Two weeks ago, I wrote about the record store tour.
This time, it’s all about everything that happened around it.
Before we begin, I owe you a small apology. I’ve been a little late with this post because I spent all but nine days of the last month travelling—following Damian around England before exploring Scotland and York with my husband—so writing had to wait until I finally made it home.
But now that I’ve unpacked and caught up on some sleep, it’s time to look back on one wonderfully chaotic week with Damian.
Seven shows.
Six cities.
Priceless memories.
This was the first time I followed an entire Damian Lewis tour from beginning to end, and every stop had its own personality. From the excitement of opening night in Leeds to the grand finale in Kingston, it wasn’t just about the music. It was about endless train journeys, wonderful friendships, lots of laughter, and all the “sweet chaos” that happened offstage.
Each morning we’d board another train, head to another city, meet familiar faces and new friends, swap stories and photos, hand out magnets, cheer Damian on, and then do it all again the next day.
Somewhere along the way, it stopped feeling like seven separate gigs. It became one long adventure. And that’s one of the things I love most about music. It brings people together. Sometimes for an evening. Sometimes for a lifetime.
Leeds produced what would become my favorite souvenir of the entire week.
At the end of the show, Damian’s handwritten set list was lying on the stage.
And I did what any completely reasonable person would do.
I took it.
As it turned out, that was the only handwritten set list we saw during the entire album launch tour. At the time, I had no idea it would become a running joke between Damian and me for the rest of the week.
We’ll come back to that later.
Along the way I reunited with old friends, made new ones, and handed out around 400 Fan Fun “I Was There” magnets. My hope is that those magnets end up on refrigerators all over the UK and beyond, making people smile every time they open the fridge and remember a special evening celebrating Damian’s second album.
One of the most touching moments of the week also happened in Leeds.
A wonderful Fan Fun reader and fellow American, Deb (the one in the red leather jacket in the photo above), attended the show with her brother Charles.
I thought I was there simply for Damian’s album signing.
Instead, Deb completely surprised me.
She had brought a copy of my Billions book and asked me to sign it.
I honestly don’t think she realizes how much that meant to me.
After spending years writing about Damian and sharing my thoughts with all of you online, it never once occurred to me that somebody would bring my book to a gig for me to sign. It was one of the kindest gestures anyone has ever made for me, and it genuinely almost brought me to tears.
Thank you, Deb.
THANK YOU.
I hope we’ll see each other again in the fall.
But enough about me.
Let’s talk about us.
Monique.
Tsveta.
Mel.
And me.
Otherwise known as the Sweet Chaos Quartet.
Now, one thing you should know about us is that we like arriving early. Actually… that’s not entirely true. Most of us like arriving early. Mel likes arriving VERY early.
Take Liverpool as an example. The show wasn’t until that evening. Mel’s suggestion?
“Let’s go at two.”
Since I had absolutely nothing better to do, I agreed. As it turned out, Mel knows exactly what she’s doing. There we were, sitting in The Jacaranda with our drinks, when Damian arrived. Sometimes being ridiculously early really does pay off. Thank you, Mel.
What happened next became one of the most memorable moments of the entire tour. Damian came over and stood chatting with us for ten or fifteen minutes. Not because he had to. Because he wanted to. We talked about music. We talked about promoting music. We talked about ideas. And, as anyone who knows me will tell you… I always have ideas. Lots of them.
What I love about talking to Damian is that it never feels like a one-way conversation. You suggest something. He responds. He throws another idea back. You build on it together. Before you know it, you’re brainstorming.
And I love brainstorming.
Then, later that evening, something happened that I still can’t quite believe.
While introducing “Pentonville Prison,“ Damian acknowledged the fans who had been following the song for years.
“Those of you who have been on the tour with us, supporting us…”
Then he looked toward the front row.
“Some ladies in the front have…”
We all laughed.
And then, completely unexpectedly, he added:
“Thank you, Bahar, for coming.”
I still can’t quite believe that happened.
But I have the audio recording.
So apparently… It really did happen.
Now let’s talk about gifts.
Long-time Fan Fun readers may remember how we celebrated ‘Mission Creep’ back in 2023. At Rough Trade East I gave Damian a bottle of 2012 Dom Pérignon engraved with the words:
“Damian Lewis – Mission Creep – 16 June 2023.”
At the time, Damian said he’d drink the champagne and then use the bottle as a candle holder. Whether that bottle ever became a candle holder remains one of life’s great mysteries. Still, it got me thinking. Most candle holders come in pairs. And perhaps the Mission Creep candle holder needed some company…
As much as Damian loved the champagne, however, I don’t think it came close to my second gift in terms of “coolness”—at least according to Damian.
Because this one involved football. And Damian’s beloved Liverpool.
