Little over a year ago, mentioning Kneecap to an average member of the London public would probably elicit shrugs and confusion. A few young people might know what you were talking about, and you might even get an odd nod of approval from someone older who happened to watch their self-titled 2024 film, which is still rated 96 per cent on Rotten Tomatoes.
But now their very name is enough to ruffle feathers. Or, more aptly, their logo: an advertisement for the band’s tour was just banned from the Transport for London network on the grounds that it “would likely cause widespread or serious offence to reasonable members of the public.”
The Kneecap logo is very basic. It features three holes on a black background. These are meant to depict the holes of a balaclava, in reference to the balaclavas worn by the paramilitaries during the Troubles in Northern Ireland. One of the members of Kneecap, DJ Próvaí, also performs wearing a balaclava in the colours of the Irish flag.
The text on the tour poster is equally basic. “Kneecap. OVO Arena Wembley, London. Thurs 18th September '25.” This has made the decision to ban the advertisement particularly controversial, with the band openly calling the decision “petty” and “political.”
But it might not be the worst outcome for the band. Last year, Charli xcx famously had her Brat tour poster banned because it depicted an empty plastic bag, which closely resembled the small baggies used to carry drugs.
Her workaround was to change the poster to a sandwich bag, with a piece of bread inside the plastic bag. It was one of the first viral moments of the Brat album rollout, paving the way for the electronic musician’s extreme hyper-relevance during 2024.
new uk arena tour poster ! just to clear things up :) pic.twitter.com/KUV1IaEvua
— Charli (@charli_xcx) May 24, 2024
If anyone’s hyper-relevant in 2025, it’s Kneecap. This decision by TfL could actually end up helping their cause. Not only does it help their claims of censorship and “political policing”, it’s probably better advertising for the band than actually having posters on the Tube.
Up until now, many people would have been unaware of the OVO Arena gig in September. Now it’s a top story on the BBC and has been widely reported across UK news sites. There’s previous evidence to support this: Kneecap’s gig in Glasgow sold out in 80 seconds after the band were dropped from the city’s TRNSMT festival due to “safety concerns.”
That’s not to say that Kneecap are benefiting from their own controversy. Frontman Liam Óg Ó hAnnaidh (aka Mo Chara) is currently on trial for allegedly supporting a proscribed terrorist organisation, following claims that he displayed a flag in support of Hezbollah at a gig in Kentish Town last November. If found guilty, Chara could face up to seven years in prison. That slightly outweighs the benefit of whatever they’re gaining from the current ‘controversial’ press coverage.
But the poster being banned also serves another purpose: it makes even more people aware of Kneecap’s cause, which is ending the war in Palestine. And standing tickets for the OVO Arena gig have already sold out. The more people try to silence them, the more relevant they become.
