Friday 23 January 2026.

Friday 23 January 2026. DEAF DEVILS live at the Hope & Anchor, Islington. SHAKE SOME ACTON #130. DEAF DEVILS, DESPERATE MEASURES, MORGELLONS,THE PHOBICS. Shake Some Acton is hitting the ground running in 2026 with this red hot line up ! It also happens to be Mannie”s, Dave Ralf’s and Roger’s Birthday gig too! From Valencia, Spain and hot off touring with G.B.H and The Baboon Show( in Europe), comes the loud,fast and dangerous merchants of mayhem, DEAF DEVILS!! Stoked, to welcome them back again. A tornado of incendiary Punk Rock. Death Action Rock 666! Lucyfyer and the lads are here to tear it up! Seeing is believing. I saw them a year ago , and they were very lively indeed. DESPERATE MEASURES. Christchurch NZ 80′ s Punks,reborn and sounding better than ever! Eugene is a great front man and the band back him up in fine Punk Rock n Roll style. The Stooges,Pistols,heavy Rockin . I have seen them a couple of times before as support act. MORGELLONS. A rare live performance. Lyrics that are witty, heartfelt and scathing and backed up by a Post Punk sound. I have seen them a couple of times before. THE PHOBICS. A firm favourite on the Punk circuit. Fast,loud Punk n Roll. I have seen them just the once before. Tickets are £12 advance and £15 on the door...from WeGotTickets website. It is many, many , many years since I last went to this venue. I went there during its heyday . I saw some big bands who played this tiny venue. 999 Hope And Anchor Pub, London 29.11.1977 Marseilles Hope And Anchor Pub, London 27.03.1978 Damned,Nipple Erectors Hope And Anchor Pub, London 10.01.1979 Protex,Innocence Hope And Anchor Pub, London 08.08.1979 Fabulous Thunderbirds Hope And Anchor Pub, London 03.03.1980 Specials Hope And Anchor Pub, London 31.10.1980 Skids Hope And Anchor Pub, London 01.11.1980 Only Ones Hope And Anchor Pub, London 03.11.1980 another in this week of special shows here. Madness Hope And Anchor Pub, London 07.11.1980 Johnny Thunders Hope And Anchor Pub , London 20.04.1982 ------------------------- No surprise this gig sold out in advance as only 80 capacity these days due to health and safety. In the old days it was more like 150/200 capacity...still very small. They would certainly squeeze them in then, as gigs were packed and very hot n sweaty . Good to see lots of punk rockin' chums here tonight. I have seen all four bands tonight at least the once. THE PHOBICS arrived on stage at 7.15pm for their 35 mins set. Deptfords finest garage punk rockers have been going for over 25 years. They played a good set of songs. MORGELLONS arrived on stage at 8.10 for their 35 mins set. My old mucker Mannie (tonights promoter) is their drummer. Lots of catchy tracks played tonight. DESPERATE MEASURES arrived on stage at 9.10pm for their 40 mins set. Eugene from Vive Le Rock magazine is their vocalist. He knows how to work the crowd well. Lots of good tracks played in their set including.... Back to the Rats Thinking of England Seven Sisters Lost angels 1984 I Wanna Be Your Dog ( cover) DEAF DEVILS arrived on stage at 10pm for their 50 mins set. The handball arrivebon stage wearing white shirts , white trousers and black braces. Their blonde female singer Lucyfer looks great , and does not keep still. On stage the band are a whirlwind of 100,% uptempo garage punk rock. Hints of Amyl & The Sniffers and The Hives give you an idea of their sound. Great times like ' Too Much For You'. .Lucyfer had a change of outfit halfway through the set. Last two songs included a cover of ' My Generation ' and saw all the band in the audience area , including the full drum kit, for a wild and chaotic finish. A great set. -------------------------------------------- --------------------------------------------- Thursday 22 January 2026....6.30pm to 10pm... A Wild Night at The Crown and Sceptre with Prof Alastair Driver and Ben Goldsmith. A talk on Rewilding and Conservation by two experts . The Crown & Sceptre, 34 Holland Road , Holland Park , London W14. £15.00 Per ticket from their events page. www.crownandsceptre.uk - Visit their website here. ---------------- This event was hosted by ex page 3:model JACKIE ST CLAIR and husband Carl. Jackie's stunning house in Holland Park is just