19 December 2009 - Mencap Charity Concert, Exeter Castle, Exeter, UK
From WikiColdplay
Contents |
Setlist
- Have Yourself A Merry Little Christmas
- Clocks
- In My Place
- Yellow
- Glass Of Water
- 42
- Fix You
- Strawberry Swing
- Death Will Never Conquer (Acoustic - sung by Will)
- Billie Jean (Michael Jackson cover - Acoustic)
- Til Kingdom Come
- Viva La Vida
- Lost!
- Death And All His Friends
Encore - The Scientist
- Life In Technicolor ii
- War Is Over (John Lennon cover)
Photos
Photos from this show can be found at Coldplaying.com in the Gallery thread for Exeter. http://www.coldplaying.com/forum/gallery/showgallery.php/cat/1797
Videos
Videos from this show can be found in the first post of the Coldplaying forum live thread for this show at http://www.coldplaying.com/forum/showthread.php?t=65063
Discussion
All post-show discussion for this show at the forum thread: http://www.coldplaying.com/forum/showthread.php?t=65063
Fan Reviews
All fan reviews have been submitted to us by the members of Coldplaying.com[1], unless stated otherwise.
Can't actually process what happened this evening as being real at all at the moment. Beautiful venue, lovely music, fantastic evening. Not as cold inside the venue as I'd feared at all.
Went with my brother, stayed behind afterwards and one of the roadies gave me a couple of black plectrums with 'Vida la vida' written on them, then we met Jo Whiley - had no pen nor battery left on mobile nor film left in disposable camera so just told her absolutely loved the event, then my brother got her to speak on the phone to his fiancee as their parents live a few streets away from one another.
Blissful, my favourite 2 songs more for sentimentality reasons than anything else are The Scientist and Til Kingdom Come, they played both. I was at the back at the top of the stadium at the last of the September gigs and they didn't sing the latter then, they did this time and I nearly cried.
Best £50 I've ever ever spent. It's 1.40 am and I've got to go to bed though I'm still bouncing off the walls!!
Sinking in now that that was real, my feet are still sore but my ears have stopped going 'eeeeeeeeeee' and I keep looking at the plectrum to check it's still there!
(Karen, were you the girl who fell over fighting for the drumstick at the end with the tall lad? Whoever that was, you go girl but I hope you're Ok! Also, if the girl with short brown hair in the 3rd row back to the left of the stage who was taking photos with a proper big camera is on here, I would love copies of some of your photos because I was literally right behind you!!)
I love the idea that the show was supposed to be acoustic - someone should've told La Roux that!! (as my brother said, does anyone else think she danced how speed ice skaters race?) She was very sweet, had to agree with her, I thought it would be cold in there and it wasn't - yup, the girl who had to stand with all the coats between her knees? That was me.
I also like the idea that the Tiverton Brass Band members can go to work tomorrow and when asked 'What did you do on Saturday' can shrug nonchalantly and say 'Oh, nothing much, just filled in for Lily Allen, warming up for Coldplay, you know, the usual...'
[Scientist311]
Don't have a setlist but here's what I remember..... Started with Chris at piano singing " have yourself a merry little Xmas" then into "Clocks" followed by "in my place" (I think!!) then "yellow". Can't remember order of rest but they played "life in technicolour 11" , "glass of water" , "Lost" , "42", "strawb swing","fix you". They even did the acoustic break thing and went to the back of the marquee by the mixing desk and did a cover of MJ's "billie Jean" as well as a great Chris solo version of "Till Kingdom come". Then back for "Viva" and others before finishing with cover of "Happy Xmas War is over". Sorry if that's totally wrong snd out of sequence but it's the best I can do right now- it's late and We drove diwn from Nottingham today!!
More........... Ok a few random memories.... Jo Whileys sister introduced Coldplay..... We met someone who had been chatting to Carol Smiley backstage ???? ........ we met 3 members of The Tiverton Brass Band who were totally blown away by playing support to Coldplay and will probably dine out on that fact for years to come!!!......... There was some fake snow scattered on the crowd during the first encore (I think) but it didn't work very well and was more like a mild flurry than the full on snowstorm that was probably intended!! Right time for bed ........ G'night all..... What a night that was.....
