On 21 December 1988, Noel Gallagher auditioned to be the lead singer of Inspiral Carpets. The session took place at The Mill Studio in Ashton‑under‑Lyne, a former textile mill repurposed as a rehearsal space.

A cold, wet Wednesday night in Oldham. December 21, 1988. The kind of night that makes you question your choices. Noel Gallagher, 21, stood at a bus stop in Manchester, clutching a scrap of paper with directions. Three buses. Rain pissing down. No mobile phones. No backup plan. Just a pub, a rehearsal room called The Mill, and a shot at becoming the new singer for Inspiral Carpets.

There was a charge in the air that Monday night, one you didn’t need a weather report to measure. May 30, 1988. Manchester. International Two. A benefit concert against Clause 28, a piece of government legislation designed to shroud LGBTQ+ lives in silence. The city already knew how to scream back at injustice, but that night, the scream had a rhythm you could dance to. Oh and Noel net Graham

On May 30, 1988, a pivotal moment in music history unfolded at the International 2 in Manchester, UK. The event, known as the "Anti-Clause 28 Gig (aka 'This Is The One')," brought together two future icons of the Madchester music scene: Noel Gallagher and Graham Lambert of the Inspiral Carpets.