Ian Hill will not be on stage with Judas Priest at London’s Eventim Apollo on Monday 21 September 2026. The bassist has a serious tendon injury in his left hand and his place is being taken by Davey Rimmer of Uriah Heep.
The band informed fans with a short statement: “Ian has a very badly damaged tendon in his left hand, so unfortunately he won’t be able to play at the Hammersmith Apollo Eventim on Monday 21 September… our good friend Davey Rimmer (Uriah Heep) will play with us, so the show will go ahead.” Hill himself also sent thanks to the fans for their understanding, with no further details given about the injury or his recovery.
According to reports, this is the first Judas Priest show he has missed since 1970, when he joined the band — the official announcement does not mention it. At 74, Hill has spent 56 years on the band’s bass: he joined alongside his schoolmate K.K. Downing and became the longest-serving member when Downing left in 2011. He is one of two musicians, along with guitarist Glenn Tipton, to have played on every Judas Priest studio album, and it was he who brought Rob Halford into the band in the early ’70s.
The London show is the final stop of this year’s “Faithkeepers” tour, with special guests Nevermore, at the 5,000-capacity venue in Hammersmith. The tour began on 25 July 2026 at BOBfest in Mönchengladbach, Germany, and passed through Poland, the Czech Republic, Slovakia, Great Britain, the Netherlands, France, Spain, Croatia, Serbia, Bulgaria, Hungary and Italy, while on 9 August Judas Priest headlined Bloodstock Open Air. Their most recent album, “Invincible Shield”, was released in March 2024 and reached No. 2 on the UK chart.
See also: Doro Pesch & Udo Dirkschneider: Together on stage for “Breaking The Law” and Nevermore: Live at Gagarin 205 (Athens)
