Cliff Notes – Robbie Williams concert cancelled in interest of public safety
- Robbie Williams’ concert in Istanbul, scheduled for October 7, has been cancelled by city authorities due to public safety concerns, as announced on his Instagram.
- The singer expressed his disappointment, stating that the decision was beyond his control and emphasised the importance of fan safety.
- The cancellation marks the end of his Britpop tour, which has faced delays, including the postponement of his upcoming album release to February 2026.
Robbie Williams concert cancelled ‘in interest of public safety’
A Robbie Williams concert in Turkey has been cancelled due to ‘public safety concerns’ (Picture: Cameron Spencer/ AFL Photos/ via Getty Images)
Robbie Williams has announced one of his upcoming shows in Turkey has been cancelled by public officials.
The singer, 51, has been due to perform at Istanbul’s Atakoy Marina on Tuesday, October 7.
However, he’s now revealed the last show of his Britpop tour won’t be going ahead.
Posting a statement on Instagram, he began by apologising to fans.
‘I’m extremely sorry that I will not be able to perform in Istanbul next week.
‘City authorities have cancelled the show, in the interests of public safety.
He released a statement apologising to fans (Picture: David Ramos/ Getty Images)
He said the cancellation was ‘beyond our control’ (Picture: Robbie Williams/ Instagram)
‘The last thing I would ever want to do is to jeopardise the safety of my fans – their safety and security come first.’
He went on: ‘We were very excited to be playing Istanbul for the first time and purposely chose the city as the final show of the BRITPOP tour.
‘To end this epic run of dates in front of my Turkish fans was my dream, given the close connections my family have with this wonderful country.
‘To everyone in Istanbul who wanted to join the 1.2 million people who have shared this phenomenal tour this year with us, I am deeply sorry. We were so looking forward to this show but the decision to cancel it was beyond our control.’
The Britpop tour has been Robbie’s fourteenth concert tour in support of his upcoming thirteenth studio album, Britpop.
It kicked off in Edinburgh in May, with the last show being held in Athens on Thursday night.
The show had been due to be the final one of his Britpop tour (Picture: Marvin Ibo Guengoer – GES Sportfoto/ Getty Images)
Although his album had been due for release on October 10, last month it was announced it had been pushed back by four months.
Those who had pre-ordered the album were sent an email, which read: ‘Due to scheduling changes, Britpop will now be released on February 6, 2026.’
Last week the singer also spoke about being diagnosed with a neurological condition.
During an appearance on Paul Whitehouse and Dr Mine Conkbayir’s podcast I’m ADHD! No You’re Not, Robbie said he’d been been suffering from ‘inside tourettes’ for years and is a ‘Olympian at masking.’
‘I’ve just realised that I have Tourette’s, but they don’t come out,’ he said of the tics.
‘They are intrusive thoughts that happen, I was just walking down the road the other day, and I realised that these intrusive thoughts are inside Tourette’s. It just doesn’t come out.’
In the podcast, he spoke about having been previously diagnosed with ADHD and depression.
The singer’s next album is due to be released next year (Picture: Gilbert Flores/ Penske Media via Getty Images)
He also spoke about becoming an expert at masking how he is actually feeling while performing.
‘You would think that a stadium full of people professing their love to you would work, but whatever it is, inside me, I cannot hear it. This tour in particular, as a 51-year-old, I’ve approached it differently because I seem to be in the space to approach things differently,’ he said.
‘I have a very complicated relationship with touring and performing live. People say: “Oh, you’re going on tour? You must be really, really excited.” Not really. I’m terrified. I mask, like I’m an Olympian at masking.’
He went on: ‘I will look full of bravado and look pompous and look smug and do these grand gestures, which have worked for me because they put my face on the poster and people still buy tickets, but actually what’s happening is I feel like the opposite of that all the time, most of the time.’
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