[slideaway]
OMG what a day yesterday was!!!
I was one of the people lucky enough to meet Chris and Guy before the gig and never in my wildest dreams did I think I would get that chance. I still can't quite believe it's happened now.
A mention should go to Chris, Mich and Alison who made queueing in the cold much more interesting!! Also Carol, was great to meet you too hun!
Right, so we had been queueing for maybe about an hour and a half, when Chris's dad starts walking down towars us from the castle then we realise Chris is walking next to him!!! He was walking past where we were so he stopped and chatted to us for a bit.
He was really concerned about everyone keeping warm, I think at one point he said he didn't want anyone to die lol!! Bless him, he was lovely! I asked him if there was any chance they'd play Shiver and he said no. So I said what about if I told him I had camped outside HMV for 2 days for my tickets and he said that was crazy and deserved a mention on stage but they still wouldn't play Shiver. Then he said that Guy doesn't like to play it anymore and he also said they just can't play the song the way they used to for some reason
Anyway, he had a picture taken with us four plus the two Italian guys, one of whom I think is Axe on this forum.
Then later on Guy arrived, he drove himself there so he gave us a little wave as he drove past us on the way in and then when he had parked his car he came over to say hello and signed some autographs, which I got and I also had a pic taken with Guy. He was also asked about Shiver and said they wouldn't play it. He also said they would probably be really rusty in the gig and I said I doubted that and he replied that he was glad someone had some confidence
Then a bit later Chris came back and that's when I got his autograph. He was in a rush so mine was the last autograph he did.
Now onto the gig (apologies if I'm rambling )
Our queueing up paid off and of course we got front row, so there was at least 5 Coldplayers on the barrier!!! I coudn't believe how tiny the marquee was and how close I was going to be to the stage when the guys came on.
It was practically a Viva set but the order was changed and they started with Chris singing Have Yourself A Merry Little Christmas before they launched straight into Clocks. I know someone posted the setlist already so I won't try and remember it
After the first three songs (clock, In My Place and Yellow) my throat was already going from the singing etc, not that I'm complaining. To see the band in that small a venue and to be front row and have them performing so close in front of me was amazing!! They still managed to sueeze a c stage in at the back and did Death Will Never Conquer, Billie Jean and Til Kingdom Come. All of which were fab!! 42, Strawberry Swing and Viva were also awesome. I got one of Chris's drumsticks that he threw into the crowd... well Chris (Jayzo) caught it and gave it to me, so to him I am so thankful, he's a legend and we're lucky to have him on this forum!!!
I think I'm going to stop rambling now and just finish off by saying that yesterday was THE most surreal day ever and it's one that I won't forget for a very long time!!!
[karenc]
Hi everyone, I'm a bit late to the party considering I got back home at 4 am last night from Exeter but I only got about 4 hours sleep (was so full of adrenelin and ears still ringing at 5 am it took me ages to get any shut eye lol) and was completely exhausted today which made it impossible for me to write anything proper I am planning to write a longer review tommorow and post some of my videos but thought I'd just make a quick post before going to bed. Last night was really the most incredible night I've ever experience. I'm still trying to shake off that feeling of surrealism... I just couldn't take it all in last night, it was like a dream. One you'd never think would happen in real life. Me and my younger brother got to the queue at about 5-ish and there were less than 20 people in the line ahead of us. We were next to a really sweet Spanish couple who'd come all the way from Barcelona and I quickly learnt from them that the first lot of people in the queue had been there since the morning, immediately thought they must be Coldplayers
I'm SO envious of some of you for being able to meet Chris and Guy like that () really sweet of them to sign stuff and have pics taken But tbh I'm not sure I could have survived in the cold for those many hours, I don't know how you did it as by the time I'd been standing for half an hour I was already loosing feeling in my toes I just wish I could have had the opportunity but hey, I'm not giving up on fulfilling that dream in the future I had a somewhat over optimistic hope that I might be able to meet at least one of the guys after the gig but they went around the back way that was fenced off to the side of the marquee and straight into the vip hall in the castle and I missed them. When the gates finally opened me and my brother walked up to the castle as quickly as we could. The first thing I thought when I entered the marquee was how absolutely minuscule it was, it felt like less than 500 people to me. It was so Christmas-y, decorated with blue lights draped from the ceiling and Christmas trees around the castle, it was just perfect.
