West End Girl

Following the release of No Shame (2018), Allen met and married the actor David Harbour and moved to Brooklyn. She ventured away from music into other endeavours including stage acting, starring in the West End production 2:22 A Ghost Story (2021) and screen acting in Dreamland (2023). She later revealed in March 2020 that her new album features "odd mentions" of her past addictions, stating "This album I've been doing, I've been writing for just over a year, but I feel like I've moved on mentally so far from that time." Following a significant hiatus, Allen began writing consistently again in 2020, but suffered from writer's block, and felt dissatisfied with what she was creating. In early 2024, she said she had recorded around fifty songs for her next music project, which she was still working on. In the summer of 2024, Allen met May once more in Los Angeles, where she shared details about her personal life and discussed her interest in beginning writing and working with him again. Shortly after this, they met to start work on the album and schedule recording time. ==Writing and recording==

West End Girl was created and recorded over a ten-day period at Blue May's home in Los Angeles. Unlike her previous work, which often featured one main producer, Allen wanted to include additional writers and producers in the album's creation. along with Allen and May, produced all the album's tracks, whilst Allen collaborated on the songwriting with Hayley Gene Penner, Chloe Angelides, and Violet Skies. On the first day of recording, Allen presented eighteen song titles and a vision for a chronological album. "Madeline" and "Relapse" were written on the same day, the latter being completed during an evening studio session. The structure of "Madeline" was inspired by Dolly Parton's single "Jolene" (1973) and a story Allen shared about an email exchange she had with a woman. Additionally, during the writing of "Madeline", Allen put on an American accent and impersonated said woman, which was used on the final track. Fourteen out of the eighteen track titles Allen brought on the first day were completed by the end of the ten days. Allen and May agreed to return to the studio in February, for six days, to complete the four remaining titles. May invited along two new collaborators; Hayley Gene Penner and Alessandro Buccellati, to work with Allen. When the group met in February, they completed the album's opening track, "West End Girl", and "Ruminating", with the remaining songs being scrapped. May wanted to use the album's production to convey the lyrics emotional quality and storytelling. The album's tracks, such as "Tennis", utilise a mellow soul music backdrop to depict a domestic scene, while "Madeline" incorporates explicit sound effects, such as gun sounds, to represent a dramatic scene. The production of tracks such as "Dallas Major" attempted to capture the feeling of a '90s New York club through incorporating disco music influences, reflecting the song's lyrics which see Allen make the decision to re-enter the dating scene. For songs focused on internal states, such as "Ruminating," the sound design intensifies emotion; using a sped-up, looping drumbeat from a Korg Triton keyboard to mimic the obsessive thought process of Allen receiving difficult news. ==Composition==

A predominantly pop album, West End Girl incorporates an eclectic mix of genres including dancehall, electronic, R&B, 2-step garage, and Latin pop. Alexis Petridis of The Guardian noted that the album's story ties the songs and mix of sounds together. For instance, she described Madeline, who appears in two songs, as a fictional character who is a construct of others. In "4chan Stan", Allen mocks her husband with references to the imageboard website 4chan over "wistful" production. "Nonmonogamummy", a dancehall-infused collaboration with Specialist Moss, discusses dating as a woman in her late thirties and people pleasing. The ballad "Just Enough", with "lush strings" inspired by old Hollywood, finds Allen wondering whether her husband fathered a child with another woman. In the soul-pop "Dallas Major", she assumes the name on a dating app but dislikes the experience. "Beg for Me" uses a slowed down sample of Lumidee's song "Never Leave You (Uh Oooh, Uh Oooh)". Its lyrics detail what Allen wants in a relationship. "Let You W/In" discusses the end of her marriage with a "no-nonsense" attitude. In the closing track, "Fruityloop", Allen makes tentative peace with the events described on West End Girl with a reference to her second album, ''It's Not Me, It's You'' (2009). ==Artwork==

The album cover and illustrations were created by Spanish artist Nieves González. González was inspired specifically 16th- and 17th-century painting, notably iconography of saints and martyrs, which Laura Martin of Esquire noted for being similar to the work of 17th-century Dutch artist Rembrandt. The creative team aimed for a classical-styled cover featuring contemporary elements; therefore, the jacket and the polka dots were utilised as key features. ==Release and promotion==

On 20 October 2025, Allen announced that her fifth studio album, West End Girl, would be released four days later. West End Girl was released for streaming on 24 October 2025, on BMG, Allen's first album in seven years Following its release, West End Girl and its personal content generated significant discussion online. The online conversation led some social media users to criticise Harbour, and call for a boycott of his show Stranger Things. "Madeline" was serviced as the album's first single to British radio a week after its release. On 13 December 2025, Allen performed "Madeline" on an episode of the fifty-first season Saturday Night Live. Actress Dakota Johnson joined Allen on stage, portraying the character of Madeline during the spoken word sections of the song. Allen also performed album track "Sleepwalking" during the episode. To further promote West End Girl, Allen embarked on her fifth concert tour, Lily Allen Performs West End Girl, in March 2026, having announced it on 30 October 2025. The tour will take place in theatres across the United Kingdom including the London Palladium, and is set to be performed chronologically. Due to high demand, in November 2025, a second leg was added to the tour for June 2026 which is set to be performed at arena venues including The O2. ==Critical reception==

