‘We created a monster’: Midge Ure reflects on Live Aid as musical heads to West End

Ultravox singer Midge Ure is perhaps best known for organising Band Aid and performing at Live Aid in 1985, the charity events that raised millions of pounds for the Ethiopian famine. But he’s about to find out what the British public really think of him when he sees the upcoming musical about those events, called Walk Right Back.

“I have no idea what the show is going to be like, I’m taking my seat in the audience just like everyone else,” he says. “I think it’s kind of odd that no-one has asked me for advice on the musical, but I’m looking forward to being surprised and I hope that it captures the ethos of those times.”

The musical, which opens in London’s West End this month, tells the story of the creation of Band Aid and Live Aid through the eyes of Ure and Ultravox drummer Billy Currie. It features songs from the era including Do They Know It’s Christmas, Vienna, and of course, Live Aid’s signature track, charity single We Are the World.

“In 1985 the music business was very different to today,” he says. “It was less corporate, less profit-driven, and a lot more altruistic. Artists had kudos if they got involved in these massive charity events.

“But I don’t know if that would be the case today. The music business is much more about artists being individual and not getting involved in collective events like that. We were creating monsters by holding these huge charity events that everyone now tries to emulate, but with less impact as a result.”

Walk Right Back is the latest in a long line of musicals and plays inspired by the events of the 1980s, including productions about the likes of Frankie Goes to Hollywood, Culture Club, and even the life of Simon Cowell. But Ure is more flattered than surprised by the attention.

“I suppose it’s because the 1980s is a period that people want to look back on and remember a more carefree and hedonistic time,” he says. “Although we didn’t realise it at the time, we were creating a lot of the sounds and styles that are popular today. The synthesiser sounds that were innovative back then are now familiar and used all over popular music.