31 October 2026
Deep Purple have postponed two shows on their German tour after frontman Ian Gillan, 81, was hospitalised following a medical emergency. The band announced the decision on Saturday, 31 October 2026, hours before they were due on stage in Leipzig.
Photos: Ian Gillan performing live with Deep Purple in Germany, July 2022, by Stefan Brending (2eight) via Wikimedia Commons (CC BY-SA 3.0 DE), original 1365x2048; and Gillan onstage with Deep Purple in Hamburg, 1971, by Gladstone via Wikimedia Commons (CC BY-SA 4.0), original 2056x3193. The 2022 photograph was cropped at the right edge to remove a sliver of a second person at the frame edge, so Gillan is the only person pictured; the 1971 photograph shows Gillan alone. Both photographs are used at 1080 pixels wide, never upscaled, as upper-body crops on 1080x1920 navy canvases: the full person sits in the upper portion of every page and the text panel sits only on the empty navy band below them, never touching the subject. A third photograph checked in this run, Gillan in Barcelona in 1983, was not used because at 532 pixels native it would sit too small beside the two large portraits. Every page photograph shows Ian Gillan — the only person this story is about; no other person is pictured as a subject.
The postponement and the band's statement below were reported on 31 October 2026 by Parade, Page Six, American Songwriter, Far Out Magazine and Blabbermouth, all quoting the band's announcement. Every fact below is reported by at least two of those outlets. The band's announcement gave no further details about Gillan's condition, and this story does not speculate about it; the Leipzig venue is named as the QI Arena by some outlets and the Quarterback Immobilien Arena by others, so both names are given. No rescheduled dates had been announced when this story was built.
What the band said
In a statement shared on Saturday, the band said: “This comes as a result of a medical emergency involving Ian Gillan, which has resulted in his current hospitalisation.” The band said it was announcing the changes “with great disappointment” and apologised for the short notice.
Photos: Ian Gillan performing live with Deep Purple in Germany, July 2022, by Stefan Brending (2eight) via Wikimedia Commons (CC BY-SA 3.0 DE), original 1365x2048; and Gillan onstage with Deep Purple in Hamburg, 1971, by Gladstone via Wikimedia Commons (CC BY-SA 4.0), original 2056x3193. The 2022 photograph was cropped at the right edge to remove a sliver of a second person at the frame edge, so Gillan is the only person pictured; the 1971 photograph shows Gillan alone. Both photographs are used at 1080 pixels wide, never upscaled, as upper-body crops on 1080x1920 navy canvases: the full person sits in the upper portion of every page and the text panel sits only on the empty navy band below them, never touching the subject. A third photograph checked in this run, Gillan in Barcelona in 1983, was not used because at 532 pixels native it would sit too small beside the two large portraits. Every page photograph shows Ian Gillan — the only person this story is about; no other person is pictured as a subject.
The postponement and the band's statement below were reported on 31 October 2026 by Parade, Page Six, American Songwriter, Far Out Magazine and Blabbermouth, all quoting the band's announcement. Every fact below is reported by at least two of those outlets. The band's announcement gave no further details about Gillan's condition, and this story does not speculate about it; the Leipzig venue is named as the QI Arena by some outlets and the Quarterback Immobilien Arena by others, so both names are given. No rescheduled dates had been announced when this story was built.
The two shows affected
The shows affected are tonight, Saturday 31 October, at the QI Arena — the Quarterback Immobilien Arena — in Leipzig, and tomorrow evening, Sunday 1 November, at the Sporthalle in Hamburg. Both dates are on the German leg of the band's current tour.
