Morrissey closed the first Barts Festival at Poble Espanyol in Barcelona on Saturday 25 July, performing through a brief but heavy summer downpour as fans filled the venue close to capacity. The rain arrived during How Soon Is Now, while festival bars offered only vegan food, a condition associated with the singer's shows.

For concertgoers, the finale capped a 20-night programme that the festival said drew 68,000 attendees with an average occupancy of 70%. Some fans had waited at the entrance from the previous night in order to be among the first inside, local reporting said.

Morrissey performed 20 songs after delayed start

The concert was scheduled to begin at 21:30 and Morrissey took to the stage 11 minutes late, according to Poble Espanyol's event listing and reporting by El Periódico. Early songs were affected by a dense sound mix that initially obscured his voice, El País reported.

His voice became more prominent as the set continued. The 20-song performance included Billy Budd, I Just Want To See The Boy Happy, A Rush And A Push And The Land Is Ours and material from his latest work, Make-up is a Lie.

  • Date: Saturday 25 July 2026
  • Venue: Poble Espanyol, Barcelona
  • Festival total: 68,000 attendees across 20 nights, according to the festival's closing balance

Anti-bullfighting appeal accompanied the Barcelona date

The Manchester singer's Barcelona appearance followed a public appeal to Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez to ban bullfighting. Visual material opposing bullfighting was also shown during the concert.

"[Bullfighting] continues to tarnish Spain's credibility."

The show was Morrissey's fourth Barcelona appearance, following a 1985 performance with The Smiths at Studio 54 and solo concerts at Sant Jordi Club in 2014 and Razzmatazz in 2015, according to El Periódico.

The storm fell during How Soon Is Now, pairing the song's tremolo guitar with a short, intense spell of rain before the concert continued.

Reported by Source Text Link, Luis Hidalgo, Jordi Bianciotto, poble-espanyol.com, barts.cat, russpain.com, bbc.co.uk, euronews.com, Por EFE, Laurence Dollimore.