Once I'd had a look in the marquee I had to go to the loo so ended up having a really panicy moment after leaving my brother to get as close to the front of the stage inside the marquee as poss and try and find the toliets which took me about 5 minutes. I ended up running like a mad person all the way back up to the tent because I was so worried about not getting to the front. Luckily me and my brother were standing with only one or two lines of people in front of us and we were right in the centre of the floor. I just couldn't believe our luck - I was so close, I could see Johnny to my left play every cord, Guy to my right, Will at the back, and pretty much every hair on Chris's head.
It was incredible to be in such a small intimate setting and that close to a band that I've only seen from far away on the two concerts I've seen them before - it was almost like a pub gig, the atmosphere and everything. I never thought I'd be lucky enough to get the opportunity to see the guys playing in that situation, ever. When they first came out on to the stage after Joe Whiley introduced them, it was unreal for me because to see them that close on such a little stage... felt so strange. In a fantastic way. I have loads of thoughts on the setlist, Chris's banter and other little things but I'll have to leave those for tommorow as I'm so tired! But I am going to upload my vids to youtube which I took with my amazing Sony HD handycam. I got loads of footage, several full songs, including when they first came on stage and the second encore when they played the War Is Over cover all huddled around the mic with Will playing the piano (!) which was such a fuzzy moment, a beautiful way to end the show. (nearly made me cry!)
I will never forget last night, it was just unforgettable. I feel so privileged to have been there. Although I didn't get to meet the boys, I felt lucky to have got as close to the stage as I did. (and I did make eye contact with Guy fleetingly... I swear. ) He was so smiley and really enjoying the crowd, he got several shout outs from girls in the crowd. Was dissapointed that I failed to get Chris to notice me but it was half made up by the fact that me and my brother got to chat to Radio 1 DJ and event organiser Joe Whiley after CP had finished... we even got a piccie taken with her which was so awesome. I said thankyou to her for helping arrange the gig. She was really sweet and friendly and seemed just as blown away as me by the evening, telling us how lucky we were to get tickets and how the band won't be doing something like this again for a long time which makes it even more special. It certainly was.
I felt so sorry for Chris at the end of 42, he was already so exhausted and out of breath, his comment about needing to get down to the local fitness club... lolol. The yodelling part was hilarious, I remember all of us were making as much noise as we could back at Chris and stamping our feet and he just kept asking for more. The noise he made at the end made us all giggle. He's so cute in such a dorky way.
Some other moments I loved:
Jonny messing up playing DAAHF when he missed his queue - Chris totally told him off, calling it a "royal f*** up" Jonny was just laughing and the crowd ended up cheering support for him which Chris responded to by saying how this is why he's the greatest guitarist in the world - "people love him even when he plays no chords" Awwwweee...
The guys all leaving the main stage and going to the back of the tent to the little c-stage. "Billie Jean" was just one big sing along, I couldn't see very much but I loved Will joining in the vocals like at Wembley, so funny when they changed the lines to "she thinks Will is the one" "but he used protection..." () and Chris's MJ-esque high pitched noises were all copied by the crowd.
Will sung "Death will never conquer" beautifully and it was so nice to hear some of the proper fans singing the lyrics with him (). The most touching performance of the evening for me was definitely Chris's solo acoustic performance of "Till Kingdom Come"... the rest of the boys left Chris and went back to the front stage. Chris dedicating it to his dad and saying thankyou was so sweet, all their family and friends were literally just behind them and I could see Chris's dad next to Jo Whiley. I wanted to cry at this point, Chris sung TKC straight from the heart.
