When you've been the beating heart of the most celebrated band in the history of heavy metal for almost five decades, you've pretty much seen and done it all. For Iron Maiden co-founder and bassist Steve Harris, that means selling out stadiums and arenas the world over, selling a butt-load of records and merch and sweeping countless rock and metal awards over the years.
When Metal Hammer recently sat down with the bassist for an exclusive interview, we asked him if there was any achievement from across his impressive career that particularly stood out to him. After some careful consideration, Harris revealed that his proudest achievement is, in fact, the Ivor Novello award the band won in the early 2000s. Named after the beloved and hugely influential Welsh actor and entertainer, the Ivor Novello awards celebrate achievements in songwriting - something that spoke to Harris in particular when Maiden were awarded the Ivor Novello International Achievement in 2001.
"I think, one of the key things, especially for me, was the Ivor Novello Award," Harris confirms. "I didn’t want to go to the presentation. I find all that stuff a little bit…I’m pretty shy when it comes to things like that! I feel a bit embarrassed, so I let the others [in the band] who are good at that sort of thing do that. But I thought that was quite an honour in a lot of ways because it’s for songwriting, and for me, I’ve always said it doesn’t matter what anyone thinks of you as a player, the songwriting is the most important thing. So to get an award like that was really nice."
Maiden are currently in the middle of their epic Future Past Tour, which is heading across Europe and due to arrive in the UK next month. For the full list of tour dates, see below, and read more from our exclusive Iron Maiden interview in the next issue of Metal Hammer magazine, one sale Thursday.
Iron Maiden Future Past tour dates Europe 2023
May 30: Prague O2 Arena, Czech Republic
May 31: Prague O2 Arena, Czech Republic
Jun 03: Tampere Nokia Arena, Finland
Jun 04: Tampere Nokia Arena, Finland
Jun 07: Bergen Koengen, Norway
Jun 09: Solvesborg Sweden Rock Festival, Sweden
Jun 11: Leipzig Quarterback Immobilien Arena, Germany
Jun 13: Krakow Tauron Arena, Poland
Jun 14: Krakow Tauron Arena, Poland
Jun 17: Clisson Hellfest, France
Jun 19: Zurich Hallenstadion, Switzerland
Jun 21: Hannover Zag Arena, Germany
Jun 24: Dublin 3 Arena, Ireland
Jun 26: Glasgow OVO Hydro, UK
Jun 28: Leeds, First Direct Arena, UK
Jun 30: Manchester AO Arena, UK
Jul 03: Nottingham Motorpoint Arena, UK
Jul 04: Birmingham Utilita Arena, UK
Jul 07: London O2 Arena, UK
Jul 08: London O2 Arena, UK
Jul 11: Amsterdam Ziggo Dome, Holland
Jul 13: Antwerp Sportpaleis, Belgium
Jul 15: Milan, The Return of The Gods Festival, Italy
Jul 18: Palau Sant Jordi, Barcelona, Spain
Jul 20: Estadio Enrique Roca, Murcia, Spain
Jul 22: Bizkaia Arena Bec! Bilbao, Spain
Jul 25 Dortmund Westfalenhalle, Germany
Jul 26 Dortmund Westfalenhalle, Germany
Jul 29: Frankfurt,Festhalle, Germany
Jul 31: Munich Olympiahalle, Germany
Aug 01: Munich Olympiahalle, Germany
Aug 02: Wacken Open Air, Germany
