Members of X-Ray Spex, The Raincoats, The Slits are set to come together and form a new supergroup for a punk 50th anniversary festival coming to London.
The new festival, dubbed Up Yours! God Save The Queens, is set to launch in the UK capital soon, and designed to celebrate the past, present and future of female punk.
It comes 50 years after X-Ray Spex singer Poly Styrene and a generation of pioneering women helped shape punk music, art and identity, and will feature artwork, photography, fashion and personal archival material from those who led the movement.
A centrepiece of the 2026 event will be a one-off gig at Electric Brixton on Friday October 16 which will see the formation of God Save The Queens – a unique supergroup that brings together pioneering musicians from across generations to celebrate 50 years of shepunk.
The headline performance will feature a historic X-Ray Spex reunion, with original members Lora Logic and Paul Dean, alongside Celeste Bell who is the daughter of Poly Styrene and will be performing her mother’s songs.
Joining them will be Hollie Cook (The Slits), Gina Birch (The Raincoats), Akiko Matsuura (Comanechi / PRE), Big Joanie, Rhoda Dakar (The Bodysnatchers / The Specials), grunge-punk trio Hot Wax, Vivien Goldman, Bishi, and early champion of X-Ray Spex John Robb, who opened for the band at the Roundhouse and was a close friend of Poly Styrene.
“Contributing previously unseen artwork to the exhibition while also stepping onto the stage to play these iconic songs again feels like completing a full circle and is incredibly special,” said Lora Logic. “For me,the creative expression of the movement was always multi-dimensional; it was visual art, clothes and noise all at once.”
The festival is curated by filmmaker, writer, performer, and daughter of Poly Styrene, Celeste Bell, as well as Lauren Estelle Jones – the co-founder of the contemporary art organisations Art Barter and Alteria Art, the daughter of The Clash guitarist Mick Jones, and director of his personal archive. Also involved is Vivien Goldman, the legendary British music writer and performer who became known as “the professor of punk” during her academic career at NYU.
It will take place across London up until November 2026, with the flagship exhibition, opening on October 23, among the first major shows staged at the Museum of Youth Culture in Camden.
Other highlights alongside the live show include The Poly Styrene Archive, archival fashion pieces, original artworks, previously unseen artwork from Lora Logic, photography from Bob Gruen, Kate Simon and David Corio (including rarely seen photographs and archival prints of Siouxsie Sioux, Chrissie Hynde, Ari Up, Judy Nylon and Rhoda Dakar) and more. Visit here for more information.
The festival isn’t the only celebration of punk taking place in London this year. The 100 Club recently confirmed that it would be hosting two shows from Sprints, Maruja and more, celebrating the 50th anniversary of one of their most iconic punk gigs.
The 1976 shows were held on September 20 and 21, and featured performances from Sex Pistols, The Clash, Siouxsie and the Banshees, The Damned, Buzzcocks Subway Sect, Chris Spedding & The Vibrators and Stinky Toys from Paris – most of which were unsigned at the time.
Now, to mark the 50th anniversary of that gig, The 100 Club is hosting two more shows on the same dates. The shows celebrate not only what punk was back in the ‘70s, but how the genre looks today. In keeping with the spirit of the 1970s punk scene, tickets for the upcoming shows will be the same price that they were back in 1976 – costing just £1.50 each.
Over the pond, a supergroup featuring members of Green Day, Blink-182, Rancid and Ramones also formed, playing an official 50th anniversary Ramones tribute show in Los Angeles.