Photos: Ian Gillan performing live with Deep Purple in Germany, July 2022, by Stefan Brending (2eight) via Wikimedia Commons (CC BY-SA 3.0 DE), original 1365x2048; and Gillan onstage with Deep Purple in Hamburg, 1971, by Gladstone via Wikimedia Commons (CC BY-SA 4.0), original 2056x3193. The 2022 photograph was cropped at the right edge to remove a sliver of a second person at the frame edge, so Gillan is the only person pictured; the 1971 photograph shows Gillan alone. Both photographs are used at 1080 pixels wide, never upscaled, as upper-body crops on 1080x1920 navy canvases: the full person sits in the upper portion of every page and the text panel sits only on the empty navy band below them, never touching the subject. A third photograph checked in this run, Gillan in Barcelona in 1983, was not used because at 532 pixels native it would sit too small beside the two large portraits. Every page photograph shows Ian Gillan — the only person this story is about; no other person is pictured as a subject.
The postponement and the band's statement below were reported on 31 October 2026 by Parade, Page Six, American Songwriter, Far Out Magazine and Blabbermouth, all quoting the band's announcement. Every fact below is reported by at least two of those outlets. The band's announcement gave no further details about Gillan's condition, and this story does not speculate about it; the Leipzig venue is named as the QI Arena by some outlets and the Quarterback Immobilien Arena by others, so both names are given. No rescheduled dates had been announced when this story was built.
Tickets and new dates
The band said it is focused on finding suitable dates to reschedule both shows, and that all tickets already purchased will remain valid for the rescheduled dates. No new dates for Leipzig or Hamburg had been announced when this story was built.
Photos: Ian Gillan performing live with Deep Purple in Germany, July 2022, by Stefan Brending (2eight) via Wikimedia Commons (CC BY-SA 3.0 DE), original 1365x2048; and Gillan onstage with Deep Purple in Hamburg, 1971, by Gladstone via Wikimedia Commons (CC BY-SA 4.0), original 2056x3193. The 2022 photograph was cropped at the right edge to remove a sliver of a second person at the frame edge, so Gillan is the only person pictured; the 1971 photograph shows Gillan alone. Both photographs are used at 1080 pixels wide, never upscaled, as upper-body crops on 1080x1920 navy canvases: the full person sits in the upper portion of every page and the text panel sits only on the empty navy band below them, never touching the subject. A third photograph checked in this run, Gillan in Barcelona in 1983, was not used because at 532 pixels native it would sit too small beside the two large portraits. Every page photograph shows Ian Gillan — the only person this story is about; no other person is pictured as a subject.
The postponement and the band's statement below were reported on 31 October 2026 by Parade, Page Six, American Songwriter, Far Out Magazine and Blabbermouth, all quoting the band's announcement. Every fact below is reported by at least two of those outlets. The band's announcement gave no further details about Gillan's condition, and this story does not speculate about it; the Leipzig venue is named as the QI Arena by some outlets and the Quarterback Immobilien Arena by others, so both names are given. No rescheduled dates had been announced when this story was built.
What is not known
The band's announcement gave no further details about Gillan's condition, and no other details have been confirmed. This story does not speculate about the nature of the emergency; the only confirmed facts are the hospitalisation, the two postponed shows, and the plan to reschedule them.
Photos: Ian Gillan performing live with Deep Purple in Germany, July 2022, by Stefan Brending (2eight) via Wikimedia Commons (CC BY-SA 3.0 DE), original 1365x2048; and Gillan onstage with Deep Purple in Hamburg, 1971, by Gladstone via Wikimedia Commons (CC BY-SA 4.0), original 2056x3193. The 2022 photograph was cropped at the right edge to remove a sliver of a second person at the frame edge, so Gillan is the only person pictured; the 1971 photograph shows Gillan alone. Both photographs are used at 1080 pixels wide, never upscaled, as upper-body crops on 1080x1920 navy canvases: the full person sits in the upper portion of every page and the text panel sits only on the empty navy band below them, never touching the subject. A third photograph checked in this run, Gillan in Barcelona in 1983, was not used because at 532 pixels native it would sit too small beside the two large portraits. Every page photograph shows Ian Gillan — the only person this story is about; no other person is pictured as a subject.
