Garbage icon Shirley Manson to carry baton from Robert Smith as guest curator for Teenage Cancer Trust at the Royal Albert Hall in 2027

Garbage‘s Shirley Manson has been announced as 2027’s Teenage Cancer Trust guest curator at the Royal Albert Hall.

Manson is set to curate the line-up for the TCT’s annual gig, which will take place next year on March 15-21. She will carry the baton from The Cure‘s Robert Smith who helmed this year’s ‘Cure-ation’ last March; he follows Sir Roger Daltrey’s lengthy stint as the TCT’s curator, who chose to step down in 2024 after two decades.

Speaking about her guest curator role, Manson said: “To follow in the footsteps of the great Sir Roger Daltrey and most beloved Robert Smith by being invited to curate next
year’s run of TCT shows is one of the greatest honours that has ever been bestowed upon me.

“I consider it an immense privilege to continue helping raise funds and awareness for our all too often forgotten teenagers in the UK who are living with cancer and the struggle that this entails,” she continued. “I hope to curate a fine week of entertainment, calling upon some of my favourite artists to join the cause. I am so looking forward to seeing it all come together at the Royal Albert Hall next year and I hope to see you there.”

Meanwhile, Smith added: “Having played a few Teenage Cancer Trust at the Royal Albert Hall shows with The Cure, it was a real honour to curate the series in 2026, bringing together so many of my favourite artists to perform for such a great cause. The response and support from the audience, in the hall itself and all around the world, was really incredible. Garbage were one of the highlights of a stellar week, and I am very sure Shirley, with her great energy, commitment and values, will do a fantastic job in 2027.”

To celebrate, an official video of Garbage’s cover of The Cure’s ‘Lovesong’ has been released. The band were invited by Smith to perform at this year’s edition, where they covered The Cure – which the band described as a “bucket list moment” (“a song by a band who inspired us to form a band”, Manson added on the night). Watch the momentous cover below:

We spoke to Garbage ahead of the TCT gigs last March, where Manson told us she “just about fucking lost my marbles” when she received the invite from Smith’s famed all-caps emails to play.

“I’ve loved The Cure for as long as I can remember, since I was about 14-years-old,” she told NME. “To get one of those famous emails from someone I admire so much was gobsmacking, really.”

Meanwhile, this year’s TCT gig saw Placebo play their first gig in two years to support Garbage, who also made a series of speeches during their headline gig.

Manson spoke out in support of the transgender community following the recent decision in the UK for transgender girls to be thrown out of the Girl Guides. “I just find this the most astoundingly weird, cruel and nonsensical drive by any government in about a billion years,” she said on the night.

Elsewhere, Garbage will embark on a summer UK and Europe tour – check out all their updated shows here.

The post Garbage icon Shirley Manson to carry baton from Robert Smith as guest curator for Teenage Cancer Trust at the Royal Albert Hall in 2027 appeared first on NME.