The Cure's Robert Smith to curate Teenage Cancer Trust at the Royal Albert Hall 2026 19 Mar 2025
The essential concert series
New 2025 Saturday headliner
A special Erased Tapes event:
Penguin Cafe
Daniel Brandt
Douglas Dare
Hatis Noit
Announcing Our 2026 guest curator - Robert Smith (The Cure)
www.teenagecancertrust.org/gigs
Teenage Cancer Trust is pleased to announce a special bill for Saturday 29th March 2025 at the Royal Albert Hall, curated by Erased Tapes and featuring Penguin Cafe, Daniel Brandt, Douglas Dare and Hatis Noit.
The charity is also delighted to reveal that The Cure’s Robert Smith will curate Teenage Cancer Trust at the Royal Albert Hall in 2026.
This year’s series runs from March 24-30, with other headliners including The Who; The Corrs; James Arthur; a night of comedy hosted by Micky Flanagan; and Frank Carter and Paul Cook, Steve Jones, Glen Matlock of the Sex Pistols.
Jamie Johnson, Head of Music & Entertainment at Teenage Cancer Trust, said: “We’re thrilled to welcome Erased Tapes to the Saturday slot at the Royal Albert Hall. Their unique sound and artistry will create an unforgettable experience that music fans won’t want to miss.
“We are also deeply honoured that Robert Smith, one of the most influential artists of our time, has agreed to curate the Teenage Cancer Trust’s 2026 concerts at the Royal Albert Hall.
“Robert has been a dedicated supporter of Teenage Cancer Trust for many years, and his involvement will bring extraordinary performances to this iconic week while helping us raise essential funds. These funds ensure we can continue to provide vital specialist services for young people facing cancer within the NHS.
“You only get one chance at being young, and cancer threatens to turn lives upside down. Without the right support, the impact can be devastating. We cannot thank Robert enough for helping us make sure that no young person faces cancer alone.”
Erased Tapes
After selling out the Royal Albert Hall at the Proms 2015, ten years on Erased Tapes returns with an all-star lineup in support of Teenage Cancer Trust. Tickets go on sale at 9am on Wednesday 19th March.
Headlined by legendary ensemble Penguin Cafe, the line-up also features English contemporary songsmith Douglas Dare, London-based German composer, drummer and filmmaker Daniel Brandt with an exclusive preview of his brand new multimedia spectacle Without Us, which will premiere in full at the Barbican Hall next month, and the exceptional Japanese voice artist Hatis Noit who "has been moving audiences to tears” (The Guardian).
Erased Tapes is a truly independent record label that has disrupted the industry and rejuvenated the musical landscape since 2007. The London-based label has consistently nurtured genre-defying artists from all around the world without losing its avant-garde ethos.
In 2015, BBC 6 Music radio presenter Mary Anne Hobbs staged an Erased Tapes evening featuring Nils Frahm and A Winged Victory For The Sullen at the Royal Albert Hall as part of the prestigious BBC Prom. It was the fastest selling ticket of the entire season.
Robert Raths, founder of Erased Tapes, said: “It's not every day that you get asked to take over a space like the Royal Albert Hall. To return within a decade feels more than an honour, especially for such a great cause.”
Teenage Cancer Trust patron Roger Daltrey CBE said: "Due to unforeseen circumstances the planned Teenage Cancer Trust event on the Sat 29th had to be postponed. So I can't thank Penguin Cafe enough for stepping up for the charity at such short notice. Erased Tapes will be curating the rest of the line up for the evening so this is going to be a very special night of independent music at the Royal Albert Hall. Don't miss it!"
Robert Smith
One of the most celebrated artists in modern music, Robert Smith has long been a supporter of Teenage Cancer Trust at the Royal Albert Hall, with The Cure performing two classic shows in 2014, as well as in 2006. Robert was very active in his support of the Teenage Cancer Trust UNSEEN campaign during lockdown, helping the charity to continue to raise significant income during those tough times.
After being asked by the concerts’ founder, Roger Daltrey, Robert will personally oversee a world-class bill from 23-29 March 2026.
The news follows The Cure’s return to the top of the charts in 2024 with the critically lauded Songs Of A Lost World. In a career spanning more than 45 years, the band have produced some of the most influential albums in modern music, including Seventeen Seconds, Pornography, Kiss Me Kiss Me Kiss Me, Disintegration and Wish, and classic pop songs such as ‘Boys Don’t Cry’, ‘A Forest’, ‘Just Like Heaven’, ‘Lullaby’ and ‘Friday I’m In Love’.
