Divine Schism: Heavenly

Name: Divine Schism: Heavenly
Start: 2026-03-14T19:30:00+00:00
Location: The Nest, 33 Little Clarendon Street, Oxford, OX1 2HU

Schedule

Sat, 14 Mar, 2026 at 07:30 pm

UTC+00:00

Location

The Nest, 33 Little Clarendon Street, Oxford, OX1 2HU | Oxford, EN

Oh my, Heavenly are coming to Oxford and playing an all ages show at The Nest for Divine Schism!
Heavenly, one of the crown jewels of the legendary Sarah Records roster, reunited in May 2023 for a pair of shows in London, much to the delight of devoted fans around the world. Select shows in the US and Europe followed, including a joyous set at GGP24. Heavenly helped define the sound of early ’90s indie pop — witty, wistful and defiantly DIY. We are delighted that they are touring in 2026 in support of an eagerly anticipated new album on Skepwax Records where we have no doubt that spirit will live on.
Originally forming in Oxford in 1989 from the ashes of legendary punk pop combo Talulah Gosh, Heavenly features Amelia Fletcher (vocals/guitar), Peter Momtchiloff (guitar), Robert Pursey (bass), Cathy Rogers (keyboards/vocals) and Ian Button (drums).
Members of the indiepop scene in the UK and the burgeoning Riot Grrrl scene in the US, Heavenly created a unique blend of infectious melody and sharp-edged lyrics. The band’s original catalogue ran from jangly debut “Heavenly vs. Satan” (1991), through the harmony-rich “Le Jardin de Heavenly”(1992) and riot grrrl-influenced “The Decline and Fall of Heavenly” (1994), to the Britpop era “Operation Heavenly” (1996).
On their spring 2026 dates, the band will play songs from the band’s past career alongside tracks from the new album. This combination is important to
the group. “If you’re just doing your old songs and nothing else, you’re almost like one of those cover bands—but of yourself. That would have felt pretty
weird pretty quickly,” says Amelia Fletcher. Their spring 2026 tour also marks three decades since the release of “Operation Heavenly.” The band had expected their fourth album to be their most successful but they never promoted it properly due to the death of original drummer Mathew Fletcher just before its release. Drummer Ian Button now completes the Heavenly line-up.
Alongside Heavenly these days, Amelia, Rob and Ian currently also play in Brian Bilston and The Catenary Wires and Swansea Sound; and Peter plays in The Would-Be-Goods and Tufthunter.