What exactly do you buy for a lifelong Liverpool supporter who probably already owns every piece of Liverpool merchandise ever produced?
You do research.
After a bit of digging, I found a wonderful set of Liverpool FC coasters featuring four of the club’s most iconic goals. The moment I saw them, I knew I’d found exactly the right gift.
And believe me…
I lost count of how many times Damian called them “cool.”
On camera. Off camera. A lot.
Damian immediately recognized all the goals on the coasters. If you are an LFC fan, or if you happen to have an LFC fan in your life, you can buy a set here!
Before moving on, I have to thank one more person.
Niall.
While I was busy handing Damian the gift and laughing at his reaction, Niall quietly filmed the entire exchange. Thanks to him, I now have one of my favorite videos from the whole week. Probably one of my favorite Damian videos ever.
Thank you, Niall.
You made that memory even more special.
I hope we’ll see each other again in the fall.
As Damian admired the coasters, I mentioned that—thanks to the lyrics of his new song “Advent”—Christmas shopping never really stresses me out because I start planning gifts ridiculously early.
“Then my song Advent isn’t for you.”
“Advent” is definitely not about me. It’s much more about my husband, who becomes overwhelmed every December trying to buy presents.
I’m fairly sure he and Damian would understand each other perfectly.
And, of course, once football enters the conversation… Football tends to stay in the conversation. I told Damian that Liverpool had always held a special place in my heart because of my father. When I was little, many Sunday afternoons were spent sitting on Dad’s shoulders watching European football together. He was a devoted Liverpool supporter.
Damian’s immediate response?
“No. You’ve been supporting Fenerbahçe!”
I burst out laughing. Not only does he know Turkish football, he apparently has theories about my football loyalties, too. To be fair, Dad absolutely was a fanatic Fenerbahçe supporter.
I wasn’t. I have been, am, and always will be a Beşiktaş fan.
And now Damian knows that, too 🙂
Then came Marlborough.
By this point, we had become something of an unofficial welcoming committee. As usual, we arrived early. Pretty early.
And while wandering around St. Peter’s Church, a landmark building, something caught my eye. A plaque. It explained that Cardinal Wolsey had been ordained priest in this very church in 1498.
Anyone who has followed my blog knows how much I loved Wolf Hall. And so there was simply no way I was going to let Damian walk into that church without knowing that his Lord Chancellor had begun his religious life right there!
So, the moment Damian, bassist David Catlin-Birch, and tour manager Patch arrived, I may—or may not—have broken a few local sprinting records.
Some things are important. And this definitely qualified.
When I told Damian that Cardinal Wolsey had been ordained at St. Peter’s Church, his reaction was immediate.
“Amazing.”
Naturally, I followed it with another question.
“Can I take a photo of you by the plaque?”
Damian looked at me, and said,
“Bahar… give me a few minutes. I just arrived.”
Fair enough.
I know. I can be more than a little childlike when it comes to Damian. But one of the things I genuinely appreciate about him is that he never pretends. He had literally just arrived. He was carrying musical equipment. Of course he needed a minute. And he simply said so. As the good girl that I am… I gave him his minute.
Eventually we claimed our usual front-row places.
The lovely ladies standing next to us looked completely bewildered—and more than a little starstruck—as Damian casually wandered over. I don’t think they quite knew what to make of how utterly normal and down-to-earth he was.
He looked at the stage. He looked at us, and announced that, because the stage was so high, we’d probably spend the evening looking straight into his nostrils.
Then, true to his word:
“I’m now going to appreciate the Wolsey plaque.”
And off we went.
I swear Damian has a little bit of Henry VIII in his eyes in that photograph.
Marlborough also gave me the opportunity to ask Damian to sign my rather illegally acquired souvenir from Leeds.
You remember the handwritten set list, don’t you?
He looked at it. Grinned. Then wrote exactly what every reasonable person would write.
“You stole this, Bahar.”
I did.
No regrets.
My lovely friend Tsveta, who joined us in Marlborough, perhaps brought the most original gift of the entire week.
Tsveta loves astrology, stars, planets, and everything celestial. And to celebrate the release of Sweet Chaos, she had a beautiful print made showing the exact position of the stars at the precise moment the album was released. I am still kicking myself because somehow we never photographed it.
It was beautiful. Thoughtful. Meaningful. Completely unique. In other words… Very Tsveta.
Damian studied it for a moment before saying,
“This looks exactly like the inside of my head.”
Only Damian could look at a carefully crafted map of the heavens and conclude that it represented the chaos inside his own brain.
It was the perfect response to a very special gift.
Between Marlborough and London, Monique and I managed to squeeze in a little theatre adventure.
Naturally… it still involved Damian. Well… sort of.
For the last three years Damian has taken part in the wonderfully crazy Whodunnit [Unrehearsed] at Park Theatre.
