Bernard Fanning - Tea & Sympathy 20th Anniversary Tour @ Cairns Performing Arts Centre - March 7 2026

In the days leading up to Bernard Fanning’s Tea & Sympathy 20‑year anniversary show in Cairns, it felt like North Queensland itself was conspiring against us. A tropical low in the Coral Sea kept threatening to spin into something more sinister, and with every refreshed forecast came the creeping suspicion that our trip from Townsville might be washed out. The fear of flooded highways, either on the way up or, worse, on the way home, had us quietly preparing for disappointment. But in true NQ fashion, the system fizzled, the roads stayed open, and by Saturday evening we found ourselves walking into a packed CPAC, grateful that the weather gods had granted us a reprieve.

Support act Georgia Mooney set the tone beautifully. Known from All Our Exes Live in Texas, she arrived with a dulcimer resting elegantly across her lap and a mission, as she put it, “to get the crowd razzed up” before the main event. Her set was a blend of charm, crystalline vocals, and wry humour.

“What an Inconvenience” explored the messy intersections of love and lust, while “Winter Island” unfolded the story of a fleeting romance with a Greek man, told with the kind of self‑aware sparkle that made the audience lean in. She treated us to new material from her upcoming album and delivered a gorgeous Joni Mitchell cover that felt like a small gift. Between songs, Mooney’s commentary was as delightful as her music: sharp, warm, and effortlessly funny. By the time she left the stage, the room was buzzing.

Bernard Fanning and his band walked out to a hero’s welcome, launching straight into an atmospheric “Down to the River.” It became immediately clear that we were in for the full Tea & Sympathy experience, just not in the order we might have expected. The sequencing felt intentional, designed to create emotional peaks and valleys rather than simply retracing the album’s tracklist.

The crowd was lively from the outset. One particularly enthusiastic fan fumbled an attempted awkward high‑five with Fanning while another punter developed a full‑blown obsession with guitarist Andrew Morris, calling out to him repeatedly, much to the band’s amusement.

Among the many musical highlights, John Bedggood’s fiddle playing was nothing short of divine. Knowing he had also played on the original album added a lovely symmetry to the night. Fanning shared that those sessions took place in a small studio near Bath, England; a detail that hit unexpectedly close to home for me. I was living in London in 2005 when Tea & Sympathy was released, listening to it on cold, dark mornings as I trudged to work, never realising the music had been recorded just down the road.

The album’s themes of heartbreak, renewal, and the fragile beginnings of new love were given fresh emotional weight as Fanning reflected on “a very difficult time” in his life: the end of a long‑term relationship and the early days of the partnership that would become his marriage.

Fanning spoke of immersing himself in Tom Petty, Gillian Welch, and George Harrison while writing the album, so it was no surprise when he launched into Harrison’s “Beware of Darkness,” and coincidently recently featured in the horror film Weapons. Paul Simon’s “Kathy’s Song,” written when Simon was just 22 (something Fanning said he finds astonishing) was tender and reverent. A spirited rendition of Led Zeppelin’s “Hey Hey What Can I Do” added a burst of energy.

The 20‑year commemorative release of Tea & Sympathy includes B‑sides and demos, and a few of these made the setlist. “For You and I” was declared “a banger” by someone in the crowd, prompting Fanning to grin and reply, “Yeah, I wrote it!” But he reminded us he was also there to deliver some “sad bangers,” including “Steady Job,” a reflection on the unattainability of the so‑called Australian Dream for those trapped in cycles of disadvantage.

The room was full of long‑time Fanning devotees, and every song landed with warmth and recognition. Personal highlights for me included “Thrill Is Gone,” fiddle-licious “Songbird,” “Hope and Validation,” the punchy key change in “Which Way Home?,” the harmonica‑rich “Not Finished Just Yet,” the shimmering keys on “Sleeping Rough,” and the uplifting bridge in “The Strangest Thing.” Georgia Mooney returned to the stage for “Yesterday’s Gone” and “Watch Over Me,” her harmonies blending with Fanning’s in a way that felt effortless and sublime.

True to form, Fanning skipped the encore ritual entirely, explaining his long‑held criticism of the practice. So when “Wish You Well” began, we knew it was the final chapter of the night. And honestly, it was the perfect send‑off.

After a week of weather‑watching and uncertainty, the concert felt like a reward, a reminder of why live music matters, why albums like Tea & Sympathy endure, and why it was worth every kilometre of the drive north. But, of course, it'd be great to see BF stop over in Townsville for a night or two next time he's up this way!