Those outside Liverpool may not know what Zoe’s Place is or why it would be celebrating the city, so here’s a brief telling of that story. Zoe’s Place is a specialist hospice for babies, infants, and very young children living with life-limiting or life-threatening conditions. It offers respite care, palliative and end-of-life support, alongside professional therapies and holistic family care. In short, it’s a Liverpool institution.
In late 2024, the hospice faced closure as its lease was due to expire in mid-2025, and planning delays and rising costs left it without adequate funding to relocate. They were faced with the daunting task of raising £5 million in just 31 days to stay open.
Local community efforts, supported by the public, businesses, and celebrities, led to a remarkable fundraising success, raising over £7.5 million to secure the future of the hospice. If that isn’t a cause for celebration, I don’t know what is.
So we come to tonight’s concert, which promised a line-up of Liverpool stars for the ages.
Local DJ and former Brookside actress Billie Clements opened proceedings with a set of high-energy bangers that set the party mood. Compère Leanne Campbell introduced two dance groups: first, artists from the Liverpool Institute of Performing Arts, who danced to a medley of tunes including one from Moulin Rouge; then, Cody Urban Dance, who were similarly energetic.
A video featuring Michelle Wright, Head of Care at Zoe’s Place, was played on the big screen as a reminder of what they do and why it matters.
The main part of the evening got underway with Scouse poet Joseph Roberts reciting his popular ode ‘Scouse Slang’, which was greeted with huge applause. Backing the musicians was the Royal Liverpool Philharmonic Orchestra (RLPO), conducted by Richard Balcombe. They had their own moments in the spotlight, first with an orchestral version of ‘Ferry ‘Cross the Mersey’.
The show’s main compère, comedian Adam Rowe, introduced Ian Byrne MP, who had been a driving force behind the fundraising. He thanked the audience for attending before announcing the first band of the night: Cheap Thrills, who delivered an outstanding cover of The Beatles’ ‘Come Together’.
Next up was Scottish singer-songwriter and now Liverpool resident Rianne Downey, who sang The Beautiful South’s ‘Rotterdam’. She is currently the female vocalist working with ex-Housemartins and Beautiful South frontman Paul Heaton.
The audience went wild as the legendary Real Thing were announced, singing along with every word of ‘You to Me Are Everything’, surely one of the most popular songs ever by a Liverpool band.
Rowe then introduced Ian Prowse, who gave a powerful rendition of his love letter to Liverpool, ‘Does This Train Stop on Merseyside’. Alternative rock band Red Rum Club were on next, performing The Beatles’ ‘With a Little Help from My Friends’.
The ever-popular Lightning Seeds played three songs, ‘Lucky You’, ‘Pure’, and ‘The Life of Riley’. The sound up to this point had been exemplary, although Ian Broudie’s vocals seemed to get a little lost in the mix during ‘Pure’.
The interval featured a DJ set from Jonny Bongo, the main man behind Bongo’s Bingo. Comedian Paul Smith opened the second half before the RLPO played the ‘Theme from Z-Cars’ to a mixed chorus of cheers and boos due to its association with Everton FC.
Circa Waves performed a crowd-pleasing version of The La’s ‘There She Goes’ before The Zutons took to the stage. They treated the audience to ‘The Big Decider’ and, of course, ‘Valerie’.
The RLPO returned with an orchestral version of John Lennon’s Imagine, then X Factor star Rebecca Ferguson sang her hit ‘Hallelujah’.
One of the night’s undoubted highlights was self-taught classical pianist Brad Kella, who played ‘Eve & Frank’ and a composition dedicated to Liverpool FC footballer Diogo Jota and his brother André Silva, who recently passed away. This segued beautifully into the RLPO playing ‘You’ll Never Walk Alone’, with a projected image of Jota on screen. The audience spontaneously burst into the player’s song, an incredibly moving moment.
The Farm came out next and performed ‘All Together Now’, with singer Peter Hooton in fine voice. Next came The Mighty Wah!’s Pete Wylie, accompanied by his daughter Mersey, performing an emotional version of ‘Heart As Big As Liverpool’.
One of the most anticipated performances of the night was that of Echo & The Bunnymen frontman Ian McCulloch, who, accompanied by Jamie Webster, sang ‘Nothing Lasts Forever’.
Zoe’s Place is set to continue its work under a new name, Little Lights, which was revealed in a teaser video.
The choir Sense of Sound sang two numbers before backing Rebecca Ferguson on her final song.
Actor James Nelson-Joyce then introduced Jamie Webster, who led the audience through ‘All You Need Is Love’, followed by his elegy to Liverpool, ‘This Place’, before closing the show with ‘Hey Jude’. All the performers returned to the stage for a full-on Beatles-style wig-out.
This had been a truly memorable night. In the same week the 40th anniversary of Live Aid was being widely celebrated; Liverpool had just hosted its own Scouse Aid.
Reviewer – Adrian Cork
On – 17.07.2025
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