The Strokes: What to expect from their 2026 UK tour?

When The Strokes arrived in the early 2000s, they quickly became one of the most important bands of a new generation of guitar music. Their 2001 debut, Is This It, captured the mood of the period, with songs such as “Last Nite”, “Someday” and “Hard to Explain” helping turn a New York band into an international success.

What followed was a career that refused to stay in one place. Room on Fire built on the sound of their debut, First Impressions of Earth took a heavier turn, and later records including Angles, Comedown Machine and The New Abnormal saw The Strokes explore different sounds without losing the character that had made them so recognisable in the first place.

Now, more than 25 years after the band formed, The Strokes have another record to add to a catalogue that has continued to evolve since Is This It. Reality Awaits brings nine new songs into the mix. The songs that first established The Strokes will form an essential part of the set.

With The Strokes tickets available for their 2026 UK dates, here's what to expect when the Reality Awaits tour arrives in Britain.

Why are The Strokes touring in 2026?

The Strokes' 2026 tour comes in the wake of Reality Awaits, their seventh studio album and their first new record since 2020's The New Abnormal. Six years is a significant gap between albums, particularly for a band whose early career was marked by a remarkable run of records, so the arrival of Reality Awaits gives the current tour a natural focus.

It is a chance for The Strokes to introduce a new collection of songs while continuing to perform the material that has been central to their live shows for more than two decades.

Produced by Rick Rubin, Reality Awaits arrives at a point when The Strokes have little left to prove about the music that first made them famous. Is This It still stands as one of the most influential guitar records of the early 2000s, and songs from those early albums have become permanent fixtures of the band's live identity, but the group have spent the years since gradually moving away from the idea that they need to recreate that particular moment in their history.

That gives 2026 shows an interesting balance. The Strokes can draw on the songs that established them without having to turn the tour into a celebration of the past, while the new album gives the set a sense of where the band are now.

For an audience that has followed them from Is This It onwards, there is the appeal of hearing familiar songs in a new context, while anyone discovering the band more recently will get a live introduction to both their earlier material and their latest work.

The UK dates therefore arrive at an interesting point in The Strokes' career, giving Reality Awaits its place within a much bigger story.

What will The Strokes play on their 2026 tour?

If the 2026 shows so far are anything to go by, The Strokes have no intention of treating the Reality Awaits tour as a simple run through the hits. The setlists have been moving around the band's catalogue, jumping from the urgency of Is This It to later material and back again, with the new album beginning to find its place alongside songs that have been part of the band's live repertoire for years.

The biggest songs that established The Strokes will form an essential part of the set. “Hard to Explain”, “Someday”, “Last Nite” and “Reptilia” will be among the songs that can transform a Strokes show in an instant, while “You Only Live Once”, “Juicebox” and “The Adults Are Talking” have helped connect those early records with the band's later work. There is a sense of a band looking across its career rather than simply recreating the period that made its reputation.

That has also left room for some less predictable choices. “Ize of the World”, “Life Is Simple in the Moonlight”, “Automatic Stop”, “12:51”, “Threat of Joy” and “Heart in a Cage” have all appeared during the 2026 run, giving fans who know their discography beyond the singles plenty to listen out for.

The new material adds another variable. Reality Awaits is the first Strokes album in six years, so there is a natural curiosity around how its songs will sit alongside the records that came before it. “Going Shopping” has already established itself in the live set, while “Dine N’Dash” and “Going to Babble On” have also been performed, suggesting that more of the new record could find its way into the UK shows.

Of course, The Strokes have enough material to keep the familiar songs in place while still changing up the setlist  from night to night, and there is always the possibility that a deeper cut will turn up where a more obvious choice might have been.

The songs that made The Strokes famous remain impossible to ignore, but Reality Awaits gives them something new to say alongside them.

Will The Strokes play songs from Reality Awaits?

The new album is already finding its place in The Strokes' live set, although the band have so far resisted turning the Reality Awaits tour into a showcase for the record alone. With nine new songs to choose from, there is plenty of scope to bring more of the album into the UK shows while keeping the older favourites that have become essential parts of a Strokes set.

