What is Wibbling Rivalry?

The Story Behind Oasis and the Wibbling Rivalry Interview

It wasn’t music, it wasn’t an album, it wasn’t even meant to happen. But somehow, Wibbling Rivalry became one of the most memorable “releases” tied to Oasis. This wasn’t a chart-topping single (though it did chart). It wasn’t a B-side (even though it catches Liam mid-brawl better than any B-side could). It was a 14-minute captured argument between Noel and Liam Gallagher. A recording of a battle they’d been re-enacting their whole lives. And if you’ve heard it, you’ll know it’s raw, loud, absurd, and probably a little more profound than anyone involved intended it to be.

The title? A mix of sibling rivalry and nonsense, tossed together as “Wibbling Rivalry.” But it wasn’t just a title. By the time you finished listening to it, you got it. These two never stopped wibbling. Or rivaling.

If you care about Oasis, you’ve probably heard this chaotic time capsule. But if you haven’t dived into its story, pull up a chair. It’s louder than Wonderwall and uglier than a ferry fight.

The Background Chaos

The year was 1994. Oasis were riding their early wave of unstoppable momentum. “Supersonic” had taken them from Manchester noise merchants to the best new thing in British music. The next stops? A European tour, iconic singles, and eventually a debut album, Definitely Maybe, that would turn them into legends. But the train to glory wasn’t all smooth tracks.

The scene of the infamous Wibbling Rivalry recording was the Forte Crest Hotel in Glasgow. NME journalist John Harris had the unenviable task of interviewing the Gallagher brothers. Imagine walking into that hotel room, tape recorder in hand, knowing you’d have to corral two siblings whose bickering was as famous as their band. He couldn’t have known that what he captured would become its own kind of masterpiece. Not the Britpop kind. Something gloomier, messier, and much, much funnier.

But before that tape even rolled, there was a ferry. And a fight.

The Ferry Brawl That Started It All

A few months before the recording, Oasis found themselves on a booze-fuelled overnight ferry heading to the Netherlands for a gig in Amsterdam. What followed could have been a scene from a Guy Ritchie film (if Ritchie had a keener ear for rock ‘n’ roll humiliation). Liam, no stranger to chaos, started a drunken brawl. The details are murky, but the fallout was crystal clear. The entire band, except Noel, got arrested. They were deported. The Amsterdam gig? Cancelled. Noel’s mood? Exactly what you’d expect.

Noel never forgot what Liam cost them that night. He also never stopped bringing it up. And when Wibbling Rivalry was recorded, you hear it all come spilling out. Liam thinks the whole thing was a laugh. Noel lays into him like a bitter parent tired of explaining basic principles. "If you’re proud of getting thrown off ferries," Noel sneers, "then why don’t you go and support West Ham? Get the f*** out of my band." The resentment’s raw, unvarnished, and impossible to fake.

That ferry ride wasn’t the start of their clashes, but it was a tangible turning point. Something frayed in their dynamic the night Liam turned rock 'n' roll recklessness into lost opportunities. That’s what Wibbling Rivalry immortalises.

The Arguments That Made the Interview Famous

What’s astonishing about Wibbling Rivalry isn’t just the shouting. It’s what they’re shouting about. The recording captures Noel and Liam perfectly, in all their twisted contrasts.

For Liam, rock ‘n’ roll was self-expression with fists and middle fingers. Drink what you want, punch who you want, swagger off the stage without looking back. When Harris prompts him about his conduct, his response is pure Liam. He defends himself with lines that barely hold together. It’s chaos, but it’s his chaos.

Noel, meanwhile, is the bandmate-turned-babysitter. Music isn’t about punching blokes on ferries, he reminds Liam between swears. "Music. Music. Music,” Noel insists. “It’s not about you, it’s not about me, it’s not about Oasis. It’s about the songs." And you can almost hear him shaking with frustration, the desperation of someone trying to keep a cultural juggernaut on track because he knows the stakes.

Liam doesn’t back down. He can’t. He jabs back with his quick-witted blend of insult and deflection. When Noel mocks his drinking ability, you can practically hear younger brothers everywhere raising a pint in solidarity as Liam spits back, "Well fin’ where the f*** did it go then?" It’s hostile. It’s funny. It’s exhausting.

That’s the magic of Wibbling Rivalry. It’s the rawest, funniest insight into what made Noel and Liam legends. And what tore them apart.

The Aftermath and the Legendary Status of Wibbling Rivalry

By 1995, Oasis had evolved into the biggest band in the UK. Their singles were topping charts, their debut album was already a classic, and Liam and Noel’s antics were becoming folklore. Against that backdrop, Wibbling Rivalry quietly arrived and became something unexpected. Charting higher than any interview recording had a right to, it reached number 52 in the UK Singles Chart. No music, just madness.

Even critics, those infamous Britpop snipers, couldn’t ignore it. They called it “legendary.” Not because it was polished or profound. But because it felt real. Because nothing on Definitely Maybe captured Liam and Noel’s dynamic quite like their screams, swears, and bitter digs recorded in a Glasgow hotel room.

It’s strange to think of it now, but Wibbling Rivalry didn’t just foreshadow Oasis’s eventual split. It kind of encapsulated what those of us who loved them had to live with. The brilliance of the music always ran parallel to the chaos of the brothers. This wasn’t distraction. It was the Gallagher experience.

Why It Still Matters

Here’s the thing about Wibbling Rivalry. It didn’t need to exist. Some lawyer could have nixed it. Noel could have vetoed it. Liam could have stormed off. But somehow, it made it out into the world. A messy, laugh-out-loud glimpse into a band (and brothers) that shaped the 90s.

If you’ve never heard it, find it. If you’ve already played it to death, play it again. Because bands like Oasis don’t come around twice. And interviews like Wibbling Rivalry? Forget twice. They barely happen once.