Royal Blood: what did Mike Kerr and Ben Thatcher say about their BBC Radio 1 Big Weekend set?

After a week of online backlash, Royal Blood have tried to explain their infamous performance at the BBC Radio 1 Big Weekend festival, saying that they "meant no offence" to the crowd and claiming they were "amazed" at the reaction.

The rock duo from Sussex walked off to a chorus of boos in Dundee last month, with frontman Mike Kerr flipping the bird to the paying audience as he left.

In case you somehow missed the drama at the time, Royal Blood took to the stage at Camperdown Park and decided to complain about the audience and how they reacted to their set, branding them "pathetic" before storming off the stage. They were then met, predictably, with huge amounts of criticism following the incident, both from the public and fellow musicians.

BBC Radio 1 Big Weekend also featured performances from other global stars including Anne-Marie, Arlo Parks, Lewis Capaldi, Niall Horan, RAYE and The 1975.

Here's what you need to know about the Royal Blood incident at last month's festival, and what they've said in a new interview.

What did Royal Blood say at BBC Radio 1 Big Weekend?

After performing in Dundee on Saturday 28 May, Royal Blood frontman Mike Kerr took to the microphone to make sarcastic comments directed to those in attendance. It appears that they took issue with how they reacted to their set.

Kerr said: "Well I guess I should introduce ourselves seeing as no one actually knows who we are. We are Royal Blood and this is rock music."

After asking the crowd if they liked rock music, which was met by a number of cheers, the musician sarcastically quipped: "Nine people, brilliant. We are happy to clap ourselves because that was so pathetic."

The singer then turned his attention to the camera onstage, asking: "Can you clap for us? You're busy? Can you clap - oh yes even he is clapping. What does that say about you?"

Kerr took off his guitar, along with the drummer Ben Thatcher who continued to slam his drum kit, then proceeded to storm off the stage while holding up two middle fingers to the fans.

As a result of the incident, the BBC have decided to pull Royal Blood's set from BBC iPlayer.

How have fans reacted to the Royal Blood incident at BBC Radio 1 Big Weekend?

Fans rushed to social media channels to vent their anger at Royal Blood's conduct at this year's event, with one posting: "It’s Radio 1 Big Weekender, what do they expect? Don’t take the gig on if you’re too rock'n'roll to play in front of teenagers and families."

Another added: "Any band, no matter how big, need to work and make the crowd enjoy it. You cannot assume love", while a user quizzed: "Not sure what type of crowd they were expecting?!".

Someone went on to criticise the rock duo on Twitter, writing: "Man, some gigs are tough and you have to win over the crowd, but this is exactly how to NOT react. Very disappointed with Royal Blood here, no matter what level you get to, you’re never better than the audience."

What have Royal Blood said about the incident?

In a new interview with BBC Radio 1 on Monday 5 June, the band broke their silence on the controversy, and tried to explain why they gave such a bizarre, seemingly petulant performance.

Talking to Greg James, Kerr said: “I’m amazed, honestly, how that escalated to that kind of size. Walking off from that show, I felt I was being entertaining — in a way of trying to make light of the situation. I was doing a performance where I felt a little bit out of place. I expected to sort of bemuse a few people but not to that sort of scale. Yeah, pretty wild."

His bandmate Ben Thatcher added: "It was a moment of madness that got out of control I think. We actually loved the gig. We love playing music and we love doing what we do. It's been a bit of a mad week."

Asked how they felt about it, Kerr replied: “It was somewhat of a blip on my part because it would’ve taken me three minutes to think ‘Maybe these people don’t know who you are’.

“I actually really enjoyed playing! I had a great time. The ending, to me, I felt like a sort of pro-wrestler… I felt like a kind of pantomime villain, I didn’t feel like I’d done anything, sort of, morally wrong. I felt like a bit of a wind-up, honestly. That’s how I felt.”

When James said Kerr was dry in his sense of humour, Kerr agreed, saying he was “dry as MDF”.

He said he had watched the performance back, adding: “When I’m in that zone there’s a part of my personality which only exists on stage. I can’t find any other context in which I’m that energised. I feel like I look different when I’m on stage.

“Offstage, I’m very quiet and sort of awkward. That’s why I love it, because there’s an energy to it. I guess it’s very easy to get sort of swept up in that energy and honestly, it’s quite fun and I don’t mean any offence. My intention is never to alienate anyone or anyone away.”

Asked if he wanted share a message with the crowd from Dundee, he said: “My message is that I meant no offence. We look forward to coming back. And applause is optional.”