Oasis's photographer opens new exhibition

Jill Furmanovsky with Noel Gallagher in 2012

Noel Gallagher once called Jill Furmanovsky "the best photographer ever".

From Oasis's early concerts to the height of their powers, she was granted unprecedented access to chronicle one of rock and roll's most creative yet combustible bands.

And now the woman dubbed 'Oasis's unofficial official photographer' has a new exhibition of her pictures at the Lucy Bell Gallery in St Leonards-on-Sea, East Sussex, which runs until the end of September.

Entitled Oasis 1994-2009, it coincides with the ongoing and much-hyped reunion of the Manchester group Furmanovsky admits to "having loved since the start".

She said: "The first time I saw them was at the Cambridge Corn Exchange in 1994.

"I found them very intriguing because there was tremendous excitement at the concert, almost hysteria.

"Yet when the singer wasn't singing he'd just sit on the drum riser.

"It was most peculiar and yet the atmosphere was electric, so I was intrigued."

Furmanovsky's next assignment was photographing the band as they worked on the video for their single Live Forever.

"They were respectful to me because I had photographed a lot of their heroes," she said.

"I think Noel had an instinct that he needed someone to document what was happening."

One of Furmanovsky's photos of Oasis in Paris

And from her unique viewpoint Furmanovsky captured the band's highs and lows, including a tension-filled photo shoot in Paris.

"On the day when we were supposed to meet up and do the shoot Liam couldn't be found in the hotel," she said.

"It transpired he hadn't gone to bed that night and had been in the bar drinking.

"I had to send in an assistant to go and fetch him and he still had a glass of wine in his hand when we went off in the bus.

"Noel was not in a good mood at that point."

And, while Oasis would play giant concerts at Glastonbury and Knebworth, they eventually split in acrimony in 2009.

Jill Furmanovsky today

Last August though, Noel and Liam announced Oasis were getting back together, revealing details of a major UK tour this summer.

Furmanovsky said: "I'm thrilled, the same as any fan.

"They've kept their souls and their integrity as artists, and I think that's what people respond to."

She added she will be at the band's upcoming Wembley Stadium concerts.

What is more, she will be taking her camera with her.

Follow BBC Sussex on Facebook, on X, and on Instagram. Send your story ideas to [e-mail] or WhatsApp us on 08081 002250.