Reality Awaits includes “Psycho Shit”, “Dine N’Dash”, “Lonely in the Future”, “Falling out of Love”, “Going to Babble On”, “Going Shopping”, “Liar's Remorse”, “The Fruits of Conquest” and “Tyrants of the Mellow Moon”. “Going Shopping” has already become one of the more established new additions to the live set, while “Dine N’Dash” and “Going to Babble On” have also been played during the 2026 tour.

It will be interesting to see how much further the band go with the album once they reach the UK. Six years have passed since The New Abnormal, so there is a sizable gap for Reality Awaits to fill, but The Strokes have also accumulated a catalogue that makes it difficult to find room for everything fans might want to hear.

That is where the new record could become particularly interesting live. Hearing songs from Reality Awaits alongside “Last Nite”, “Someday”, “Reptilia” and the rest of the band's earlier work gives the audience a chance to hear how The Strokes have changed without completely separating the band they are now from the one that first made their name.

For anyone heading to the UK shows, the question is therefore less whether Reality Awaits will feature and more how much of it The Strokes will bring with them. The songs are already part of the current live era, and the UK dates should reveal just how prominent the new material becomes when it is placed alongside more than 20 years of Strokes favourites.

Where are The Strokes touring in the UK in 2026?

The Strokes will bring the Reality Awaits tour to the UK in October, with four dates across London, Newcastle and Manchester before the European and UK and Ireland run continues to Dublin.

The UK dates open with two consecutive nights at London's The O2 on October 6 and 7, giving fans in the capital two chances to see the band on the opening leg of their British shows. The tour then heads north later in the month, with The Strokes playing Utilita Arena Newcastle on October 25 before arriving at Manchester's Co-op Live the following night.

The UK dates are:

London, The O2: October 6, 2026
London, The O2: October 7, 2026
Newcastle, Utilita Arena Newcastle: October 25, 2026
Manchester, Co-op Live: October 26, 2026

The UK dates are followed by a show at Dublin's 3Arena on October 28, completing the band's UK and Ireland run before the wider Reality Awaits tour continues.

Who is supporting The Strokes in the UK?

Fat White Family and Alex Cameron will join The Strokes as support acts for the UK dates, giving the shows a bill that feels rather broader than a straightforward indie rock lineup.

Fat White Family have spent the past decade building a reputation for unpredictable performances, with their South London roots and taste for post punk, glam and darker strains of rock making them a suitably unruly addition to a Strokes show.

Alex Cameron brings a different sensibility altogether. His songs draw on pop and rock, but with a theatrical streak and a deliberately exaggerated approach to character and storytelling that has made him one of the more distinctive performers in the Australian indie scene.

Both acts will appear alongside The Strokes during the London shows, with the same support lineup also announced for the Newcastle date.

What can fans expect from The Strokes live?

The Strokes have spent more than two decades turning their songs into live favourites, and the 2026 shows have shown just how much there is to choose from. The biggest moments are likely to come from songs such as “Last Nite”, “Someday”, “Hard to Explain” and “Reptilia”, but recent performances have also reached into later albums and less frequently performed tracks, giving the set more variety than a straightforward run through the hits.

That is particularly noticeable in the way songs from different periods now sit alongside each other. “12:51”, “Ize of the World”, “Threat of Joy” and “Heart in a Cage” have all appeared during the 2026 tour, while “Going Shopping”, “Dine N’Dash” and “Going to Babble On” have brought Reality Awaits into the live show. For fans who know The Strokes well, there is therefore plenty to listen out for beyond the most familiar songs.

The new material should also give the shows their own identity. Reality Awaits is the band's first album in six years, so these concerts are an opportunity to hear those songs develop in a live setting while they are still new. Placing them alongside songs from Is This It, Room on Fire, First Impressions of Earth and the albums that followed also makes it possible to hear the different stages of The Strokes' songwriting within the same set.

The current shows have also left some room for variation, which means there is no guarantee that every UK date will follow exactly the same pattern. The biggest songs will remain important, but the deeper choices and newer tracks give the band enough flexibility to change what they play  from one night to another.

For a group with as many recognisable songs as The Strokes, that gives the Reality Awaits tour plenty of scope. There is the excitement of hearing the songs that first made their name, the newer material still finding its place in the set and the possibility of something slightly less expected appearing along the way.