The premise is brilliant.
Everyone in the cast knows the play.
Except one person: That evening’s celebrity who is thrown into the middle of the production without ever seeing the script. Every line and every stage direction is fed through an earpiece while they somehow attempt to solve a murder without completely destroying the play.
It’s utterly chaotic and absolutely hilarious.
We knew perfectly well that the chances of Damian appearing the night we had tickets were somewhere between slim and absolutely nonexistent.
But we also knew something else. The show itself looked fantastic. So we went anyway.
Our celebrity guest that evening was comedian Marcus Brigstocke, playing the Sheriff. He was absolutely brilliant. Being one of Britain’s funniest stand-up comedians certainly didn’t hurt.
Then came the biggest surprise of the evening.
Me.
Somehow I found myself invited onto the stage.
Apparently my West End debut consisted of playing a woman who had stolen somebody else’s cattle.
I can already hear Damian saying,
“A fitting role.”
After all, I had already stolen his set list earlier that week.
Clearly I was developing a reputation.
Honestly, after surviving my theatrical debut, I think Damian now knows exactly who his next co-star should be.
I await his call.
But here’s the lovely part.
Even though Damian wasn’t there…
He somehow was.
Park Theatre is filled with little reminders of his history.
In the café we spotted the programme from the Royal Shakespeare Company’s Cymbeline, showing Damian in his twenties as Posthumus.
During the interval, I wandered through the theatre, and came across a handwritten dressing-room note Damian had written for the next guest inspector Clive Anderson in 2024.
So even on our day off… Sweet Chaos followed us to the theatre. Or perhaps more accurately… Damian did. And, that felt entirely appropriate.
Then came London.
And London felt like coming home.
I wrote in my review of the gig itself that Rough Trade East holds a very special place in my Damian Lewis musical memories. This was where Damian held his very first London album signing after the release of Mission Creep back in 2023. This was where I gave him the engraved bottle of Dom Pérignon. This was where he used the guitar pick Gingersnap had sent him. And somehow… This was where we squeezed into a photo booth together after the signing.
So yes…
Rough Trade East comes with a lot of wonderful memories.
This time, it also brought back familiar faces.
Paul.
David.
Natalie.
Katy.
Tracy and Taz.
One of my favorite things about following Damian’s music is seeing friends from previous gigs. The Damian Lewis fan community is filled with genuinely lovely people.
And speaking of lovely people…
London belonged to Gingersnap. Because it was her birthday. Now, when your blog partner’s birthday happens to fall on a Damian Lewis gig, you make sure she gets a proper birthday present. Or a birthday greeting signed by the man himself.
Mission accomplished.
Happy Birthday, my dear friend. You’re one of a kind. Lovely. Wise. Calm. Sweet. Occasionally not so sweet. But usually right.
Thank you for sharing this wonderful journey with me.
Of course, no visit with Damian would be complete without me somehow finding football-related trouble. Earlier that day I wandered into the World Cup pop-up shop on Carnaby Street. A few minutes later I emerged carrying two England hats.
One for Damian.
One for Steve, Damian’s music manager.
The idea seemed perfect.
Back in 2023, I’d given Damian a Liverpool print and Steve a Luton Town print. This year they would each receive an England hat celebrating the World Cup. Simple. Perfect. Except for one tiny detail. When I proudly handed Steve his hat, he looked at me and said,
“I’m Irish.”
Excuse me?
You’re what?
I don’t think I’ve ever recovered from laughing.
Fortunately, Steve quickly added that his son would love it.
Crisis averted. I hope.
Damian, meanwhile, immediately put his hat on.
Naturally, football led to World Cup predictions. Damian believes England are going all the way. I’ve been loyal to Argentina ever since I was ten years old. So, in the card I gave Damian, I wrote:
“May England do very well in the World Cup…
And may Argentina win!”
That made him laugh.
I genuinely hope that Damian is able to sit back, relax, enjoy a well-earned beer, put one of those Liverpool coasters to good use, and watch the World Cup these days. England has been doing quite well, they have just won their round of 16 match against Mexico, and are going to quarterfinals…
Then came Brighton. Cold. Windy. Rainy. Perfect British summer weather! Naturally, none of this stopped us from arriving ridiculously early. Again.
Resident Records may be a relatively small shop, but it has a huge reputation. Nick Cave once called it “the best fucking record shop in Britain.” And if Nick Cave says so… Who am I to argue?
The stage was right in the middle of the shop, surrounded by shelves of records. It created one of the most intimate venues of the entire tour.
Brighton also reunited us with old friends. Helen. Lauren. And we met Evie, who had messaged me earlier that day and seemed genuinely surprised when I replied. Why? At the end of the day, I’m just another fangirl. And one of the things I love most about being boots on the ground at these events is meeting people. Ninety-nine percent of them are absolutely lovely. And somehow… We always seem to click. I love that.
