Howdy folks, and Happy New Year !!
A new year, and a new tour beckons, but what about the final 2009 dates i hear you ask, well we have to back in time for that ..........
London's Indigo2 was the next date after Manchester, and i can tell you, it was a bit nerve-wracking arriving at the stage door for this one. For the benefit of those of you who don't know, the Indigo2 is part of the o2 arena, which was the Millenium Dome in a previous life. It's huge inside, and of course, i had to have a walkabout. It was freezing !! it's basically a giant tent, so inside is the same temperature as outside, which happened to be -8 degrees !! The venue itself was warm. Steve had arranged for us to go to the Michael Jackson Exhibition, which was cool, if you are an MJ fan, then it's worth a look.
Had a bit of a drama, i found out to my horror that i had NO spirit gum remover, so organised for a motorcycle courier to pick some up from a chop in Covent Garden, and deliver it to me, panic over. What a great show this was. Thankfully it was busy, and the crowd soon warmed to the show. "Barcelona" with Ruth was again the highlight, and another standing ovation. We asked her if she was available for the other shows that weekend , the only other one she could do was Plymouth, so we arranged for her to come down in the afternoon again for a quick rehearsal.
Next day it was on to Southampton, and everybody was in the festive mood. Billy, Mal and I went out to do a bit of shopping, and had a great laugh, culminating in Billiy and I having a mock fight in Matalan, and Mal suggesting that we left. At the show, the venue management kept asking the audience to sit down, which annoyed me a bit, so at half time Steve asked for them to chill a bit, and all was well. Lots of fun was had by all.
Next, on to Plymouth, and we could see the finish line of 2009 !! It was bloody freezing again, so it was a day in the venue for me. Steve got a call from Ruth to say that her train had been cancelled, due to a guy jumping in front of the train before hers , horrific !!! She had to get a bus, and then a taxi, and arrived just at the end of soundcheck. Total time travelled: 8 hours, poor girl!!! But her journey was worthwhile, as "Barcelona" blew the roof off, which was great, as this was a capacity standing show, and a great way to end this little run.
A couple of days at home followed, then it was up to Aberdeen for 2 in a row, 22nd and 23rd. What can i say, god bless the Aberdonians !! If there is a town to have 2 festive shows, then this is it . The audience quickly got in the festive sprirt with us, and partied away quite happily, dancing and singing their hearts out both nights. Then it was back home in the wee small hours for Christmas.
The final show for 2009 was Stirling Castle, as part of Stirling's New Year party. We were top of the bill, and we all arrived about 6pm, as the roads were disasterous due to the snow and ice, but it was worth the journey. 4000 people standing out in the cold in the castle grounds, watching us do our stuff. We did a short set, and then after the bells, went on and did "Don't Stop Me Now" and " We Are The Champions". It was a fantastic way to finish 2009, really couldn't have asked for a better end . Right, well, there you have it, the last shows of 2009 in a nutshell. Who knows what 2010 has in store, you will have to keep looking on here, and i will update you when and where it happens, so it's ta ta for now.....
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