Williams is on The Road to Mt Duneed Estate in 2023 after 25 years of solo fame. We chat with Roundhouse Entertainment’s Michael Newton about this absolute coup for regional Vic!
“I’m going to be phenomenal.”
That is how global pop sensation Robbie Williams introduced himself to the AFL grand final audience last month, and true to his word, he was.
Before taking to the stage for what has been named the best AFL Grand Final entertainment of all time, the British pop star gave Geelong one more reason to celebrate, announcing his return to Australia next November with his XXV World Tour.
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Celebrating 25 years of solo hits, Williams will play headline dates in Melbourne and Sydney, alongside five A Day On The Green events across the country, including a special performance at Mt Duneed Estate on Saturday, November 25 2023. Originally announcing just three A Day On The Green shows, new shows have been announced for Sirromet Wines in Queensland and Nikola Estate in Swan Valley, with all previous shows now sold out.
“Australasia is one of my favourite places in the world to tour,” Robbie says.
“I feel so at home there and hugely appreciate the warm, loving welcome I always receive. I can’t wait to do these shows in 2023 and spend some time with my fans.”
Off the back of performing two exclusive nights in Melbourne for his Better Man biopic earlier this year, Williams’ recent performance reminded us what an absolute star he is. Rocking a smokin’ hot pink suit, Williams delivered a seven-song spectacular complete with background dancers dressed in gold and silver, a soaring stage and glowing pyrotechnics.
Proving to be one of the most acclaimed and charismatic live performers of his time, the performance only heightened the desire for fans to witness a large-scale Robbie Williams show.
“He was epic, he put on such a good show at the final. It was probably the best tour set-up I’ve ever been involved with,” Michael Newton of Roundhouse Entertainment, promoter of A Day On The Green says.
“To have him here in the country, doing that performance at the Grand Final and seen by so many people around the country, you couldn’t ask for a better way to set up a tour and get people excited, especially when you’ve got a performer that’s as strong as Robbie.”
Hailed as one of the finest male pop stars of his generation, Williams joined Take That in 1990 at only 16, before kicking off his solo career 25 years ago in 1997 with the release of his debut album, Life Thru A Lens.
Three decades on, he achieved a total of 18 Brit Awards with his writing, recording and performances making a lasting impact on British culture, recognising the very highest level of British musical achievement.
From his breakthrough global smash hit ‘Angels’, through to pop anthems ‘Let Me Entertain You’, ‘Millennium’, ‘Come Undone’, ‘Kids’, ‘Feel’, ‘Rock DJ’, and more, Robbie Williams’ unparalleled catalogue is a career-defining generational soundtrack
Having sold more than 85 million albums, with 14 UK number one albums (the most for any solo artist) and 14 number one singles as a solo artist, Williams’ tour comes in celebration of XXV, a compilation album featuring his, aforementioned, biggest hits.
Williams’ 13th album, and first since 2019 The Christmas Present, XXV sees the star reimagine hits and fan favourites, ranging from one of his earliest solo releases ‘Angels’ through to ‘Love My Life’, along with the brand new number ‘Lost’.
As expected with a performer of his calibre, this is no ordinary Greatest Hits album, especially having already released one back in 2004. Gifting his greatest solo hits another life, tracks like ‘Millennium’ (his first-ever solo Number 1) and ‘No Regrets’ have been newly-orchestrated by Jules Buckley, Guy Chambers and Steve Sidwell, and re-recorded with the acclaimed Metropole Orkest in the Netherlands.
Much like the album, Williams’ arena tour – which he’ll also be taking to Europe, UK and Ireland – will be a joyous journey through his career-defining catalogue, bringing to life the songs he’s most proud of. As always, you can expect Williams to go heavy on the entertainment, delivering a chaotic show in the best possible way.
“Big, it’s going to be big,” Newton reveals.
“He’s going to be celebrating 25 years of hits, so you’re just going to get everything and more. With the Robbie show and with the set-up he’s got on stage, a lot is happening with production, lights and screens and a big band, dancers; you’re going to get absolutely everything.
“It’s going to be just enormous.”
Williams’ big 2023 show at Mt Duneed Estate won’t be the star’s first time in the region, having performed at the venue in March 2018 as part of The Heavy Entertainment Show World Tour.
Williams’ performance marked the largest A Day On The Green concert at Mt Duneed Estate in Geelong at the time, entertaining 20,000 adoring fans while smashing the previous record of 18,000 fans set by Fleetwood Mac in 2015.
As entertaining as expected, Williams ripped through a glittering hit-laden set, from ‘Rock DJ’, ‘Angels’, ‘Kids’, ‘Come Undone’, ‘Let Me Entertain You’ and more. Alongside the music, which brought enough joy on its own, Williams tore up the stage with a handful of backup dancers, flashing his jocks with a roaring tiger head at every chance and he even serenaded one seriously lucky fun as he performed ‘Something Stupid’.
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Geelong’s had some good luck with music acts at Mt Duneed over the years, hosting some of the biggest names in music including Leonard Cohen, Neil Young, Fleetwood Mac, Paul Simon, Don Henley, Florence + The Machine, Red Hot Chili Peppers and Elton John, all courtesy of A Day On The Green.
Proving their consistency in securing the world’s very best, 2023 marks the 22nd season of A Day On The Green, which started in January 2001. After nearly 500 shows and more than more million happy patrons, the A Day On The Green experience of good food, fine wine and great music in magnificent locations remains unrivalled, renowned as one of Australia’s most popular and premier outdoor concert events.
On the main drivers of its success, Newton shares: “Well for example, with Robbie choosing to tour with us again, his agent and his manager and he knows that he’s going to come and play A Day on the Green and he’s going to get looked after.
“We don’t even try and have cheap production or cheap staging; we always have more toilets than we need; We want people to have a really good time at our shows.
“It’s a genuine thing with us and we don’t skimp on any areas of the show. Sometimes things go wrong, yes, I know that. But really, our main thing is to look after the artist and make sure they have a smooth show, give them what they want and look after people that are coming along, as well as trying to keep the prices reasonable given the cost of running an outdoor show.”
While the past couple of years has presented a raft of challenges for the events brand, Robbie Williams is just the latest in a string of shows announced for Geelong, including Sting, The Killers, Crowded House and Tent Pole, the brand-new festival headlined by US indie heroes Pavement featuring 12 bands over two stages.
There’s a lot for music lovers to be excited about thanks to A Day On The Green, but there’s just something about Robbie Williams that promises to be a life-changing music experience.
“This is going to be very, very special. Robbie Williams is an incredible entertainer and he’s bringing his A-game to Geelong,” he says.
“Come to the show and as Robbie says, ‘Let him entertain you’.”
Don’t miss Robbie Williams as he celebrates 25 years of solo hits at Mt Duneed Estate in Geelong on Saturday, November 25 2023. Tickets are currently sold out but you can try your luck via the Fan-to-Fan resale via Ticketmaster here.
Check out all his A Day on the Green dates here. Tickets for the new ROBBIE WILLIAMS show at Nikola Estate, Swan Valley, go on sale Friday 14 October at 10.00am local time (1.00pm AEDT) from Ticketmaster.
Robbie Williams also playing AAMI Park, Melbourne. For info visit Frontier Touring
