Fifty years after Bruce Springsteen’s first UK concert, the BBC has commissioned a one hour documentary from Wise Owl Films which chronicles his love affair with Britain and British music.
When Bruce Springsteen Came To Britain tells the story of the artist’s unique relationship with the UK – as revealed in a world exclusive new interview with the American musician.
The film, from producer/director Stuart Ramsay, tells the story of how a 26-year-old Springsteen and the E Street Band first arrived in the UK in November 1975 for a sold-out performance at the Hammersmith Odeon, giving his new album Born to Run its European premiere.
The concert was heavily hyped by Springsteen’s record company, who were keen to sell him as the new Bob Dylan. On arriving at the venue, the New Jersey-born star was dismayed to see posters which proclaimed: ‘Finally London is ready for Bruce Springsteen and the E Street Band’.
In this new interview which sees Bruce tell many never-heard-before stories, Springsteen reveals how he was so disappointed by his own performance that night that he couldn’t watch the footage back for over 30 years.
Bruce says: “(After the show)...I went to a party that was supposed to celebrate my triumph, but I felt I’d been terrible and so I was embarrassed to even go in...I went in for a few minutes, couldn’t stand myself being there, went out, ran back to the hotel, sat in my lonely room under a big black cloud, ate whatever I had and went to bed....I had PTSD from the first Hammersmith show!”
Fortunately, a second concert at the same venue a week later was a personal triumph, but Springsteen did not return to the UK until 1981 for The River Tour which took him around the country to venues including Edinburgh, Birmingham, Stafford and six nights at London’s Wembley Arena.
Springsteen recalls his first visit to Newcastle on that tour – “It was huge for us to go to Newcastle. All I knew was, Newcastle - The Animals! I was one of biggest Animals fans and to this day still am” and to Brighton “I remember (it) very, very well because it was seaside – we said ‘Oh man, this is a little bit like Asbury Park!’”
We hear Springsteen talk about his vivid memories of first hearing a Beatles song and his love of all things British in the 1960s.
The documentary also chronicles the Born in The USA tour of 1985 which saw Springsteen playing huge outdoor venues for the first time.
The story is brought up to date with Springsteen’s triumphant 2024 UK tour and being the first overseas songwriter to become a Fellow of The Ivors Academy.
The documentary also features new interviews with guitarist and E Street Band colleague Stevie Van Zandt, friends and fellow songwriters Sting and Peter Gabriel and Sir Michael Palin (who was at the first Hammersmith gig). We also hear from promoter Harvey Goldsmith (who booked Bruce for the Hammersmith show), Bruce’s legendary manager and producer Jon Landau and Springsteen superfan, actor Rob Brydon who talks about the connection he has had with Bruce’s music.
Featuring archive from the 1970s to the 2020s, the film features the stories of ‘ordinary’ fans who tell personal stories of how hearing – and meeting – Springsteen changed their lives, including Juliana Heron, the wife of a County Durham striking miner back in 1985, who received a cheque from the rock star towards their struggling community’s funds.
This is the story of a unique and ongoing two-way love affair - from the Leeds team behind BBC Two’s successful When X Came To Britain series (Bob Marley, Nirvana, Motown, Tina Turner, Blondie and ABBA) and The Hacienda: The Club That Shook Britain.
Mark Robinson, Wise Owl Films said: “This documentary chronicles a truly special relationship between an iconic American artist and the UK – and one who seems to inspire an unrivalled loyalty and passion from his fans. Not only has he been influenced by British songwriters and musicians, in turn he has influenced new generations of them too”.
Rachel Davies, Commissioning Editor, BBC Music said: “Bruce Springsteen is not only a global music icon, but he’s an honorary Brit here in the UK - he’s become one of our own! We know BBC viewers will love watching this film, which lifts the lid on his early visits to the UK with a world exclusive new interview, as well as some great insight from those that have been hugely impacted by him and his music. We’re looking forward to celebrating Bruce all night on BBC Two with a new compilation of his most loved hits and one of his all-time classic live performances.”
When Bruce Springsteen Came to Britain is a Wise Owl Films production for BBC Two and BBC Pop Music TV. It was commissioned by Rachel Davies, Commissioning Editor, BBC Pop Music TV and Jonathan Rothery, BBC Head of Pop Music TV. It is produced and directed by Stuart Ramsay, edited by James Alcock and the Executive Producer for Wise Owl Films is Mark Robinson. Wise Owl Films is part of All3Media.