[loveintechnicolor]
Part 1
Let me start by saying that as much as I adore this band, if anyone ever hears/sees me talking about standing outside for almost 7 hours in below freezing temperatures to see them in the future, please remind me of 19/12/09 I didn't think I'd ever feel my feet again, I had a pair of thick tights AND three pairs of thick socks and still they were numb. It was worth it in the end, but by god it was hard going at times. And pretty stupid too
Anyway. Karen, Chris and I met at about 11.30am and after picking up some supplies from Tesco we headed to the castle, there was no-one queuing so we were dithering for a while about what to do. We thought about going for a drink for a few hours and coming back. Thankfully, we did not. We figured we had nothing else to do and at this point is was still rather mild (well still just above freezing ) The security guards were a bit taken aback at us queuing so early but they were friendly enough and said it was fine as long as we already had tickets.
About half an hour later we were joined by two Italian fans who had flown in that morning (one of them was axe, who posts here) and a mother and daughter that Chris and Karen knew from the HMV queue. We were all just standing around swapping Coldplay stories and since the only way cars could get into the castle was to drive past us we were squinting into every single vehicle that passed, however clapped out it may have been
At about 12.30 we saw someone who looked suspiciously like Chris Martin just casually walking out of the castle entrance, when he was close enough that we could see a certain striped beanie we knew it was him I don't think he expected anyone to have been there that early and looked a bit shocked when we called to him. He came over and asked us why we were there and we told him we were queuing for the gig and he was really concerned. Kept saying how long we had to wait and how cold it was. He was lovely as always and was chatting, but kept telling us over and over to make sure we went and got hot drinks and had breaks inside out of the cold
He told us he was on his way to meet his old music teacher but would happily pose for pictures. Kelly and his dad shared camera duties and took a group shot of us all with various cameras During the group shot I was shivering and Chris turned to me and said "look, make sure you take a break" I told him my hotel was literally around the corner and he was like "okay, good"
Karen asked him to play Shiver to which he replied no, even though she had stood outside so long to buy tickets He said it'd never sound as good as it did and to ask Guy as he is the one who always vetoes it.
He was so very gracious and it was so sweet that he was genuinely concerned for us. Because it was spontaneous, none of us had expected he'd just wander on out, it was really relaxed and therefore I didn't make a fool of myself like like time
We were all obviously pumped for a good hour or so which was nice as it seemed to warm us all up (it had turned very cold by this point) just as we had all finished tweeting and replying to texts, calming down and were starting to feel the cold again we saw Kelly come back out of the castle. There was a some excitement as a car drove past so I looked into the passenger side to see Dave Holmes (Coldplay's manager) and was confused as to why everyone was so excited, not that Mr. Holmes isn't exciting, of course It turned out that Guy was driving and had waved on his way past. I had missed it as I was looking at Dave
Kelly went to meet him and he came to say hello He asked us how we were all doing and signed some autographs, someone mentioned what Chris said about Shiver and if they would play it and he was like "haha no"
He also agreed to take some photos with us (the one of me and Chris with Guy is on Chris' camera so I don't have that right now) I do have some of him signing autographs though.
We told him to have a good gig and he went inside.
We were sad that Alison arrived mere minutes after he left But very happy to see her
About ten or fifteen minutes later two more blacked out cars drove past (presumably with Jonny and Will in) but they drove straight up to the marquee, I think they were eager to start soundcheck as it began shortly afterwards.
We were shocked by how loud it was, you could clearly hear every note and we were a fair way away from the marquee. I think we were all a little worried that we were going to go deaf later on.
As the soundcheck had been going on a good twenty minutes we assumed Chris had slipped back in through a side entrance, so imagine our surprise when he walked back up towards the castle. Even though there was only a handful of people more than when he had last seen us he still stopped to talk to us and was still telling us to keep warm He signed some autographs this time and had his picture taken with those who hadn't had one. He was talking in depth to the Italian fans about plans for Coldplay to become smaller but better in the future.