Industry awards ==Commercial performance==

In the United Kingdom, West End Girl debuted at number four on the UK Albums Chart on downloads alone with physical copies not available until January 2026. It was her highest-charting album in eleven years. It was the most streamed digital-only release by a British artist in 2025 in its opening week and was also the country's most-downloaded album that week, debuting at number one on the Official Albums Downloads Chart. The album climbed to number two on the UK charts the following week, remaining the most streamed album of the week. Following the album's physical release, it rose 92 spots on the UK Albums Chart, returning to its peak position. The same week, West End Girl topped the Official Vinyl Albums Chart. Upon the album's release, three of its tracks, "Pussy Palace", "West End Girl", and "Madeline", charted within the top twenty of the UK singles chart, with "Pussy Palace" subsequently becoming Allen's first top 10 since "Air Balloon" (2014). ==Track listing==

Notes • "Beg for Me" samples "Never Leave You (Uh Oooh, Uh Oooh)", as written by Lumidee, Teddy Mendez, Edwin Perez and Steven Marsden, and performed by Lumidee. • indicates a primary and vocal producer • indicates an additional producer • indicates a vocal producer ==Personnel==

Credits adapted from Tidal and Apple Music. Musicians • Lily Allen – lead vocals (all tracks), backing vocals (tracks 1–9, 11–14) • Blue May – programming (1–5, 7–9, 11–14), drums (1–5, 11–13), bass (1, 3–5, 8–11, 14), synthesizer (2–4, 6–9, 11, 12, 14), piano (2, 4, 5, 8, 12, 13), guitar (3–5, 8, 10, 13), keyboards (3, 4, 7–9, 12), bass synthesizer (12) • Oscar Scheller – programming (1–3, 6, 8, 14), drums (2, 3, 6, 8, 14); keyboards, synthesizer (3, 6, 8); bass synthesizer (3), bass (6) • Amy Langley – conductor, strings arrangement (1, 4–6, 10) • Alex Marshall – cello (1, 4–6, 10) • Jess Cox – cello (1, 4–6, 10) • Klara Romac – cello (1, 4–6, 10) • Rhian Porter – cello (1, 4–6, 10) • Vicky Matthews – cello (1, 4–6, 10) • Amy Stanford – viola (1, 4–6, 10) • Jordan Bergmans – viola (1, 4–6, 10) • Polly Wiltshire – viola (1, 4–6, 10) • Sarah Chapman – viola (1, 4–6, 10) • Blaize Henry – violin (1, 4–6, 10) • Ellie Stanford – violin (1, 4–6, 10) • Gita Langley – violin (1, 4–6, 10) • Glezni Roberts – violin (1, 4–6, 10) • Honor Watson – violin (1, 4–6, 10) • Jessie Murphy – violin (1, 4–6, 10) • Kotono Sato – violin (1, 4–6, 10) • Martin Lissola – violin (1, 4–6, 10) • Paloma Deike – violin (1, 4–6, 10) • Sarah Sexton – violin (1, 4–6, 10) • Stephanie Benedetti – violin (1, 4–6, 10) • Alessandro Buccellati – drums, guitar, keyboards, programming (1) • Hayley Gene Penner – backing vocals (1) • Micah Jasper – programming (2, 5, 13), drums (2, 11, 13), guitar (13) • Leon Vynehall – programming (2); drums, keyboards, programming, synthesizer (12) • Chloe Angelides – backing vocals (3, 4, 7, 10, 14) • Leroy Clampitt – keyboards, programming, synthesizer (3, 7, 12, 14); guitar (3, 7), drums (7, 14) • Kito – keyboards, programming, synthesizer (3); drums (4, 6, 9, 14) • Ian Franzino – keyboards, programming, synthesizer (4) • Ian Hass – keyboards, programming, synthesizer (4) • Mikey Freedom Hart – keyboards, programming, synthesizer (4) • Chrome Sparks – programming (5, 11, 13); drums, guitar (5, 11); synthesizer (5, 13), piano (11, 13), bass (13) • Albert Hammond Jr. – guitar (8) • Specialist Moss – backing vocals (9) • Jason Evigan – bass, guitar, programming (9) • Violet Skies – backing vocals (11, 13) • Valentina Pappalardo – backing vocals (12) Technical • Ben Baptie – mixing (all tracks), recording (1, 4–6, 10) • Joe LaPorta – mastering • Alessandro Buccellati – recording (1) • Blue May – recording (1–12, 14) • Leroy Clampitt – recording (1, 3, 4, 7, 8, 12, 14) • Kito – recording (4, 10) • Chrome Sparks – recording (5, 11, 13) • Oscar Scheller – recording (6, 8) • Jason Evigan – recording (9) ==Charts==