The Battle at Birmingham Rep: Review

Britpop Meets a Shakespearean-Scale Rivalry

This evening I attended the press night for an eagerly anticipated performance of “The Battle” which I can only describe as Brit Pop meets a Shakespearean level rivalry.

What makes The Battle truly special is that it isn’t simply about Oasis versus Blur, It’s about an era.

For those of us old enough to remember the Britpop explosion firsthand, the production taps into something deeper than music, it captures the cultural electricity of the 1990s. The headlines, the radio interviews, the swagger, the rivalries, the personalities that dominated conversations across the country. The second we hear the notes of music from that era we’re transported straight back in time, There’s a nostalgic longing for our misspent youth which the team behind the Battle tap in to effortlessly. I saw so many people in band t shirts and adidas trainers arriving before the performance had even begun.

Think Capulets versus Montagues, but swapped for parkas, swagger and the unmistakable sound of 90s Britpop. Blur versus Oasis, North versus South, a battle of the classes.

No spoilers

I will be careful not to reveal too much, because this is a production that deserves to be experienced without spoilers. But what I can say is that it is sharp, funny, brilliantly performed and unexpectedly thoughtful.

For anyone who remembers August 1995, when Oasis and Blur went head to head for the number one single, the story already carries weight. What this play does so cleverly is expand that moment into something much bigger than a chart battle.

More than music, this play is about a cultural moment. The rivalry between the bands exists at the centre of this story but it’s just as much about the culture that surrounded it.

The voices of radio presenters and news broadcasters echoed around the theatre, as did snippets of interviews and mentions of headlines which shaped public opinion at the time. I had to lean across to my mom at several times and say “I remember that!”

Watching it unfold on the stage is surreal when you realise that these moments were real and many of us lived through them. There’s something fascinating about seeing the possible conversations behind the quotes which dominated the news. So many quick lines had the audience howling, delivered at fast pace and with excellent timing. After the show we said we would have loved to have been in the room for real to hear some of those conversations (and the language… as fowl as it was on stage, would probably have been a lot worse in reality).

The entire performance managed to take that collective nostalgia we all have for the nineties and keep us engaged for the full evening.

Whether you were firmly team Blur or loudly backing Oasis almost feels irrelevant now. What remains is the memory of a cultural shift and a soundtrack that defined it. Threaded throughout the play is a run of iconic Britpop tracks, alongside nods to rock legends, celebrities and defining cultural figures, from the Spice Girls to Shed Seven and pretty much everything in between. I even found myself at one point humming the old Chris Evans radio jingle.

The animation team had me in stitches with it’s portrayal of radio presenters amongst other parts of the show, again in a style very reminiscent of the era, not just in its appearance but its tongue in cheek comedic value.

For anyone who lived through that decade, it is like being dropped straight back into it.

Not in a gimmicky way. In a way that feels earned.

Casting that gets is exactly right

Playing someone as recognisable as Liam Gallagher is a risk. Lean too far and it becomes parody. Hold back and it loses authenticity. Liam has been described by many as ‘the last rock star’ and much of this rhetoric comes from his behaviour in this period of time. His larger than life persona bought to life by George Usher is nothing short of brilliant in their performance, getting the balance exactly right.

The mannerisms are there, the presence is undeniable, but it never slips into caricature. There is a confidence to the portrayal that makes it completely believable, as though the actor was never intimidated by stepping into such an iconic role. What a stand out performance for a professional theatre debut!

It is also very, very funny.

Equally strong is the actor Will Taylor playing Graham Coxon, who brings real depth to the internal dynamic within Blur. It would have been easy for the bands to feel like stereotypes, but the writing and performances give them texture. Brandon Bendell as Alex James looked just like him and so did Oscar James as Damon Albarn.

Paddy Stafford as Noel also gave a stellar performance, emphasising the rivalry of the brothers perfectly. They bounced off each other during the show just as I imagine the Gallaghers did in real life.

Importantly, no one overshadows anyone else. With big names such as Matthew Horne and Louisa Lytton amongst the cast, they work as a true ensemble, which keeps the energy consistent throughout.

I must also give a huge nod to the costume department, not just for nailing the obvious Gallagher parka and Manchester City football shirts but with everything, Albarn’s necklace and Mickey t shirt, all the trainers and the right jeans and shoes and the instantly recognisable Country House music video costumes and props. I actually had to get the video up on my phone during the interval just because I knew I recognised the girls outfits!

The writing is one of the production’s biggest strengths.

It is quick without feeling rushed, intelligent without trying too hard, and packed with lines that circle back on themselves in deeply satisfying ways. Comments that seem throwaway early on return later with new meaning, creating those full circle moments theatre audiences love.

It’s also one of those shows where there is just so much that it’s impossible to remember everything. I started off writing some notes down about Bovril and Risotto in the opening but just couldn’t keep up with it and so sat back to embrace it all.

There is a scale to the storytelling that genuinely suits the stage. Rivalry, ego and ambition all collide in a way that feels almost classical in structure, which is why the Shakespeare comparison does not feel like a stretch.

It earns that weight.

I also imagine it must have been great fun to develop, I can imagine John Niven sharing snippets with friends and having them howling, and perhaps also talking about where they were at the time and their memories of their youth!

The Ending. No Spoilers….You Will Not Expect It.

Without giving anything away, the production builds towards a theatrical clash that is bold, chaotic and deliberately larger than life.

It leans fully into that idea of an epic battle, imagining what might have happened if certain famous comments had tipped from bravado into something far more explosive.

Just when you think you know the tone the show is ending on, it shifts. It also makes perfect sense. Or at least it probably did in Liam’s mind at one point…. Maybe?

Much like the Shakespearean fools, Liam delivers a monologue that is surprisingly “profound” and completely unexpected. It adds a reflective note that lingers.

Judging by the immediate standing ovation as the show drew to a close the rest of the audience felt it too.

The Battle captured the nineties brilliantly.

What stays with you after the show is not just the rivalry, but the reminder that Britpop was never only about the music. It was attitude, identity and a moment in British culture that still echoes now, I imagine most of the audience definitely maybe had songs playing in the car on the way home.

Smart, hilarious, nostalgic without leaning on it too heavily, and performed with real confidence.

Production Images credit: Helen Murray

Last Updated on Wednesday, February 18, 2026 by Lavania Oluban