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Jul 06, 2026 By Adrian Peel Photography by Bethan Miller (lead photo) Web Exclusive

The popular BST Hyde Park concert series continued on Sunday, 5th July, with a two-hour set by Duran Duran, one of the most loved and revered pop groups of the 1980s.

Other acts who appeared throughout the day included Groove Armada and Melanie C (both of who performed DJ sets - the latter also joined the Scissor Sisters on stage to sing “Take Your Mama”), Nile Rodgers and CHIC, and, as mentioned, the Scissor Sisters.

Le Bon and co - the three other members of Duran Duran’s classic line-up (keyboard player Nick Rhodes, bassist John Taylor and drummer Roger Taylor), augmented by guitarist Dom Brown, saxophone player Simon Willescroft and backing vocalists Anna Ross and Rachael O’Connor - began, a little earlier than billed, with the punchy “Is There Something I Should Know?”, a number one hit from 1983.

“Do you think it’s time for us to BOND?,” teased Le Bon afterwards, generating a flurry of excitement among the sold-out crowd, as we knew exactly what was coming! The “James Bond Theme” was used as an intro to the equally-brilliant “A View to a Kill”, from the 1985 Bond film of the same name, starring the great Roger Moore.

The affable singer graciously gave a ‘shout out’ to many of the day’s artists. “We’ve had some fantastic acts on,” he said. “Nile Rodgers and CHIC, the amazing Scissor Sisters. Now, I think it’s time for a little howling…” Again, we knew exactly what was coming!

1982’s “Hungry Like the Wolf” was another winner, once again causing an enthusiastic mass sing-along, and then the band brought the proceedings more up to date with 2021’s “Invisible”, from their album Future Past.

They threw in a surprising but very welcome cover of ELO’s “Evil Woman” before it was back to the ‘80s again thanks to the moody “Lonely in Your Nightmare” and the europhic “The Reflex”.

“How many of you plan on staying up all night? Are you going down the pub? Football, lads?,” asked Le Bon, referring to England’s World Cup match against Mexico that was due to kick off at 1am the following morning (it ended up starting at 2am and England eventually won it 3-2).

Introducing my favourite Duran Duran song, the gorgeous and uplifting “Ordinary World”, he continued: “Usually we dedicate this to people less fortunate than us. But this time, we’re going to dedicate it to the England football team.

“I have faith in this team. I believe in them. I think they’re gonna do us proud. They can overcome the cauldron that is the Azteca [Stadium]. They can overcome the altitude. They can overcome the team that is Mexico. I believe.” It turned out he was right!

This masterful tune, beautifully delivered, was followed by my other favourite Duran Duran song, “Come Undone” (both tracks are from their self-titled album from 1993, also known as ‘The Wedding Album’), during which backing singer Anna Ross came centre stage to share the limelight with Le Bon. What a song that is!

Nile Rodgers came out to join the boys on “Notorious” - another Duran Duran staple from back in the day - and the more recent “Free to Love”. Before bringing him out on stage, Le Bon said of Rodgers: “We are very lucky to have a relationship with one of the greatest artists that the world has ever known.

“I’m talking about Nile Rodgers. We’ve recorded some of our best songs with Nile and we are so proud of our relationship with him.”

The various band members were introduced ahead of the well-received “Planet Earth” and, as dusk fell, it was yet another timeless slice of dynamic pop-rock - “Girls on Film”, performed as a medley with their exciting 2023 song “Psycho Killer” - that brought the main show to a close.

The explosive - quite literally, thanks to some impressive pyrotechnics - “Wild Boys” was the first song of the encore. Le Bon then implored us to switch on our mobile phone torches to “turn Hyde Park into the galaxy” for the melodic “Save a Prayer”, which also had the audience gently swaying along.

After two hours on stage, and having played most of the songs die-hard Duran Duran fans could ever want to hear, there was only one way they could end the show, and that was with the flamboyant “Rio” - another tune that truly captured a moment in time, namely the early 80s.

At the end of this outstanding and very memorable performance at Hyde Park, the band announced a special Halloween show at London’s O2 on 31st October, as part of their 2026 UK arena tour. Based on this evidence, I have no doubt it will be another triumph.