Ben Thatcher and the Albion
“It’s all pretty mad, isn’t it” Royal Blood’s Ben Thatcher told Dogma on the surreal feeling of him touring Europe as a rockstar and his beloved Brighton touring the football grounds of Europe.
The boy behind the question, writing this piece, can’t help but agree. My mind is taking me back to 2017…
It was one of those random moments that didn’t mean anything at the time but made sense years later. But this boy remembers everything; where I was and what I saw. I can recall the blue and white stripes, the waving flags and countless smiles at the Amex. Dunky’s fringe, Duffy’s chance and two late Man City goals that led Brighton to defeat.
For some reason, these images stayed with me, even if they shouldn’t. It was a special occasion, Brighton’s first ever game in the Premier League, but to me, back then, it was just another game of just another club. Oh how things would change... Brighton would go on to be my club and mean the world to me, and it all started with a band, Royal Blood. Ben Thatcher banging his special drum kit on stage, the one with the huge Seagulls crest on the bass drum.
See, growing up in Athens, I couldn’t have followed the traditional ‘support your local club’ path to end up loving the Albion. Seeing Ben’s ‘loud and proud’ affection for the club was what triggered my love and opened a whole new world. A world of love for the most special club. A love that now plays a major part in my life, just like it does with Ben Thatcher’s life. It all started away from actual football, almost stupidly simple: With Ben rocking the stage in his blue and white stripes, representing Brighton and Hove Albion.
For Ben it’s all pretty simple as well. He loves the Seagulls and likes to show it. After all, he might be a world renowned rockstar, but he was a Brighton supporter long before making it in music. “I’m a proud BHA fan. It’s like anything really, people support my band by coming to the shows, buying our music and wearing our t-shirts. It's exactly the same. I’m a Brighton fan, the club has a big place in my heart. I often get scarfs thrown on stage or people wearing Brighton shirts to our shows all around the world. It makes me feel at home”, Ben tells me.
It's no wonder that the club has had Ben taking part in kit launches twice, directly on stage in Australia, and indirectly on Hove Lawns. “That was an amazing moment. I remember all the players being introduced to the longest version of ‘Figure It Out’ I’ve ever heard and then seeing Anthony Knockaert coming out revealing the new shirt. But I have to argue that the best kit reveal has to be the 17/18 yellow away kit. I got to wear when I was out on tour in Australia”, Thatcher admits.
Unlike the boy behind this article, the boy behind the drums was born an Albion fan. Before launching kits for his favourite club, he had his first football shirt when he was about five. It was the 93/94 home kit with the thin stripes, and some time later he was really introduced to the game. “My earliest memory of watching the Albion was in 1995. I would have been seven years old. We were playing Swindon Town in the old Division Two at the Goldstone. It was unfortunately the first time I ever experienced a Brighton loss but nevertheless I loved being there watching the game”, he says, explaining that his love and commitment to the club grew later. “I would say I really started supporting Brighton properly during the move to the Amex. Brighton were always my local team and I enjoyed the atmosphere whenever I went to the games”.
As his love was growing, so did the club. Steadily, Brighton climbed the ranks of English football all the way to the top and Ben was there to celebrate. By the time the Seagulls managed to seal their promotion to the top flight, Royal Blood’s second album had debuted at number one on the UK charts, but the fame left Ben untouched. He was a Sussex boy and that Wigan win in 2017 made him lose his mind. “I ran on to the pitch after the final whistle, didn’t we all?”
“It was a moment that us Albion fans will never forget. We had been pushing for promotion for many seasons and the feeling of finally reaching it was incredibly exciting and a very proud moment for the fans, club and the city”, he says looking back to one of his sweetest memories as an Albion fan. “Promotion has got to be up there with the sweetest memories for sure. Other moments would be beating the Big-6 teams in our first couple of seasons in the Premier League, watching Brighton play at Wembley in the FA Cup Semi-Final and watching us secure a place in the Europa League last season”.
Ben can’t forget Mac Allister’s legendary goal right at the death of the Man United home game last season. “I really enjoyed Maca’s 99th minute penalty against Man United last season. It felt like a redemption moment from the game where they got a penalty after the final whistle”, he says. Supporting Brighton though wasn’t always as sweet as it has been the last couple of years.
“One of the toughest moments I remember hurting was the 2-0 at home to P****e in the Championship playoffs. We don’t speak of that day”. Nevertheless, he was always there for the club, in the same way that the club was always there for him. “For some football offers a sense of community and belonging, others it's a release from ‘normal’ life. Some fans make it their life and then for others it's just for entertainment. For me it's a healthy mix of all the above. It certainly has a positive effect on me”, Ben says talking about the role football and Brighton play in his life.
He considers himself lucky enough to have been involved in a couple of occasions that other fans don’t have the chance to experience. Even if things don’t always go to plan. “I was invited to the promotion party with the whole Brighton team. As you can imagine it was a big night filled with drinks and celebrations. At the party I was asked if I’d do an interview at 9am the following morning at the stadium. I didn’t think twice, accepted the offer and carried on partying. I was at that party until it was time to head to the stadium for the interview, which was live on Sky Sports News. I somehow managed to say a few words, most absolute nonsense”, Ben says when asked to name the craziest thing he’s ever done for the Albion.
What’s even crazier for him – and probably most Albion fans – is the club’s rise. No one would have expected the Seagulls to fly as high as they currently are but at the same time everyone now expects more and more for the club, because it has proven dreaming big is worth it. Ben thinks so as well. “My biggest Albion related dream is to see us win some silverware and to keep growing. We’ve become a top team and It's been great watching our team get stronger and play some class football. I think this whole club is about belief and dreaming big. I experienced many hard moments supporting Brighton, but I’ve learnt that we just don’t give up which makes our nicer moments worthwhile”, he tells Dogma, articulating Brighton and Hove Albion’s essence in a few words. Although Ben probably didn’t get to enjoy our first ever European tour as much as he would have liked. Being a rockstar involves a lot of missing out.
“Royal Blood were on tour with Muse around Europe at the time of the Europa League, so I was supporting from afar, but I did manage to get to our final game against Roma. Bittersweet'', he recalls. He can’t seem to decide which feels more surreal. Himself as a rockstar or Brighton and Hove Albion as a top club playing at the biggest stages in the continent. “It’s all pretty mad isn’t it. I got to play with Royal Blood in the Stade Vélodrome a month before watching Brighton play there. I seriously never would have dreamt of that scenario happening”, Ben says.
Ben is right. It all is “pretty mad” after all. For him, for Brighton and Hove Albion and the Seagulls fans, and for me. The boy who's taken the chance – with these words – to thank his idol for not only being there through his music, but mostly for unwittingly introducing me to a love that endures.
My love for Brighton and Hove Albion, the greatest club in the world.
Please note, this article was first published in Dogma Issue 12, and is reproduced here in a slightly amended format.
Big love to Ben Thatcher and his management team for their kind assistance, specifically Conor Byrne, Morad Khokar and Tim Hampson.
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