a few mins away. She has an amazing garden full of wildlife as there are many bird boxes and a fox family and more. The pub is packed solid sold out ..maybe 60 seated and 20 standing. Many are Jackie's friends , so i know several people here . Guests included LIZZIE CUNDY, BASIA BRIGGS and the mother of singer JOY CROOKES. The talk was pretty much two hours over two sets of 75 mins and 45 mins. The two main guests were joined by others for five mins each or so. Some great images of before and after on the big screens. Mainly about Rewilding , Conservation, Recycling and the Environment . At 8.15pm there was a 30 mins interval. A nice complimentary Greek buffet was laid on, including large kebabs . At 9.30pm we had a female singer with a great voice sing three tracks . -------------------------------------------------------------------------- -------------------------------------------------------------------------- January Blues Festival continues at this venue. Venue = 229 Great Portland Street, London W1. Wednesday 21 January 2026 - TEN YEARS AFTER with original member Ric Lee. Ten Years After are an English blues rock group formed in Nottingham in 1966. They had eight consecutive albums in the Top 40 on the UK Albums Chart between 1968 and 1973. They also had twelve albums enter the US Billboard 200.The band are best known for tracks such as "I'm Going Home", "Hear Me Calling", "I'd Love to Change the World" and "Love Like a Man" ( their only hit single from 1970). Their guitarist Alvin Lee left in 1974, and passed away in 2013. I have seen TYA a few times with various line ups , including in 1990 at Hammersmith Odeon when all four original members reunited for a tour. With support from JOHN VERITY ex Argent. John Verity (now aged 76) is an English guitarist and singer. He is best known as a member of Argent, a band formed by Zombies keyboardist Rod Argent. He joined the band alongside John Grimaldi, replacing Russ Ballard. Argent were best known for their hits ' Hold Your Head Up ' ( 1972) and ' God Gave Rock n Roll To You' ( 1973) . Thu 22 Jan 2026 - FANTASTIC NEGRITO Fri 23 Jan 2026 - FANTASTIC NEGRITO 3 x GRAMMY Award–winner Fantastic Negrito, Blending hard-hitting guitar, soulful ballads, and his trademark twists, the record explores family, identity, and the tension between father and son. 2025 also marks the 10-year anniversary of Fantastic Negrito winning the inaugural NPR Tiny Desk Contest—an unlikely turning point in a remarkable career defined by resilience, reinvention, and unforgettable live performances. Sat 24 Jan 2026 - BEN POOLE + KIRRIS RIVIERE Venue capacity is 620 - visit their website for more info and to buy tickets . ------------------------ My second visit to this venue for their Blues Festival this month. The venue looks pretty full on this gloomy rainy Wednesday evening. Good to see regular gig-going chums here , including Mark Taylor , David Stark and Jon Tailor . JOHN VERITY arrived on stage at 8pm for his 30 mins set. Just John and his acoustic guitar tonight. His set included ' Sand In My Pocket' , and covers of ' Stay With Me' and ' Love The One You're With ' and the Argent classic hit ' Hold Your Head Up'. TEN YEARS AFTER arrived on stage at 9pm for their 95 mins set. The band are a four piece , including keyboards. On guitar is Sam C Lees, a British guitar virtuoso who joined in 2025 , and he was pretty incredible . So many great guitar solos on many of the tracks played tonight. He also handled the vocals very well. The overall sound from the stage was top notch. After 30 mins we had a three song semi-acoustic set. Great to see RIC LEE perform a full five mins drum solo , at the grand age of 80. Highlights included ' Love Like a Man' and ' I'm Going Home'. A really good enjoyable show. Straight after their set , all the band greeted fans at the merch desk.. Full TEN YEARS AFTER setlist played tonight.. I'm Coming On One of These Days Hear Me Calling I'd Love to Change the World Silverspoon Lady Portable People Don't Want You Woman Losing the Dogs Love Like a Man The Hobbit Good Morning, School Girl ( Sonny Boy Williamson cover) I Say Yeah I'm Going Home ( including rock & roll.medley) Encore: Choo Choo Mama

Posted 22nd January 2026