Arctic Monkeys programme special set for BBC Two's 'Later…With Jools Holland'

Arctic Monkeys will perform during a special Later…With Jools Holland episode that’s dedicated entirely to them.

The final episode of the latest live music series will see the Sheffield band join host Holland for an intimate performance of songs from their new album ‘The Car‘, including ‘There’d Better Be A Mirrorball‘ and ‘Body Paint‘. They will also revisit old favourites from their back catalogue such as ‘505’ from 2007’s ‘Favourite Worst Nightmare‘, which has seen a recent revival on TikTok.

Airing on November 5 on BBC Two, the programme will also see lead singer and guitarist Alex Turner and drummer and backing vocalist Matt Helders talk to Holland at the piano.

A press release states that they will reveal the process behind making the new album and unearth stories from their previous appearances, including a look back at their debut on the show in 2005.

Last night (October 22) Later… previewed the Monkeys special with a clip of the band performing ‘There Better Be A Mirrorball’. You can watch that below.

The first five episodes of this series of Later…With Jools Holland feature a host of acts including The 1975, Self Esteem, Burna Boy, The Big Moon, Raye, Phoenix, Suede, Hot Chip, Simple Minds, Christine And The Queens Presents Redcar and many more.

News of the Monkeys’ performance on Later… comes as their New York Kings Theater concert from September is streamed in full online today (October 23). Fans can tune at 8pm BST tonight – get the details here.

Meanwhile, Turner spoke to NME for this week’s Big Read cover feature about the band’s return. In the interview he addressed ‘505’ finding “a new life” among younger fans.

The track recently enjoyed viral success on TikTok. It’s also the third most popular Monkeys tune on Spotify at the time of writing (behind ‘I Wanna Be Yours’ and ‘Do I Wanna Know?’ from 2013’s ‘AM’).

Earlier this year the song surpassed hits by Eminem and Coldplay, clocking in an average of 1.7million plays a month on Spotify alone. The track has since beaten its 2007 peak on the UK singles chart (via the Official Charts Company).

Turner said it was “genuinely moving” to witness such a reaction, but admitted he’s somewhat bemused by the ‘505’ revival.

“Without having ‘505’ at the end of our shows for a few years around 2008, I’m not sure if it would have found the new life it has now,” he told NME.

“I hope that doesn’t sound like I’m taking credit [for the revival] – even if it wasn’t totally unexpected, the attention around [‘505’] is really quite special.”