The Oasis Feud Was Deeper and More Violent Than You May Recall

The Oasis reunion basically broke the Internet. While Liam Gallagher and Noel Gallagher seem to have buried the hatchet (or maybe were offered 100 million pounds), a lot of people—and even some Oasis fans—don't really know why the band split up in the first place.

Boasting massive hits like "Wonderwall," "Champagne Supernova" and "Don't Look Back In Anger," Oasis was one of the biggest and most influential bands of the 1990s and 2000s before they disbanded in 2009. Since then, the brothers have beefed publicly in the press and on social media, with Noel comparing Liam to "a man with a fork in a world of soup" and Liam memorably calling Noel a delicious starch.

Find out what led to one of the biggest and longest beefs in rock: The Noel Gallagher and Liam Gallagher feud.

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What happened between Noel and Liam?

Eh, a lot. Here's a timeline for you to keep it (somewhat, slightly) simple.

September 1994: Noel Gallagher walks offstage and quits Oasis (very briefly).

Noel briefly quit Oasis for several days on Sept. 29, 1994, when Liam heckled him and threw a tambourine at him during a concert at Los Angeles' Whiskey A-Go-Go. Liam later revealed in the documentary Supersonic (via Rolling Stone) that the band accidentally got high on crystal meth, thinking it was cocaine, which was part of why the set was a disaster. You can hear audio from the incident (in which Noel stormed offstage) below.

Sometime in 1994: Noel and Liam Gallagher curse each other out in an interview.

Sometime in 1994, the brothers sat down for an interview that quickly devolved into them insulting and cursing at one another. The NSFW audio is captured below and was actually released on vinyl in November 1995.

Spring 1995: Noel hits Liam Gallagher over the head with a cricket bat.

While Noel Gallagher was recording (What's the Story) Morning Glory at a studio in Wales, Liam reportedly brought a rowdy, drunk group of pals into the space. Noel was, uh, displeased, and responded with a few swift hits to Liam's head with a cricket bat. That cricket bat has since been sold at auction, because, well, of course it has.

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August 1996: MTV Unplugged gets wonky and their gets canceled.

August 1996 was a busy month for the band, and not in the best way. Liam pulled out of Oasis' scheduled MTV Unplugged performance, citing a sore throat. While Noel performed the entire set himself, Liam kept busy by heckling his brother for almost the entire show.

Oasis was also due to kick off a tour later that month, but Liam withdrew from that as well: He'd sold his house and his wife didn't have anywhere to stay, which understandably needed his attention at the time. He rejoined shortly after, but the tour got canned within just two weeks.

May 2000: Liam Gallagher insults Noel, who quits Oasis' tour.

According to The Guardian, a Barcelona concert was canceled when drummer Alan White suffered an arm injury. To pass the time, the band drank heavily, during which Liam is said to have questioned whether Noel's daughter Anais was really his. Noel, understandably upset, quit the tour, leaving Liam and the rest of the band to play the rest of the dates without him.

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July to October 2002: Liam Gallagher struggles vocally, leading to canceled shows.

Liam suffered from issues with his voice during the band's Heathen Chemistry tour. In several performances, he could only perform a handful of songs before he had to stop, and other shows ended up being postponed or canceled as a result.

November 2002: Liam Gallagher gets into a brutal bar brawl.

On Nov. 30, 2002, Liam got into a bar brawl in Munich with several police officers and lost some of his teeth. The group canceled their remaining tour dates in Germany while he got dental work done. At the time, three band members and two crew members were reportedly arrested in the fracas.

June 2005: Liam Gallagher leaves the stage during an Oasis set at a festival.

Liam walked offstage during "Champagne Supernova" at the Heineken Jammin' Festival in Italy. The rest of the band continued on without him.

August 2009: Oasis breaks up in dramatic fashion.

On Aug. 23, 2009, Liam withdrew from an Oasis performance at the V Festival, citing laryngitis—but Noel alleged that Liam was hungover. Liam threatened to sue his brother, at which point Noel walked his comments back, but the beef kept going.

Less than a week later, Oasis was slated to headline the Rock en Seine festival in Paris, but they never made it to the stage: Noel and Liam reportedly got into a fight over an ad for Liam's clothing line in the festival program. Liam stormed into the band's dressing room and, according to Rolling Stone, wielded one of Noel's guitars like an ax and smashed it. Oasis disbanded for what seemed like for good that very day: Aug. 28, 2009.

“It's with some sadness and great relief to tell you that I quit Oasis tonight. People will write and say what they like, but I simply could not go on working with Liam a day longer,” Noel said in a statement at the time.

Days later, Noel expounded somewhat, saying in a statement, "The details are not important and of too great a number to list. But I feel you have the right to know that the level of verbal and violent intimidation towards me, my family, friends and comrades has become intolerable. And the lack of support and understanding from my management and band mates has left me with no other option than to get me cape and seek pastures new.”

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Are Oasis back together in 2024?

They are! The group announced their reunion on Aug. 25, 2024.

Who is richer, Liam or Noel Gallagher?

Noel Gallagher is reportedly worth $50 million to Liam's $6 million. There's a simple reason for that (mostly): Noel wrote Oasis' biggest songs, which means he has songwriting royalties that his brother lacks.

Are Noel and Liam friends again?

It's unclear whether Noel and Liam Gallagher are actually friendly, but they're not at each other's throats—and that's enough for them to reunite.

Will Oasis ever tour again?

They are! Get the details on Oasis' 2025 reunion tour here.

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