Oasis fan with huge tribute tattoo hails reunion

An Oasis superfan with a back tattoo of Liam Gallagher has described the band's reunion as "the ultimate".

John Smallbones, 49, from Andover in Hampshire, has several Oasis themed tattoos as well as £12,000 worth of band memorabilia.

He said next year "can't come quick enough" following the Gallagher brothers' announcement of their reunion tour in 2025.

After days of speculation, Noel and Liam confirmed on Tuesday Oasis would play a series of dates across the UK and Ireland.

Mr Smallbones, who fell in love with the band in the early 1990s, said the reunion was the "best thing that's happened for a long time", adding he always thought a it would happen.

The tradesman owns a business specialising in windows, doors and conservatories called Wall of Glass after Liam Gallagher's first solo single.

He also owns more than £12,000 worth of Oasis memorabilia, including a duvet cover featuring Noel and Liam Gallagher's faces and cabinets full of tambourines which featured heavily in the band's 1994 album Definitely Maybe.

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The business owner's Oasis-themed tattoos include a silhouette of Liam Gallagher's face on his back, the words Definitely Maybe written atop maracas and a tambourine on his chest, and album names on his limbs.

Mr Smallbones said he would do "whatever it takes" to secure tickets to the reunion tour.

"I will get them. Whether I have to pay for it through eBay, I'll get them. If I pay double, triple, whatever it is, I'll still get them."

He added that he would be donning a Parka jacket, brown wig and hat in homage to the types of clothes that have become synonymous with the band to the concert.

The band officially split in 2009, with the tempestuous relationship between the Gallagher brothers often subduing any dreams of a reunion among fans.

Both have gone on to experience success following the split, Liam as a solo artist and Noel with his band High Flying Birds.

But neither has reached the stratospheric heights of Oasis - a band which for many epitomised the Cool Britannia culture of the 1990s.

Mr Smallbones said that of the Gallagher brothers, Liam was his favourite, who he sees "at least twice a year, every year" but added seeing them perform together "is the ultimate".

He added: "I think everyone can relate to their music... and their words and lyrics and how Liam sings them."

Mr Smallbones plans to secure tickets for Oasis's shows at Wembley Stadium in London and at Heaton Park in Manchester.

"I just can't wait to go and it will be just as good as it was years ago. It can't come quick enough to be honest next year," he said.

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