He told us he was very late for soundcheck (obviously ) and had to go, so I didn't get a chance to pass on the message Ben Jones (Absolute Radio) had asked me to via Twitter (sorry Ben, if you're reading )
Part 2
Coldplay soundchecked for a good 90 minutes, maybe more, they ran through the entire Viva setlist, Chris had said they were very rusty and hadn't played since September, as did Guy so I figure they were getting some extra practise in. We heard them practise War is Over which sounded amazing even then! Once it was over time really started to drag, with the excitement over we were all really feeling the cold, even with blankets, hats, scarves, gloves and thermals I think I can safely say we were all miserable for a good hour or so, although wouldn't admit at the time
However after lovely Alison got us a warm drink we got over the slump and things started to pick up again. A blacked out gate was erected to shield us normal people from the celebrities who were arriving, at least that's what the guard told us, as we were up the front we could see past it and we didn't see anyone other than the Tiverton Town Band arrive.
The ticket scanners had come out and extra security were arriving so we knew things were starting to get going. During this time Phil had a wander down and we called him over. I think he recognised me and Chris from Wembley. He chatted to us for a bit, said we were insane to have waited for so long in the cold. We didn't take any pics cos I think he thought we were crazy enough as it was If you're reading Phil, I promise you we're not really, we are all pretty normal people usually
He was lovely though and said he hoped we made it to the front after we had queued so long and hoped we had fun
Shortly after that a journalist from the Exeter Express and Echo came and interviewed me, Chris, Alison and Karen and took our pics (I really hope they don't see the light of day, after 6 hours of standing outside I'm pretty sure we weren't looking our best ) He asked us about where we'd travelled from and various questions about Coldplay and the gig
After the VIPs (including Kirstie Allsop, who had apparently helped design the marquee interior) had gone through it was finally our turn. We got to the front row easily and were blown away by how small it was inside, it looked like the venue for a school disco or a wedding reception, not where one of the biggest bands in the world were about to play.
We didn't have to wait long before the lovely Jo Whiley came on and said hello. She welcomed us all and told us about Lily Allen pulling out and her replacement. Which turned out to be the Tiverton Town Band (she said on the radio today that Chris had persuaded them to play ) They played some Christmas tunes and did very well, they seemed a bit nervous (obviously) but we cheered and clapped for them and they seemed to have fun.
La Roux was on next, she was good, very sweet, made nervous conversation between songs, also said she was selling some of her hair for Mencap She sang well and danced like a loon (in a good way ). She finished with Bulletproof (which I recorded) and had really got the crowd going by the end. Jo came back on to say thanks and that we should all get something to eat and drink and wait for the next act, which was of course...Coldplay
Part 3
It seemed to take an age to set Coldplay up, I think we were all just REALLY impatient though Plus the Christmas tunes they were pumping out were starting to grate a little.
We noticed Jo hanging around at the side of the stage waiting to go on (our Chris kept trying to wave at her ) she was with her sister Francis who has a condition called cri du chat, we saw Chris M going to sit with Francis and he gave her a big hug and had his photo taken with her. It was very sweet. Then Jo brought Francis on stage with her. She explained about her condition and all the good work Mencap do and how much she adores Coldplay then had Francis introduce them to the stage
They came on to thunderous applause and started with Have Yourself a Merry Little Christmas. You guys know the setlist and I can't remember everything song by song so will just post some bullet point highlights
- Chris was saying that we had to make as much noise as we could to convince his bandmates that it was worth them giving up their Christmas to play in his hometown so they didn't think he was a nobhead
- It only took like a few seconds to run to the C-Stage and once they got there he said "if you're wondering how we did that so fast, there's actually two of us, we're better than that lot over there"
- Chris introduced his Dad during the C stage, he thanked him for putting up with watching him make a fool out of himself for 32 years I think I might have a vid of that actually.
- Jonny completely and utterly missed his cue during DAAHF. Chris said it was the biggest fuck up ever and that if it wasn't for charity he'd have given us all 32p back He then told us all to cheer for Jonny and said "see, even though he messed up you're all still cheering for him, that's why he's the best guitarist in the world"
- During 42 where he usually holds the note at the end he got us to repeat him. After a few "woahs" he yodelled Then was like "oh no, I shouldn't have done that" He went to start Fix You and stopped, saying "I can't go into that song after a yodel, let me say hello instead..." I think I have that on film too. Will post once it is uploaded.
