EXCLUSIVE: Heavy metal legends Iron Maiden are celebrating 50 years at Eddfest this weekend – but tell us their fans seem to be getting ‘younger and younger’
Iron Maiden’s 50th anniversary gig at Knebworth this Saturday will be epic, says frontman Bruce Dickinson, but it won’t be from a WW1 fighter jet this time.
The last time the heavy rock giants played the hallowed concert grounds, which have played host to the likes of Led Zeppelin, Queen and Oasis was at 2014’s Sonisphore Festival.
Then, in true OTT rock’n’roll style, Dickinson led an aerial choreographed dogfight in his own Fokker Triplane along with eight other planes above the site, to commemorate the 100th Anniversary of WW1.
The military history buff – who is an Honorary Group Captain in the Royal Air Force, a licensed pilot and has an Olympic-level fencing career – spoke to us fresh from a gig in Portugal as part of their current Run For Your Lives world tour..
Dickson, now 67, tells the Mirror, “And now we’re back home! I can’t wait to see all our fans at Knebworth – and not from a WWI plane this time, which to be honest, is a bit of a relief, in this heat!”
He added, “Knebworth is going to be a blast – in fact we just flew over the site coming in from Portugal and it looks amazing. Sunshine, beer, thousands of our fans gathering to party together along with lots of our friends performing on the bill, what’s not to enjoy?”
“We’ve got the most incredible open-air museum of our stage props, outfits, instruments, and lots more fun stuff to check out, there’s gonna be Eddie’s Dive bars for people to drink our Trooper beers in (and maybe a new one…who knows?) , a fun fair, campsites and other great things – so pace yourself…”
As the site prepares to welcome campers from Friday morning, Iron Maiden founder and bass player, Steve Harris, tells us this Saturday’s show is going to be a meaningful one. “It’s really quite something to be celebrating our 50th anniversary at Knebworth – a place that’s full circle to me, after coming here as a fan in the 70s.”
“We’ve always just cared about our fans – and I think we’ve got the best family of fans in the world”, he says. “They’re the ones who’ve supported us for 50 years, and we must be doing something right, because they keep getting younger and younger, and our fan base keeps getting bigger and bigger all around the world.
“We’re all really looking forward to this show at Knebworth, which we’re calling EDDFEST because we’re trying to give something back in so many different ways on site.
“I can’t wait to be a punter again watching the bands on Friday night that all have a special place in my heart, in some way or another. The whole weekend’s going to be amazing..”
The two-day celebration of all things Iron Maiden – named in honour of the heavy metal legends’ ever-changing mascot Eddie (formally Eddie the Head) – appearing on every single album cover and concert backdrop, will also feature in next year’s cinematic concert movie.
The career-spanning documentary Iron Maiden: Burning Ambition, released in May, chronicled the band’s five-decade rise from East London pub gigs to global stadiums.
They’ve had many bizarre chapters in their time, but one of the most colourful in Maiden’s back catalogue was getting pelted with debris at their own gig, following a brief feud with the late Ozzy Osborne and his wife, Sharon over the headlining of Ozzfest.
In 2005, Sharon famously cut the power to the band’s final set and encouraged the crowd to throw objects at them at the festival in California.
Iron Maiden’s Eddfest festival at Knebworth takes place this Friday 10 and Saturday 11 July. For more info and tickets visit www.ironmaiden.knebworth.com.
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