western Road, released last year, Deacon Blue arrived celebrating another milestone: four decades together since forming in Glasgow in 1985.
Before the headliners, support came from Liverpool legend Ian Broudie and The Lightning Seeds, a perfect fit for the evening and welcome return companions after touring with Deacon Blue on the album campaign.
Broudie greeted the crowd with typical dry wit, remarking, "We've got the heatwave here and across Europe, while America has... a little competition." Whether he meant the weather or the world's general madness hardly mattered. The audience laughed, relaxed and settled into an effortlessly melodic set.
There really is no better way to ease into a summer evening than hearing Three Lions echoing around an arboretum. The closing refrain of "never stop me dreaming" felt oddly poignant before the band slipped into classics including Pure and The Life of Riley, leaving the audience perfectly warmed for what was to come.
Then Deacon Blue walked onstage.
No fuss. No theatrics. Just songs.
They opened with Late '88, my personal favourite from The Great Western Road. It's one of those songs that sounds like it's always existed—warm, nostalgic and instantly familiar. Lyrically it reflects on the band's formative years without becoming trapped in nostalgia, and live it already feels like an old favourite.
From there the set barely paused for breath. Queen of the New Year, Wages Day, Loaded, Your Town, City of Love and Bethlehem's Gate reminded everyone just how absurdly deep Deacon Blue's catalogue really is.
Lorraine McIntosh remains the band's secret weapon. Her voice intertwines with Ricky Ross's as naturally now as it did forty years ago, creating harmonies that feel effortless rather than rehearsed. Time may have moved on, but those voices haven't lost an ounce of warmth.
Ross, meanwhile, remains one of Britain's most engaging frontmen—not through bombast, but conversation. Between songs he chatted constantly, joking about Scotland's latest World Cup disappointment before telling stories about travelling west with guitarist Gregor Philp to Rockfield Studios in South Wales while making The Great Western Road.
His tone changed when he spoke about keyboard player James Prime, whose death earlier this year cast a shadow over the celebrations. Ross paid a heartfelt tribute to his lifelong bandmate before introducing Brian McAlpine, now behind the keyboards. The title track, The Great Western Road, carried even greater emotional weight in that moment. It wasn't simply another new song—it became a reminder of the band's remarkable journey and the people who travelled it together.
The stories continued. Before Real Gone Kid, Ross confessed that he'd once completely forgotten the lyrics to one of the band's biggest hits. Judging by the thousands singing every word back at him, there wasn't much danger of that happening tonight. Whether they were dancing, filming on their phones or simply singing with huge grins across their faces, the audience became part of the performance.
The closing run was magnificent. Twist and Shout exploded into the warm Gloucestershire evening before Real Gone Kid, The Believers, Dignity, Fergus Sings the Blues and That's What We Can Do demonstrated exactly why Deacon Blue remain one of Britain's finest live bands. For the encore, I'll Never Fall in Love Again provided the perfect, reflective farewell.
What becomes obvious over the course of the evening is that The Great Western Road isn't simply another album; it's a mirror held up to forty years of Deacon Blue's career. The new material sits comfortably beside the classics because it comes from exactly the same place—songs about ordinary lives, extraordinary emotions and the roads we all travel.
There are flashier bands. Louder bands. Younger bands. But very few can walk onstage with so little fuss and leave two hours later having quietly reminded everyone why they've lasted forty years.
Tonight had everything: timeless classics, genuinely strong new material, humour, poignancy and a crowd completely invested from beginning to end. Deacon Blue didn't need fireworks or giant video screens. They had songs—and, in the end, songs are what last.
Judging by the number of Scottish accents drifting through the trees at Westonbirt, some fans had travelled a very long way. By the end of the night, it was obvious they weren't the only ones glad they had.
SET LIST
Late '88
Queen of the New Year
Wages Day
Much Too Close to Love
Loaded
Your Town
People Come First
City of Love
Bethlehem's Gate
Love and Regret
The Great Western Road
Cover From the Sky
Twist and Shout
Real Gone Kid
The Believers
Dignity
Fergus Sings the Blues
That's What We Can Do
ENCORE
I'll Never Fall in Love Again
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