Senior MP joins calls for Marilyn Manson’s Brighton gig to be cancelled 

A senior MP has joined the calls for an upcoming Marilyn Manson gig to be dropped.

Controversy around the upcoming shows was shared last week, when Millie Earl – Council leader in Bournemouth, Christchurch and Poole (BCP) – pushed for a gig in Dorset on Halloween to be cancelled.

This, she said, was in an effort to “reinforce the message that violence against women and girls isn’t something that’s acceptable in our community”.

The MP added that she had already “written” to the company that operates the venue hosting Manson to “express my concern” and say that she doesn’t “feel Marilyn Manson reflects the values we have”.

Controversy over Manson comes as a slew of allegations arose against the metal singer in recent years, and saw him accused of rape and domestic violence by four women. He repeatedly denied the accusations as “falsehoods”, and the case ended at the start of 2025, when prosecutors said the claims against Manson had exceeded the statute of limitations and that they were unable to “prove charges of sexual assault beyond a reasonable doubt”.

Now, another MP, Siân Berry, has joined calls to axe some of the musician’s UK shows.

The Green MP and former leader of the party in England and Wales recently outlined multiple policies she felt the show went against, and argued that it would contradict “the city’s well-renowned values”.

The policies included the city plan, which says there is “no place in our city for fear of crime, violence, or abuse” (via The Guardian), as well as how the gig would allow children as young as 14 to attend.

In a letter to council leader Bella Sankey – and signed by numerous groups and the University of Sussex students’ union – she wrote: “Many survivors in Brighton and Hove, and organisations supporting them, will have serious concerns about this booking and its wider impact on other people visiting the city centre, local residents and the wider community.”

She continued, saying that while we should protect freedom of expression, “there is an obvious risk to community cohesion and the council has separate equalities obligations to foster good relations between people who share protected characteristics and people who do not share them”.

“The council has a responsibility to take action where there are risks of discrimination, harassment and victimisation,” she added, before saying that she was “concerned” about the “message sent out by providing a platform for this individual, at our city’s biggest publicly owned venue, and what this will mean to survivors”.

Manson’s ‘One Assassination Under God’ tour dates will kick off in October with a slot at the Brighton Centre. Neither Manson nor his team have spoken out about the comments made by UK MPs, and it is not yet clear whether or not event organisers are considering cancelling the upcoming show.

The four women who filed the lawsuits against Manson included Game of Thrones actor Esmé Bianco – who settled their case in January 2023 – his former personal assistant Ashley Walters and model Ashley Morgan Smithline, who later recanted her claims. The fourth woman remained anonymous.

In 2021, Westworld actor Evan Rachel Wood accused the ‘Beautiful People’ singer of abusing her during their three-year-long relationship, and Manson also denied these claims.

As aforementioned, prosecutors said the claims against Manson had exceeded the statute of limitations in January, and the case against him was dropped. The controversy around him did lead to his record label, manager and booking agent severing ties with him.

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