A Journey from Obscurity to Stardom
Three years ago, a relatively unknown band from Leigh climbed to number one on the UK charts. Now, they’re preparing to headline their hometown stadium. The rock group, known as The Lottery Winners, will take the stage at Leigh Sports Village on Saturday, May 30. For lead singer Thom Rylance, the event is both exciting and nerve-wracking.
“I’ve got a lot of mixed feelings about it,” Thom confessed. “I’ve literally always wanted to do it since we were playing in the pubs in the shadows of the stadium. I always looked at it and thought one day.”
The show is less than two months away, which has left Thom feeling anxious and nervous. “Sometimes on a tour, you don’t get it right for the first few nights, but we don’t have a first few nights. We just have to get it right that time. And it’s scary.”
This is far from the first stadium the Lottery Winners have performed at, having been openers for Robbie Williams over the past year. However, this gig feels very different.
Thom admitted that the booking was an impulse suggestion, which he promptly forgot about until management confirmed dates with him. For what could have been “a very expensive mistake,” the group – consisting of Thom, Robert Lally, Katie Lloyd, and Joe Singleton – are now “a hair away from selling out” the 12,000 capacity venue.
Apparent “bad seats” are still available, but fans say there is no bad seat when it comes to this group. They’re regularly praised for their live performances, with plenty of Robbie fans saying how much they enjoyed their set ahead of the big show.
When it comes to chart success, things aren’t looking too shabby either, with two number one albums in a row under their belts – although this isn’t good enough for some.
We asked Thom about publicly calling out an influencer who declared the UK had “invented people” for the Brits, specifically using him as an example.
He admitted that while his bandmates had told him to shake off the criticism, his Rejection Sensitive Dysphoria, linked to ADHD, had kicked in. RSD sufferers have intense emotional reactions to criticism, failure, or rejection, resulting in extreme anxiety or depression – for Thom, that meant ruminating on the video.
“Honestly, I just picked up my phone and said what I would want to say back, and then sent it,” he shared. “I didn’t really consider it very much. I think if I’d have considered it, I wouldn’t have done the response.”
Being in the public eye is something Thom is still adjusting to, having spent much of the last decade going somewhat under the radar. “When people write, ‘who’ on any article of any famous person,” he began, visibly frustrated as he said: “The worst one is when someone’s died, that’s the Olympic gold medal of ‘who’. Like they want some kind of applause? Like, the person’s family is gonna be like, ‘Oh, it’s okay. No one cares.’ It sends this wave of frustration and anger through my body.”
Thom’s taken to venting his frustration, such as after the Brits, into poetry and spoken word, which he often posts on the group’s social media. After being locked in a studio working on their fifth album, he began to struggle to write songs, so he turned to other creative outlets, from photography to poetry.
“I need to make stuff. I couldn’t just keep trying to write Angels every day,” he quipped, referencing Robbie’s biggest hit. Robbie retorted that if he’s going to write The Lottery Winners’ defining hit, speaking to his new bestie is probably a good place to start.
In the comments of that red carpet response video, the 18-time Brit award winner declared that Thom was “the most important person” he’d met in the last 12 months. The Sertraline singer blushed a little at that praise, saying the feeling was mutual, adding that Robbie had really changed his life.
“It’s just so nice to meet someone who feels everything that you feel, and is able to express it and is inspirational and creative and funny… so funny, like the funniest person I’ve ever met.”
While they “belly laugh all the time,” Thom highlighted how important it was to nurture those close male friendships, especially with someone “wired the same way.” Both musicians have been diagnosed with ADHD and spoken openly about the impact that it has had on their lives and their mental health.
“Having that kind of support network of people who understand the way you feel is just so incredibly important.”
That support network includes the likes of Reverend and the Makers’ Jon McClure, Frank Turner, and Nickelback’s Chad Kroeger.
As for the next album, Thom teases he’s already drafted around 80 songs but is hoping to get to 100 before he presents them to the band to pick the best 10 for the record.
“I really want a song to really land this time,” he shared. “I want that song that everybody knows. I just want everyone’s grandma to know who I am.”
While they might not have that one defining hit yet, Thom is still chasing that feeling that they’ve “made it.” “I don’t feel like we’re a proper band still, and I don’t think I ever will,” he reflected. “I don’t, and even sat in LA now and having conversations with Robbie Williams all the time about music, it still doesn’t feel real. I still feel like I’m blagging it or pretending. And I hope that goes away. It would be nice if it did.”
He might not believe it just yet, but maybe the saviour of British guitar bands won’t be an old school room-trashing rockstar but an underdog group from Leigh who quietly took over the world, one stadium at a time.
The Lottery Winners’ stadium show will take place on Saturday, May 30, with (a few) seats still available through Ticketmaster and other sites.