The postponement and the band's statement below were reported on 31 October 2026 by Parade, Page Six, American Songwriter, Far Out Magazine and Blabbermouth, all quoting the band's announcement. Every fact below is reported by at least two of those outlets. The band's announcement gave no further details about Gillan's condition, and this story does not speculate about it; the Leipzig venue is named as the QI Arena by some outlets and the Quarterback Immobilien Arena by others, so both names are given. No rescheduled dates had been announced when this story was built.
Who is Ian Gillan?
Gillan, 81, has been Deep Purple's lead singer since 1969, when he joined the band after leaving Episode Six, replacing original frontman Rod Evans. He has fronted the band ever since his return in 1992, and remains its lead singer and lyricist.
Photos: Ian Gillan performing live with Deep Purple in Germany, July 2022, by Stefan Brending (2eight) via Wikimedia Commons (CC BY-SA 3.0 DE), original 1365x2048; and Gillan onstage with Deep Purple in Hamburg, 1971, by Gladstone via Wikimedia Commons (CC BY-SA 4.0), original 2056x3193. The 2022 photograph was cropped at the right edge to remove a sliver of a second person at the frame edge, so Gillan is the only person pictured; the 1971 photograph shows Gillan alone. Both photographs are used at 1080 pixels wide, never upscaled, as upper-body crops on 1080x1920 navy canvases: the full person sits in the upper portion of every page and the text panel sits only on the empty navy band below them, never touching the subject. A third photograph checked in this run, Gillan in Barcelona in 1983, was not used because at 532 pixels native it would sit too small beside the two large portraits. Every page photograph shows Ian Gillan — the only person this story is about; no other person is pictured as a subject.
The postponement and the band's statement below were reported on 31 October 2026 by Parade, Page Six, American Songwriter, Far Out Magazine and Blabbermouth, all quoting the band's announcement. Every fact below is reported by at least two of those outlets. The band's announcement gave no further details about Gillan's condition, and this story does not speculate about it; the Leipzig venue is named as the QI Arena by some outlets and the Quarterback Immobilien Arena by others, so both names are given. No rescheduled dates had been announced when this story was built.
The tour
The postponed dates are part of Deep Purple's SPLAT! world tour, which has been running since early August 2026, with performances scheduled through December. The current line-up alongside Gillan is guitarist Simon McBride, bassist Roger Glover, drummer Ian Paice and keyboardist Don Airey.
Photos: Ian Gillan performing live with Deep Purple in Germany, July 2022, by Stefan Brending (2eight) via Wikimedia Commons (CC BY-SA 3.0 DE), original 1365x2048; and Gillan onstage with Deep Purple in Hamburg, 1971, by Gladstone via Wikimedia Commons (CC BY-SA 4.0), original 2056x3193. The 2022 photograph was cropped at the right edge to remove a sliver of a second person at the frame edge, so Gillan is the only person pictured; the 1971 photograph shows Gillan alone. Both photographs are used at 1080 pixels wide, never upscaled, as upper-body crops on 1080x1920 navy canvases: the full person sits in the upper portion of every page and the text panel sits only on the empty navy band below them, never touching the subject. A third photograph checked in this run, Gillan in Barcelona in 1983, was not used because at 532 pixels native it would sit too small beside the two large portraits. Every page photograph shows Ian Gillan — the only person this story is about; no other person is pictured as a subject.
The postponement and the band's statement below were reported on 31 October 2026 by Parade, Page Six, American Songwriter, Far Out Magazine and Blabbermouth, all quoting the band's announcement. Every fact below is reported by at least two of those outlets. The band's announcement gave no further details about Gillan's condition, and this story does not speculate about it; the Leipzig venue is named as the QI Arena by some outlets and the Quarterback Immobilien Arena by others, so both names are given. No rescheduled dates had been announced when this story was built.
What happens next
For now, ticket holders are asked to hold on to their tickets, which will remain valid when the Leipzig and Hamburg shows are rescheduled. Any update on Gillan's condition or on new dates will come from the band itself. Tap below for more VisitBest web stories.