In a revelation that has stirred both surprise and sympathy, former Oasis drummer Zak Starkey has spoken out after being left off the line-up for one of the most eagerly anticipated comebacks in British music history—the Oasis 2025 reunion tour.
With the iconic Britpop band finally reuniting after a 16-year hiatus, brothers Liam and Noel Gallagher are set to take the stage together once again, kicking off their historic tour in none other than Cardiff. The Welsh capital will host the opening nights on Friday 4 and Saturday 5 July—firmly positioning Wales as the heart of the Oasis resurgence and a symbolic starting point for a musical era reborn.
Speaking on BBC Breakfast, Starkey—son of Beatles legend Ringo Starr—expressed a bittersweet mix of admiration and disappointment. Though he’s been busy promoting his latest psychedelic-tinged single Domino Bones with his new supergroup Mantra of the Cosmos (featuring Bez, Shaun Ryder and former Oasis bassist Andy Bell), his omission from the Oasis reunion hasn’t gone unnoticed—especially by Zak himself.
“It was a shock,” he admitted, adding that he’d even reached out to both Gallagher brothers. “I texted them and said, ‘Why am I not in it?’” Reflecting on the decision, he said, “You get comfortable with new musicians, and I think that’s what’s happened. And I’m alright with that.”
Still, the sting was evident as he described being “gutted” not to be part of what he still reveres as “the greatest rock and roll band of my generation”—not to mention Liam Gallagher, whom he hailed as “the greatest rock and roll singer of my generation”.
Noel Gallagher’s involvement with Domino Bones adds an extra layer of poignancy. Originally penned by Noel himself, the song was gifted to Starkey’s group after he decided the sound was better suited to their eclectic, otherworldly aesthetic. He had previously described the band in typically vivid fashion: “Dylan, Dalí and Ginsberg on a rocket ship to the moon to have it with the Clangers.”
Zak was visibly moved by the gesture. “I was blown away by it. I couldn’t believe it—the greatest songwriter of my generation sending me a tune.”
While the full reunion line-up remains under wraps, the absence of Starkey—a mainstay during Oasis’s later years—raises questions about the direction and feel of the comeback tour. Yet for fans in Wales, the focus is less on who didn’t make the cut and more on the extraordinary fact that Oasis are back—and it all begins in Cardiff.
As the countdown to July begins, the Welsh capital is preparing to reclaim its place as a cultural lodestar, setting the stage for what promises to be an unforgettable return of one of the UK’s most influential bands. Whether Starkey takes the stage in future dates or remains a notable omission, one thing is certain: all eyes will be on Cardiff, where the long-awaited Oasis reunion truly begins.