And, hey, we didn’t make it to Damian’s own Instagram post (scroll left!) for no reason. We’re rather cute together! Thank you, girls, you rock!
Brighton also became the birthplace of a giveaway idea.
Almost every record store event included either a vinyl or CD with the ticket. Which makes perfect sense when you’re a normal person attending one launch show. Maybe two. We attended seven. SEVEN.
By this point I had accumulated rather more copies of Sweet Chaos than any one person realistically needs. So I asked Damian to sign my spare copies.I’ll be giving them away here on Fan Fun soon. Damian loved the idea. Hope you do, too. So stay tuned!
Brighton also gave me one more treasured signed item. Earlier in the week in London Katy had generously given me two Damian Lewis box sets.
Band of Brothers.
And, of course…
Homeland.
Brody started this whole adventure.
So, Katy…
This bit is for you.
I took the Homeland box set to the signing and told Damian it was a gift from you. I also told him how much you appreciate everything he does. When he handed it back, I looked down.
“Bahar, I appreciate you.”
I was half expecting him to write, “From one Muslim to another,” like he famously signed a Homeland box set for President Obama back in the day. Hahaha.
Thank you, Katy.
Brighton also gave us one of the best images of the entire tour. For one brief moment, the Sweet Chaos album cover was reflected in the polished surface of Damian’s guitar. It looked as though the album itself had become part of the performance. I took plenty of photographs too, but Monique captured the perfect one. Just the reflection.
And then…
Kingston.
The perfect ending to one wonderfully chaotic week.
A week of hotel rooms. Train rides. Industrial quantities of Coke Zero. More than a few glasses of white wine. And remarkably few proper meals. M&S Food Sandwiches had become our best friends. I actually managed to lose a little weight, too. Perhaps there really is such a thing as the Sweet Chaos diet.
Kingston felt different because we had the full band.
Will Cleasby on drums.
David Catlin-Birch on bass.
Joe Glossop on keyboard.
Rudi Falla on guitar.
It was wonderful to see Will again, the one constant throughout Damian’s musical journey. And I have a feeling that David may now have become the band’s permanent bassist. But if I’m being completely honest, the highlight of Kingston wasn’t even the full band.
It was Alison.
We arrived at St. John’s Church quite early and settled outside to wait for the doors to open. Then the soundcheck began.
Then we heard another voice next to Damian’s.
Alison!!!
Kingston wasn’t going to be just another show. It was going to be something special. And it really was.
Watching the two of them perform together was one of the highlights of the entire week. The chemistry between them was simply off the charts. I wonder whether Alison will appear at a few of the fall tour dates…
To my surprise, Alison recognized me after the show. We had a lovely little chat. And a selfie! Thank you, Alison! What strikes me most is how completely genuine she is. No attitude. No airs. Just warm, friendly, real. Damian is incredibly lucky to have her by his side. And I have absolutely no doubt he knows it.
Then came the final signing.
After seven shows… Seven signings… I genuinely thought Damian might be sick and tired of me.
Apparently not!
Thank you, Damian.
You’re the very best.
For now… This is a wrap from the front-row girls.
Well…
The front-row girls minus Mel in this photo. I think the only photo that has all of us in it is from St. Peter’s in Marlborough, taken by Damian’s tour manager Patch. Looking at it now, I appear to be in some kind of trance, singing along to one of Damian’s songs. Hahaha.
Thank you, Monique. Thank you, Tsveta. Thank you, Mel. You are the best travel companions anyone could ask for.
And thank you to every single fan I met along the way. Thank you to everyone who accepted a magnet. Stopped for a chat. Shared a laugh. You made ‘Sweet Chaos’ week every bit as memorable as the music itself.
And finally…
Congratulations, Damian, on Sweet Chaos. It’s a fantastic album.
I won’t lie to you. I would love nothing more than to be back somewhere in the UK standing in the front row once again. But after the health challenges both my mother and I have faced over the past couple of years, I’ve learned not to make concrete promises about the future. So, instead, I’ll simply say this.
I hope.
I hope everything goes according to plan.
And I hope I’ll see many of you again on the UK tour this fall. In the meantime, you can find ticket information for the entire tour here.
If you can go, GO.
What an amazing journey! And memories to last a life time. You are officially a roadie now I believe!
Thank you for reading, Lisa! It was an amazing adventure. I was pretty tired by the end of it, but it was totally worth it. With love, your officially roadie Damianista, hahaha.
Your latest article was a lot of fun to read. I’m so happy you had such a wonderful time. Thank you for sharing it.
Thank you so much, Fay, for reading and for all your support. It was an amazing adventure. I have to say I was a bit tired by the end of it but it was totally worth it. And it’s always my pleasure to share it with all fans.