MOTÖRHEAD: 'Lemmy Forever' Stoke-On-Trent ceremony and statue unveiling to be held next week
02-05-2025
On Friday, May 9, 2025, MOTÖRHEAD founder and bassist/vocalist Lemmy Kilmister will be honored and further immortalized during at the “Lemmy Forever” Stoke-On-Trent ceremony.
With MOTÖRHEAD guitarist Phil Campbell attending to place Lemmy‘s ashes in a magnificent statue created by local sculptor, and huge MOTÖRHEAD fan, Andy Edwards, the day is going to be filled with fun, friends, and some volume too.
The ceremony will commence in Burslem town center at approximately 4:00 p.m., with friends invited to come early and make a day of it by enjoying some pre-ceremonial MOTÖRHEAD beverages at the various site-adjacent hostelries including Old Post Office bar and Ale House, while the Market Place Café will also have refreshments, including a special MOTÖRHEAD roast of the day.
Some of the ceremonial festivities will include a biker’s corteo accompanying the ashes, various speakers, and a roaring 21-rev salute which will hit the skies in ceremonial reverence. The statue itself captures Lemmy in all his live glory from the 1981 era, which saw MOTÖRHEAD headline the Heavy Metal Holocaust just down the road at Port Vale Stadium back on August 1, 1981.
Further details on what people can expect and some of the services which will be available on the day include:
* The Bare Walls Art Gallery next to the statue will be displaying an installation featuring rarely seen photographs of Lemmy in their space along with other memorabilia.
* Later in the evening, Grumpy’s bar will host “A Night Of Music To Celebrate The Life Of Lemmy”, hosting the MOTÖRHEAD tribute band MOTÖRWRECKED, as well as hosting an auction of exclusive items supplied by MOTÖRHEAD‘s record label and merchandise companies. A very limited number of wristbands for the auction will be available on a first-come-first-served basis to purchase on the day from the event office, which can be found at The Old Post Office Bar priced at £10. There will also be exclusive merchandise available at The Old Post Office.
* Music Mania will also be hosting an event at the Mitchell Arts Centre in Hanley from 7:30 p.m. to 10:30 p.m. featuring MOTÖRHEAD tribute band MOTÖRHEADACHE, with tickets at £18. Head to musicmaniauk.com/event/motorheadache for further details.
For those driving to the event, parking will be available at Port Vale Football Club, a seven-minute walk away, and if arriving by train, Ace Taxis will be available to get from the station to the event via 01782 822228.
For those who need accommodation, special rates are available at the DoubleTree by Hilton Stoke-On-Trent via Lemmy 2025 rates. Call +44 1782 609988 or go to hil.tn/0mcah9.
Back in November 2016, Rainbow Bar & Grill dedicated its patio to Lemmy and re-named it “Lemmy’s Lounge.” It was a fitting gesture from the Rainbow, as when Lemmy wasn’t touring or recording, the majority of his waking hours were spent on said patio. There was already a life-size bronze statue immortalizing Lemmy at the Rainbow, which attracts fans from all over the world, and Lemmy’s Lounge allows hardcore fans and casual patrons alike to sample the wares and atmosphere that Lemmy loved so much.
To celebrate Lemmy’s Lounge, Roxy owner Nic Adler and Goldenvoice‘s Paul Tollett kindly agreed to allow the painting of a celebratory mural commemorating the life of Lemmy and MOTÖRHEAD on the side wall of the Roxy, opposite Lemmy’s Lounge and statue.
According to Visit West Hollywood, Lemmy loved the Rainbow so much that he moved to West Hollywood to be closer to it. In the last two decades of his life, he was a daily fixture at the Rainbow whenever the band was not on tour, and he was often seen playing the bar’s video poker machine.
Lemmy died on December 28, 2015 at the age of 70 shortly after learning he had been diagnosed with cancer.
MOTÖRHEAD had to cancel a number of shows in 2015 because of Lemmy‘s poor health, although the band did manage to complete the aforementioned European tour a couple of weeks before his death.
In June 2020, it was announced that Lemmy would get the biopic treatment. The upcoming film, “Lemmy”, will be directed by Greg Olliver, who previously helmed the 2010 documentary of the same name, “Lemmy”.
A custom-made urn containing Lemmy‘s ashes is on permanent display in a columbarium at Forest Lawn Cemetery in Hollywood, California.
Social media
