On Friday 25 September 2026, passers-by on Grafton Street were treated to a scene Dublin had not announced: U2 appeared on the balcony of Bewley’s Café to give a free concert to a street that quickly filled to capacity. It was a distinctly Dublin way to celebrate the band’s 50th anniversary, just hours after an initial surprise return to where it had all begun.
U2 takes to the balcony at Bewley’s in Dublin
A surprise live performance that lived up to fans’ expectations
Rumours had begun to circulate, but this was no conventional concert. Bono, The Edge, Adam Clayton and Larry Mullen Jr took to the balcony of the celebrated Bewley’s Café, in the heart of Grafton Street. Below, a dense crowd gathered on one of Dublin’s busiest pedestrian streets.
The band revisited several decades of its career, performing I Will Follow, Out of Control, One, Where the Streets Have No Name, With or Without You and Beautiful Day, among others. U2 also performed Silencio, a new track from its forthcoming album, Carnaval de Luz.
More than a simple anniversary event, the choice of Grafton Street carried powerful symbolism. This central Dublin thoroughfare has long been associated with street musicians and the capital’s music scene. Seeing one of Ireland’s best-known bands play there for free, just metres from the crowd, almost brought U2 back to the scale of the city that saw its birth.
Exactly 50 years after the band’s beginnings
A national… and global anniversary!
The date was no coincidence. On 25 September 1976, Larry Mullen Jr gathered several teenagers at his home in Artane after they had responded to an advert in which he was looking for musicians. Among them were those who would become Bono, The Edge and Adam Clayton.
Exactly 50 years later, U2 began its anniversary day by returning to Mount Temple Comprehensive School in north Dublin. It was at this school that the future members of the band had met and begun rehearsing together.
In front of pupils and staff, the four musicians gave an initial surprise performance before heading into the city centre later for the Grafton Street concert.
From Mount Temple to Grafton Street, Dublin at the heart of the anniversary
The decision to mark the anniversary with two concerts so closely connected to Dublin also reflects U2’s special relationship with its home city. Mount Temple represents the band’s beginnings, while Grafton Street embodies part of the capital’s popular musical culture.
For music-loving travellers, Dublin also has many places associated with U2. The area around Mount Temple tells the story of the band’s early years, while the city centre retains several addresses linked to the group’s history and Dublin’s music scene.
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The surprise concerts are only part of the 50th-anniversary celebrations. Ireland has also marked the occasion with a commemorative €2 coin dedicated to the band.
U2 has also announced Carnaval de Luz, its first album of new songs in several years, due for release on 13 November 2026. Silencio, performed during the Dublin celebrations, offers one of the first glimpses of it.
But for Dublin, the image that will probably endure from this anniversary is a simpler one: four musicians on the balcony of a historic café overlooking Grafton Street, 50 years after they first began playing together in the north of the city.
