REAL GONE GOES OUT: Ocean Alley – Hall By The Sea, Dreamland, Margate, Kent 14/9/2024

With two gigs taking place at the Dreamland venue, it’s a busy night in Margate. Most people are assembled at the Scenic Stage to witness a double headliner between Orbital and Leftfield, marking the end of this year’s big outdoor shows for the summer. A more select crowd have chosen to spend the evening indoors at the Hall By The Sea welcoming Ocean Alley, visiting heroes from Australia.

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REAL GONE GOES OUT: Deacon Blue – Dreamland, Margate, Kent 28/6/2024

Deacon Blue’s addition to Dreamland’s Summer Series of gigs may have been a little late, coming a few weeks after the confirmation of Simple Minds, Madness, Bryan Adams, Limp Bizkit and Manic Street Preachers, but since the Scottish pop band haven’t ever played in Margate before, this additional date on their 2024 tour is a most welcome one.

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REAL GONE GOES OUT: The Bluetones – Dreamland, Margate, Kent 28/6/2024

It’s approximately 7pm on a slightly overcast summer evening and a few rather unassuming figures wander onto Dreamland’s massive Scenic Stage. They are Britpop legends The Bluetones, a band who were never as good at generating their own press as Oasis, and never had the pin-up status of Sleeper’s Louise Wener, but their best singles were among the Britpop scene’s finest, and as musicians, their 60s meets 90s jangle was always exceptionally tight. This is actually their second visit to Margate in under a year – they played the Dreamland Ballroom back in October 2023, playing the whole of their ‘Return To The Last Chance Saloon’ album – but, tonight, their support slot with Scotland’s Deacon Blue promises to be just as special.

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REAL GONE GOES OUT: Simple Minds – Dreamland, Margate, Kent 20/6/2024

Simple Minds are no strangers to Margate. They previously visited the seaside town in 2013 on a Greatest Hits tour, and again two years later, promoting ‘Big Music’ – arguably been the best Simple Minds record in many a year. Both gigs took place in the currently closed Winter Gardens, and the band’s presence in the shabby listed building seemed like a bit of a departure from their 80s arena days. It’s also been said that, around that time, Jim Kerr’s voice was supposedly not as good as it had been, but for the hardcore fans, these shows were still well received.

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REAL GONE GOES OUT: Madness – Dreamland, Margate, Kent 14/6/2024

It’s a bright evening in Margate and the seafront is buzzing. There’s a massive crowd outside of the local Weatherspoon pub, and a lot of pork pie hats on show. It’s even busier than usual, but with good reason: Madness are in town. After a couple of postponements due to the pandemic lockdown, they’ve finally arrived in the legendary seaside town. What’s more, they’ve now got a better show in tow. The ever popular band are currently riding high with a number one album ‘Theatre of The Absurd Presents C’est La Vie’, proving there’s far more to the “Camden Nutty Boys” than treading on the cheap coattails of nostalgia.

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