Iron Maiden are British metal titans, famous even to those who cower at the thought of distortion. Celebrating their fiftieth year as a band, the Run For Your Lives tour lands in Knebworth for one final extension of last year’s extensive UK performances. They’ve played here before, having previously headlined the now discontinued Sonisphere Festival, but the historic venue has lured them back for Eddfest, an event dedicated solely to Iron Maiden. The occasion sees these hallowed musical grounds transformed into a Maiden-themed kingdom, featuring band-related bars, rides and even a museum.
Knebworth’s somewhat remote location means that fans have committed to something of a heavy metal pilgrimage to be here, though the feeling of distance between Eddfest and normality is slightly reduced by the gig’s partial clash with England’s World Cup fixture against Norway. “Fuck me, anyone would think there’s a football match on”, lead singer and ringleader Bruce Dickinson remarks. The band are known football fans – bassist Steve Harris is a longtime West Ham supporter. They even performed at the club’s stadium last year. But other that the occasional reference, the football talk ends here. Instead, for two hours, Iron Maiden celebrate the most remarkable of careers with some of the genre’s finest offerings.
The day’s earlier performances include Mongolia’s The Hu, Australia’s Airbourne and, most notably, The Darkness, whose unabashed theatricality aligns with Maiden’s penchant for stagecraft. “Exquisite” says vocalist Justin Hawkins following one of many crowd singalongs that he not so subtlety engineers. It’s a well-balanced performance that covers the new and the old, and even finds space for an abridged version of ‘Christmas Time (Don’t Let the Bells End)’, much to the supposed chagrin of the band’s manager. “My manager’s walking out in disgust”, says Hawkins. “He’s taking his manbag with him.” Punchy and always humble, The Darkness are the perfect warmup.
Armed with five decades of music, though opting to ignore any of the band’s more recent material, Iron Maiden begin in a reflective mood. They open with three of songs from ‘Killers’, an early album that featured original vocalist Paul Di’Anno. Following his death in 2024, Dickinson’s renditions here feel less like a continuation of the Di’Anno era and more like a tribute to the late vocalist, whose crucial contributions towards the beginning of Maiden’s journey are fundamental to their longevity. It makes for a sweltering opening run of songs, too, with the usual sight of Steve Harris’ thundering bass and guitarist Janick Gers’ arched back further adding to the excitement.
Shorts from the horror classic Nosferatu accompany an early showing of ‘The Number of the Beast’. Having been freshly recontextualised following the song’s use in ‘28 Years Later: The Bone Temple’, the sight of Ralph Fiennes’ flailing body will be forever associated with the Maiden classic. In Fiennes’ absence, the song still thunders along with an energy that belies the band’s age. It remains undeniably exhilarating, but a cynical reading would note how similar everything is thus far to Maiden’s 2025 shows. It is therefore pleasing to see the addition of ‘Infinite Dreams’ – a rarity that thankfully means there is something new here for those who attended Maiden’s 2025 London Stadium show.
Following this, the band launch into ‘Powerslave’, where a now masked Dickinson makes full use of the raised platform behind the band. This begins a run of three songs from the ‘Powerslave’ album, during which Dickinson’s voice appears fully warmed-up and blemish-free. ‘Rime of the Ancient Mariner’ – in all its 14-minute glory – is an exercise in stamina that is every bit as thrilling as the powerhouse performance of ‘Run to the Hills’ that follows. It’s hit-after-hit, with an unparalleled success-rate.
As the show progresses, so increases Maiden’s production value. Dry ice swamps the stage during a moody ‘Seventh Son of a Seventh Son’, while Dickinson sings from within a cage during ‘Hallowed Be Thy Name’. He eventually breaks free, only to be chased by a ghoulish creature on screens behind the band.
Then there’s Eddie, Iron Maiden’s longtime mascot, whose 10-feet tall body stalks Dickinson during numerous songs. The Trooper sees the two locked in battle, with Dickinson pausing only to wave a union jack triumphantly towards the crowd.
Certain moments have the audience questioning whether Dickinson is auditioning for the next Bond villain, given his various and increasingly bizarre costume choices. ‘Aces High’ sees him wearing a flight cap – apropos given Dickinson is himself a licenced airline pilot – while ‘Fear of the Dark’ has him holding a gas lamp as he prowls the stage, looking something like a hybrid between the highwayman and a Scooby Doo villain. One can only assume that the boxes upon boxes presumably required to store his wardrobe would fill multiple fancy dress shops, and that Dickinson is never short of outfits for Halloween.
As fatigued metalheads trudge back to Stevenage station, looking both enamoured by what they’ve seen and saddened that Eddfest is over, there’s a sense that, despite the occasion’s celebratory nature, this is far from the end of the road for Maiden. Other than the absence of drummer Nicko McBrain, who retired from touring in 2024, the band’s lineup has been unchanged for decades. “We’re not going anywhere”, Dickinson reassures. It all suggests that an event similar to Eddfest may well be on the cards for future years. And with such an extensive catalogue of titanic metal hits, enough youthful exuberance to keep the flames fanned, and more pomp than a Broadway show, there’s no reason to believe that Iron Maiden are done just yet.
BEN WILLIAMS
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