Flowered Up

Camden, A Life with Brian and Weekender

Flowered Up formed in Camden Town in mid-1989 around the frontman Liam Maher and his lifelong friend Darren Penney, who co-wrote lyrics and managed the band; Gigwise instead dates the formation to 1990. The original line-up had Liam Maher, his younger brother Joe on guitar, Andrew Jackson on bass and John O'Brien on drums, and the settled one Tim Dorney on keyboards, John Tuvey on drums and the dancer Barry Mooncult, known for a giant flower costume. They were covered by Melody Maker and NME before they released a record. Their 1990 singles "It's On" (54 in the UK) and "Phobia" (75) came out on Heavenly.

In November 1991 they threw a party they called Debauchery in a repossessed mansion in Blackheath, about a thousand tickets at 10 pounds and roughly another thousand people getting in; the house was badly damaged. The album A Life with Brian (August 26, 1991, London Records) reached 23 in the UK, two days after a Reading Festival set, with Joe Strummer's lyrics on "Take It". It was recorded at Eel Pie, Pete Townshend's studio on the Thames, over about four months on a 200,000-pound advance and produced by their front-of-house engineer Nigel Gilroy, and Dorney felt the polish drained the live energy. "Weekender" followed on April 20, 1992 on Heavenly after London declined it, and London dropped the band within months. A Right Said Fred cover, "Don't Talk Just Kiss", on The Fred EP reached 26 in 1992.

Their last shows were two nights at the Mean Fiddler at New Year 1992, with a different bassist and drummer, and sources date the split to 1993 or 1994. "Better Life" came out in a run of 500 copies in 1994. Dorney went on to form Republica, and a 2007 reunion attempt was abandoned. Liam Maher died on October 20, 2009 aged 41, and Joe Maher in November 2012. The documentary I Am Weekender (2023, directed by Chloe Raunet) premiered at the Glasgow Film Festival with contributors including Irvine Welsh and Bobby Gillespie, and the BFI released it on Blu-ray on June 19, 2023. A book, Flowered Up: A Weekender's Tale, was written by Matt Mead and Dave Hewitson.