Robert Smith said: “Teenage Cancer Trust does the most fantastic work, and it is a great honour - and a real thrill - to be asked to curate the 2026 shows at the Royal Albert Hall. I can promise it will be a very memorable week!”
The concerts were founded in 2000 by The Who’s Roger Daltrey. Throughout that time, Daltrey put together lineups of internationally renowned artists. While he stepped back from figurehead duties in 2024, Daltrey remains a proud Honorary Patron of the charity.
Roger Daltrey said: “It has not been easy to find the right curator for the week of concerts in aid of Teenage Cancer Trust at the Royal Albert Hall, but it's with great excitement that I can announce that Robert Smith has signed up for 2026.
“With The Cure’s long and outstanding support for Teenage Cancer Trust, Robert appreciates the vital work this charity does.
“The concerts have become an essential fixture in the music calendar, featuring some of the world’s greatest artists. It has been a challenge to find the right person to take them on - but Robert, a true musical great, is the perfect curator for the 2026 concerts.”
Teenage Cancer Trust
Teenage Cancer Trust is the only UK charity dedicated to providing specialised nursing care and support for young people with cancer.
Cancer kills more teenagers and young adults in the UK than any other disease. And for those who survive, going through it without the right support can be devastating – physically and emotionally.
Every day, more than seven young people aged 13-24 hear the words “you have cancer”. By 2030 that number will be closer to 10.
There’s never been a worse time to receive that news, with healthcare services under enormous pressure.
Money from these iconic gigs at the Royal Albert Hall means Teenage Cancer Trust can fund specialist nurses and youth workers to be there for a young person when cancer has turned their world upside down.
Cancer rates in young people in the UK have gone up by a quarter since the early 1990s. And by 2030, it’s projected that the number of young people living with a cancer diagnosis will be 65% higher.
Since 2000, over £34 million has been raised by Teenage Cancer Trust concerts at the Royal Albert Hall, and that money has helped fund specialist nurses, hospital units and support services right across the UK that help get young people through some unimaginably hard times.
Royal Albert Hall 2025 Show Dates:
Monday, March 24: Frank Carter and Paul Cook, Steve Jones, Glen Matlock of the Sex Pistols plus special guests Kid Kapichi and The Molotovs
Tuesday, March 25: A night of comedy hosted by Micky Flanagan with Scott Bennett,
Finlay Christie, Romesh Ranganathan, Katherine Ryan, Jack Skipper + Josh Widdicombe
Wednesday, March 26: James Arthur plus special guests Venus Grrrls
Thursday, March 27: The Who plus special guests Level 42
Friday, March 28: The Corrs plus special guests Dea Matrona
Saturday, March 29: Erased Tapes featuring Penguin Cafe, Daniel Brandt, Douglas Dare and Hatis Noit
Sunday, March 30: The Who plus special guests Level 42
Tickets:
For line-up and ticketing information please visit:
@teenagecancer
#teenagecancergigs
Exclusive Resale Partner:
TEENAGECANCERTRUST.TWICKETS.LIVE
Your ticket is not valid if offered for sale or resold unless it's through our official face value resale partner Twickets.
Please note that Viagogo are not official ticket partners and are in no way connected with these shows. Tickets purchased from Viagogo or any other seller not listed above will be cancelled and will not be valid for the shows. Teenage Cancer Trust supports the FanFair Alliance.
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THE HEADLINES
V&A East Storehouse to open the David Bowie Centre (see News)
ESCA calls on the EU to block Universal Music’s deal to buy Downtown (see News)
Virgin Music CEOs push back against critics of Downtown Music deal (see News)
Record labels are running on empty (see Opinion)
AI music is going viral, but it’s not what fans want (see Comment)
The Velvet Sundown may be the first breakout AI band from Suno (see Digital)
Amid cuts, WMG to "continue to supercharge our capabilities in long-term artist, songwriter, and catalog development" (see Business)
WIN CEO writes to European Commission Vice-President over Universal's acquisition of Downtown (see Comment)
If Spotify truly champions discovery, it should champion fair compensation from the first stream (see Comment)
Selected Glastonbury coverage (see News, Features, Showbiz, Reviews)
Streaming is both retail and radio – it shouldn’t be (see Comment)
Impala’s Helen Smith on UMG's planned Downtown acquisition (see Comment)
Retiring Arista CEO David Massey shares his top 10 career highlights (see Features)
Budweiser’s royalty loophole ad: How AI and social have changed the value of creators (see Comment)
When did making music get so lonely? (see Comment)
How will Taylor Swift’s masters ownership saga be remembered? (see Audio&Visual)
The copyright war between the AI industry and creatives (see Comment)
Interview: Lyor Cohen, the head of YouTube Music (see Features)