Since 2013, BST Hyde Park has brought major headliners ranging from The Rolling Stones to Sabrina Carpenter to the historic London park first established by Henry VIII more than 500 years ago.
For the opening night of the 2026 edition, American country icon Garth Brooks made his long-awaited return to the UK, creating such phenomenal demand that extra tickets had to be released. The result was the most attended event in BST Hyde Park’s history.
Support across the day came from a strong country-leaning bill, including Ashley McBryde, who marked her ninth consecutive BST appearance, and Jackson Dean, whose set included “Don’t Come Lookin’,” familiar to many from Yellowstone.
Main support came from Zac Brown Band. Given the band’s Georgia roots and country-rock pedigree, a cover of The Charlie Daniels Band’s “The Devil Went Down to Georgia” felt inevitable. Yet it was their own material that left the strongest impression, from the emotional pull of “Hard Run” to the instant, easygoing singalong of “Chicken Fried,” a song about simple pleasures and enjoying a beer on a Friday night. It may not have been Friday, but Hyde Park was more than ready to oblige.
Having not played in the UK for almost 30 years, Brooks was always going to receive a huge ovation when he finally took to the stage. He immediately set the tone by promising a night built around hits and classic covers rather than new material. For an artist who has sold more than 170 million records and has multiple Diamond-certified albums to his name, the challenge was never what to play, but what to leave out.
Despite his long absence from the UK, Brooks connected with the Hyde Park crowd instantly. During “Two Piña Coladas,” he worked London into the lyrics, making the capital feel “more and more like home.” By the time “The Thunder Rolls” arrived midway through the set, Brooks had fully settled into the British mood, even mentioning the weather, which felt appropriate after the early threat of sea-spray-like drizzle had finally passed.
Brooks’ greatest strength was his ability to shift between spectacle and intimacy. One moment he had the crowd on their feet; the next, he held Hyde Park with only an acoustic guitar and the reflective sentiment of “Unanswered Prayers,” including the line, “some of God’s greatest gifts are unanswered prayers.”
He was equally effective when sharing the spotlight with his band. Several of his musicians, affectionately referred to as his “G-Men,” have recorded and toured with him since 1988, and Brooks’ trust in them was evident. Guitarist Gordon Kennedy was given his own moment to perform “Change the World,” the Eric Clapton hit he co-wrote, adding another layer of warmth and musicianship to the evening.
With 16 studio albums behind him, the inclusion of several covers might have suggested a lack of faith in his own catalogue. In practice, it did nothing of the sort. Billy Joel has long been a key influence on Brooks, making “Shameless” and “Piano Man” both fitting and warmly received. Elsewhere, his interpretation of songs such as Dewayne Blackwell’s “Friends in Low Places” proved how fully he has made them his own. As a closing number, it felt inevitable.
Brooks did not hide from his age, nor did he let it slow him down. As promised, he came to “raise hell,” and the former Oklahoma State University javelin competitor’s stamina remained impressive throughout. Yet the most touching aspect of the night was not simply the record-breaking attendance or the scale of his return, but the sense that Brooks has achieved all of this while remaining entirely himself.
At Hyde Park, he delivered a generous, heartfelt and hugely entertaining show that opened BST 2026 in spectacular style.
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