Review & Photos by Damien Doherty for MPM
Christmas fever has taken over Belfast City Centre this weekend as the panic sets in for the last of the gift shopping. Things are a little more laid back in East Belfast however where It’s night three of four for the third run of Ricky Warwicks’ annual shows at the Sanctuary Theatre. In 2024, funding of almost one million pounds was secured by the Bright Umbrella Drama Company to refurbish this venue, an old seafarers church, and the theatre will go dark in early 2026 as the works begin.
This years shows are entitled “The Twelve Covers of Christmas” and are an aural dedication to the songs that provided the soundtrack and inspiration to Rickys career. Accompanying him on guitar is Jordi Robinson and occupying once again the right-hand side of the stage on quips and anecdotes is his friend and co-conspirator Sam Robinson. To quote Sam it’s an eclectic mix, and as usual the format for the shows are songs interspaced with spoken word passages reflecting on Rickys life and career.
Our support act for tonight is Sams niece Victoria Foster. Victoria’s previously supported Ricky back in 2023 when she was just 15yrs old. With backing from Jordi she performs a 5-song set of numbers from some of her favourite artists. Birds of a Feather by Billy Eilish, One Step Forward and Three Steps Back from Olivia Rodrigo, Billy Joels’ Vienna, Sweet Dreams, and Carrie Underwood’s Before He Cheats are all delivered with a voice and performance that belies her young years. As I’ve mentioned before, this talented young lady is surely destined for great things.
Ricky hits the stage at 8:10pm and launches straight into Stiff Little Fingers number At The Edge. Ricky is match fit coming off a string of dates with The Almighty including a fantastic homecoming gig at the Ulster Hall. It’s no surprise to see SLF make the cut tonight, one of the most important Belfast bands of the late 70’s/early 80’s, and Jake Burns has been known to conspire with Ricky in the past and hopefully future. As a 13 year old Ricky sneaked out from his Newtownards home to see SLF in the Ulster hall, and for years thought his parents never knew, but on confessing this 35 years later it turns out it never got past his da as he was spotted in Belfast that night, you can’t go anywhere eh!
Next up is “a cover of a cover of a cover”, I Fought the Law, associated mainly with The Clash who once famously made a trip to Belfast in full combat gear to play a gig at the height of the troubles. Thin Lizzy enters the set a little earlier that I had anticipated and Ricky delivers a stellar acoustic version of Jailbreak. Bruce Springsteen (whose kids are eligible to play for Northern Ireland through the grandparent rule, fun factoid from Mr Robinson there!) is the next idol up, Atlantic City with “the best opening line from any song”, is the chosen composition from a man with a back catalogue as long as both your arms and one of your legs.
We go way back for the next couple of songs; Johnny Cash’s Cocaine Blues is up first. Its nine verses reminds Ricky of a couple of incidents with Whiskey in The Jar, once where he was berated by Brian Downey for missing the last verse, and another where mixing up the verses had Captain Farrell shot and killed before he even entered Mollys chambers. The other song is a much overlooked classic, C’mon Everybody by Eddie Cochran, the talented 50s rockabilly crooner that died at the young age of 21 during a UK tour.
The last song of the first act is from another favourite band of mine, Big Country. It’s 24 years since his untimely passing, and Ricky recalls their friendship with genuine love. We are treated to an excellent and emotional version of Chance from the bands debut release The Crossing.
A 10 minute break in in proceedings allows for a trip to the bar for refreshments, and more importantly to the wide selection of merch available this year at the shows. Arms filled with both, we make our way back to the pews just in time for act 2.
The opener is a guilty pleasure for many people, the Dead or Alive classic You Spin me Round as Ricky recalls a time in the eighties where we was “full on goth”. The Weight by The Band is up next, another verse heavy composition where lyrical accuracy is important, especially where Crazy Chester catches him in the fog, as confusion with another rhyming word in that verse can raise a few eyebrows in an audience.
The darkly haunting Psycho written by Leon Payne but popularised by Elvis Costello is a sombre yet spellbinding performance, in stark contrast to many of the other more well known and lighter compositions of the evening. No surprise to have a Motorhead tune in the set, Ace of Spades always a crowd pleaser, and kudos to Jordi for peeling off the solo effortlessly.
One for the Maiden fans now with Wasted Years, The Almighty have supported the lads in the past, and will again next year at the Knebworth show on 11th July. The final track of the night is another sing along, Neil Youngs opus Rockin’ in the Free World, and the voices of all assembled in this old church certainly shook some of the dust off the rafters. It’s been another mighty night in the presence of greatness, long may these shows continue.
As we congregate in the lounge for a farewell nightcap, Ricky graciously meets with everyone for a chat, photos and autographs. It’s another amazing night in this fabulous setting which is about to undergo a massive revival. I’m really looking forward to seeing this revamped jewel of a venue when renovations complete.
