Media centre

Thursday 14 Jan 2016

Britain’s rock music history on display at railway stations in London and Liverpool

Region & Route:

National

| Southern

Visitors to London King’s Cross and Liverpool Lime Street stations will be able to enjoy some of the classic images taken by renowned rock photographer, Denis O’Regan, as he brings his ‘Rock Through The Ages’ exhibition showcasing music legends of the 60s, 70s and 80s to the stations for a month from today (14 January 2016) .

David Bowie, Oasis and the Rolling Stones are among the stars captured in the  ‘Rock Through The Ages’ exhibition, which brings to life well-loved and notorious British and international music stars whom Denis Regan has spent more than 40 years photographing, both on and off stage.

Music and TV fans will also get the rare treat of being able to see the “Gibson: Throne of guitars” at London King’s Cross station. Created out of 100 original Gibson and Epiphone guitars, the Gibson Throne is seldom on public display but will be on show at King’s Cross for one week only.

Of his free-to-view exhibition, Denis O’Regan said: “I have photographed great musicians and travelled to extraordinary places to capture classic moments in music. Railway stations are a great way of connecting people with art in their everyday lives and it is fantastic to be able to share my photos with rail passengers and station users around the country.” 

Having honed his craft in the UK punk scene of the 1970s, Denis was, in 1978, the most published photographer in music paper NME. In the Eighties and Nineties his photographs were published worldwide and he toured the globe as official photographer to the Rolling Stones, Thin Lizzy, KISS, Duran Duran, Queen, David Bowie, Spandau Ballet and Pink Floyd. He was official Live Aid photographer in 1985 at Wembley Stadium, and over the last ten years has shot major events. In 1999 he was the only photographer allowed access to Paul McCartney’s legendary Cavern show.

Network Rail’s director of retail, Hamish Kiernan, said: “Millions of people pass through Network Rail stations every day and whether you are in London or Liverpool, you will know the musicians featured in the Rock Through the Ages exhibition. We want our stations to be exceptional places for rail passengers and destinations in their own right for those wanting to eat, shop and experience arts and culture. All profit generated by commercial activity at our stations is reinvested, making our network better for the millions of people who travel by rail each day.”

Rock Through The Ages was inspired by research highlighting the strong emotional connections that people who grew up in the 1960s to 1990s, during the rock/pop boom, now have with contemporary music. Dr Julia Jones, founder of social brand Generation Music Club who carried out the research, discovered that music from this era continues to connect with those who grew up listening to it as well as with younger generations. This means parents and children are sharing lifelong music tastes and live experiences. Visitors can register free online to receive a rock photography tip sheet and will be entered into a draw to win a camera prize which will be announced at the end of the tour on March 31st 2016.

  

Full details of Rock Through The Ages can be obtained from www.generationmusicclub.com and a full archive of Denis’ images is available at www.denis.co.uk

Other arts and cultural events are planned for Network Rail managed stations across the country. Highlights in the coming months include:

• The Landscape Photographer of the Year competition where amateur and professional photographers showcase images of British scenery. The exhibition is on display at London’s Waterloo station until 7 February 2016 and will then tour stations around the country.

• WWI exhibition. The important role played by the railway during World War I is told in an exhibition produced by the Rail Delivery Group, which brings together Network Rail and the train operators.

ENDS

NOTES TO EDITOR

Photo opportunity: Denis O’Regan will escort Network Rail chairman Sir Peter Hendy around the Rock Through the Ages exhibition at 12.45pm on Thursday 14 January.

The Rock Through the Ages exhibition will move to Birmingham New Street and Glasgow Central stations in early February 2016.