Why The Strokes still matter more than 20 years after their debut

When Is This It arrived in 2001, The Strokes quickly found themselves at the centre of a new era of guitar music. The record became a reference point for the wave of bands that followed, with Interpol, Yeah Yeah Yeahs, The White Stripes and Franz Ferdinand all contributing to a broader revival that put guitars back at the centre of popular music.

What has kept The Strokes interesting is that their career did not stop with that first record. Room on Fire refined the ideas of the debut, First Impressions of Earth pushed towards a heavier sound, while Angles and Comedown Machine took the band into less familiar territory. The New Abnormal offered another change of pace, and Reality Awaits now gives them a new set of songs to take on the road.

That history is part of what makes the 2026 shows interesting. The Strokes have songs that audiences have known for more than 20 years, but they are not simply returning to reproduce the period that made them famous. The new album gives the current shows their own identity, while the older material provides the connection to the band that first emerged from New York at the start of the century.

More than two decades after Is This It, that is perhaps the strongest argument for The Strokes' continued relevance. The songs from their early years have lasted, but the band have continued to add to them rather than simply living off the reputation of one record.

With The Strokes tickets available for the 2026 UK shows, the Reality Awaits tour brings those different periods together, giving longtime fans the chance to hear familiar songs again while introducing the band's newest material to a new audience.

Frequently Asked Questions about The Strokes' 2026 UK Tour

Where can I buy The Strokes tickets?

The Strokes tickets are available through Seatpin for the band's 2026 Reality Awaits tour, including their UK dates in London, Newcastle and Manchester. Ticket availability can vary by date and seating area.

Where are The Strokes performing in the UK?

The Strokes will play four UK shows in 2026, with two dates at The O2 in London followed by concerts at Utilita Arena Newcastle and Co-op Live in Manchester. The wider UK and Ireland run also includes a show at Dublin's 3Arena.

When does The Strokes' 2026 UK tour start?

The Strokes' UK tour begins at The O2 in London on October 6, 2026, with a second London show taking place the following night. The band will then return to the UK later in October for dates in Newcastle and Manchester.

What are The Strokes' 2026 UK tour dates?

The UK dates are:

London, The O2: October 6, 2026
London, The O2: October 7, 2026
Newcastle, Utilita Arena Newcastle: October 25, 2026
Manchester, Co-op Live: October 26, 2026

The Strokes will then play Dublin's 3Arena on October 28 as part of the UK and Ireland run.

What album are The Strokes touring in 2026?

The Strokes are touring behind Reality Awaits, their seventh studio album and their first new record since 2020's The New Abnormal. Produced by Rick Rubin, the album gives the 2026 tour its main focus while the set continues to draw on songs from throughout the band's career.

Will The Strokes play songs from Reality Awaits?

Several songs from Reality Awaits have already appeared during the band's 2026 shows, including “Going Shopping”, “Dine N’Dash” and “Going to Babble On”. “Falling out of Love” has also been performed during the current tour. The exact selection is likely to vary between dates.

What songs will The Strokes play on their 2026 UK tour?

Recent 2026 setlists have included songs such as “Hard to Explain”, “Someday”, “Last Nite”, “Reptilia”, “You Only Live Once”, “Juicebox” and “The Adults Are Talking”, alongside later material and less frequently played songs including “Ize of the World”, “12:51”, “Threat of Joy” and “Heart in a Cage”.

The final UK setlists have not been confirmed, so there is room for changes from night to night.

Who is supporting The Strokes in the UK?

Fat White Family and Alex Cameron are supporting The Strokes on the UK dates. Both acts will appear alongside The Strokes during the London shows, with the same support lineup also announced for the Newcastle date.

How long is The Strokes' 2026 concert?

The exact length of The Strokes' set has not been confirmed. The London shows currently have a 23:00 curfew, while venue timings can vary, so fans should check their ticket and venue information closer to the date.

Are The Strokes touring Europe in 2026?

The UK dates form part of a wider European tour, with The Strokes also scheduled to play shows in Amsterdam, Düsseldorf, Berlin, Bologna, Barcelona and Paris.