Music superstar plots string of festive dates for first European tour in eight years including huge UK shows

It may only be July, but Mariah Carey is already planning a special Christmas gift for her fans. I can reveal the superstar will play a series of festive shows across Europe this winter — the first time she’s done so on this side of the Atlantic in eight years. Mariah Carey is already planning a special Christmas gift for her fans Credit: Getty Mariah set to bring festive shows back to Europe after eight-year absence Credit: Getty I’m told the trek is set to be announced in the next few months, and it will see the self-declared Queen of Christmas take to the stage at London’s O2 Arena and Manchester’s Co-op Live. While the gigs are very much billed as festive shows, Mariah is hoping to add in a couple of tracks from her latest album, Here For It All. Sign up for the Showbiz newsletter Thank you! She released the record last September, but opted not to go on a tour following its release. A source said: “It’s been a long time since UK fans got to see Mariah perform her festive classics, but the wait is nearly over. “After years of playing seasonal shows only in America, she’s about to announce a whole European Christmas tour.” Mariah performed in the UK last summer when she played a show at the Royal Sandringham Estate in Norfolk and headlined Brighton Pride but, for obvious reasons, she wasn’t belting out All I Want For Christmas Is You on those occasions. The 1994 megahit is still one of the biggest songs of all time, shifting more than 50 million copies around the globe. The song is said to make £2million in royalties every year, purely based on how much it is bought and streamed. Most read in Showbiz The tour is set to see the star take to the stage at London’s O2 Arena and Manchester’s Co-op Live Credit: Getty Mariah’s festive shows are finally returning to Europe Credit: Getty Her accompanying album Merry Christmas has sold more than 18 million copies. Previously explaining why she goes all out every year for the festive season, Mariah said: “Growing up, I always wanted Christmas to be perfect and I always looked forward to the holidays, but I had this incredibly dysfunctional family that managed to ruin it every single year. “I was like, ‘When I grow up, I am never going to let that happen. I am going to make Christmas perfect every year.’” I better get practising my high notes. Comment now