UK Foo Fighters

UK Foo Fighters are a tribute band dedicated to the music of Foo Fighters. They formed in 2007 in Harrogate, North Yorkshire.

The group began as a local covers band called Speedsta, which was popular between 2004 and 2007 playing songs by Nirvana, Green Day, Red Hot Chili Peppers, The White Stripes, Queens of the Stone Age, and Stereophonics. Audiences responded particularly well to their Foo Fighters covers, which led to interest from promoters and festival organisers. Their first ticketed show as a Foo Fighters tribute act took place at Daddy Cools, a small nightclub in Knaresborough, North Yorkshire. From 2007 to 2012 they played local gigs and festivals, and in 2013 they began touring further afield at O2 Academy venues across the UK.

On 10 September 2014, at Concorde2 in Brighton, Dave Grohl invited the band’s frontman, Jay Apperley, onstage to perform “White Limo” from the Foo Fighters album *Wasting Light*. Rolling Stone magazine covered this moment in its report on the 2015 iHeartRadio Music Awards, describing it as the “Best Wish Fulfilment Fantasy” and noting that Grohl, exhausted from tour, recognised his British counterpart in the crowd and called him up.

In June 2015, Foo Fighters cancelled shows in London, Edinburgh, and Glastonbury Festival after Dave Grohl broke his leg. UK Foo Fighters were asked to play the London and Edinburgh dates instead. Gigwise reported that fans who had already booked trains could see the tribute band “next door,” while NME noted the band had booked charity gigs adjacent to Wembley Stadium for disappointed fans.

On 9 June 2017, BBC Music released three short films for BBC iPlayer ahead of Glastonbury Festival, each featuring a tribute act for one of that year’s headliners: Foo Fighters, Radiohead, and Ed Sheeran. The first film, titled *My Hero: UK Foo Fighters*, focused on the tribute band.

On 15 June 2018, UK Foo Fighters performed the opening ceremony for the WUKF World Karate Championships at Dundee Ice Arena in front of thousands. On 28 September 2019, they performed at the 92nd UCI Road World Championships alongside Jarvis Cocker, The Pigeon Detectives, Litany, and The Feeling. On 4 November 2019, the band recorded a live session at BBC Maida Vale Studios in London with engineer Simon Askew.