- The crowd was REALLY loud for only 500 people, it was pretty amazing.
- During Yellow Chris noticed me and the other Chris and recognised us from earlier and pointed at us when he sang "look how they shine for you" I have a picture will post it with the others
- At the end of VLV Chris was rolling all over the floor, was hilarious right up close, then when he did his backwards roll into Lost I think we all saw more that we wanted to Well me and Alison did
- In between the verse of LiTii Chris said that they were going away and were going to get better. He thanked their families, all the fans and then "all the women we got pregnant" then he started laughing and missed his cue into the second verse, he completely lost his place and looked at Will who mimed the lyric at him
- There was snow that fell but I don't think it worked properly, it seemed really limp, Chris, Jonny and Guy were all giggling at it failing
- In between each encore the crowd were clapping and stamping their feet and calling their name, it was really awesome
It was an absolutely amazing gig, of course, to see them in such an intimate setting was truly an honour. Am very grateful I got to go, thank you very much to Chris for getting my ticket!
Am kinda glad that really is it for a bit though, I feel like I got all my crazy out of me and can go back to having money again for a while
See you next decade boys....
[Mimixxx]
I'm finally back home and my little odyssey is now over. There has been a moment on friday, when I really tought I was not going to make it because of all the flight cancellations both in the UK and Italy, plus a friend of mine told me Turin airport (where I was leaving from after three days of work out of office) was famous for not being that reliable in winter time and it had started snowing that day. Thankfully everything worked out fine tough the train from Bristol to Exeter was 1 hour late.
Haven't read the thread yet, but I'm sure I'm late to add anything interesting to what must have already been said. I need to thank my three italian mates (also for saving the spot in the first row), and Graham and Gareth for being so kind and accompany me to the hotel after waiting for the band (and I hope I got the names right )
[iriden]
GUYS!! I've got friends over so I can't write much now, but I will soon add my review to the wonderful reviews that have already been posted. It was such an amazing evening and so great to see all the hardcore Coldplay fans. I enjoyed their stadium concerts too, but Saturday was 1000x better! As I said, I'll be back with my review soon. All your pictures are amazing by the way! Great quality. Oh...I was on the same train to Exeter as Will and Jonny. I wanted to say "Hey, see you later!" but I was too shy, silly me. It was funny though, cause nobody seemed to recognize them (although they looked damn fine...like proper rockstars).
[Hogy]
You beat me to it! Was just going to come here and share these with you guys. I think I may be the 'girl with the big camera' Scientist311 was referring to a few pages back. It's only an old, basic Canon and I'm strictly an amateur, but I'm quite pleased with a few of the shots - a clear view would've been good as I've had to do quite a lot of cropping and still have lots of overexposed heads in most of my pictures, but I'm afraid I wouldn't have queued in the cold for 7 hours to get to the barrier (even if it did mean meeting Chris and Guy)!
I'm also the 'Becky from Exeter' in yesterday's 'Exeter Coldplay concert hailed by fans', though in a classic piece of local paper reporting, they actually took my comment out of context and without asking permission, from what was supposed to be an anonymous post on their website, responding to some idiots in Exeter who wouldn't know a good thing if it smacked them in the face - somehow, in spite of petty sniping from a few, it's turned into 'Reaction to the performance has been universally positive' - still, Chris says he likes the Echo and I do agree that it was a fantastic gig, so I'll let the minor factual inaccuracy go.
loveintechnicolor - were you the guys from Sussex in front of us in the queue with your parents? Did you get a copy of the paper sorted? If not, PM me and I'll see what I can do.
It was a truly fantastic gig and I feel very privileged to have been there. :-) You all seem like a pretty cool bunch of people too - maybe I'll see some of you again some day...
[beckyxrx]
Media Reviews
Coldplay at Exeter Castle: Chris Martin says gig was 'really great fun'
Coldplay singer Chris Martin described last night's Mencap's Big Noise Session at Exeter Castle as 'really great fun'.
Chris, who was born in Whitestone, spent the afternoon before the gig with his family while guitarist Jonny did a spot of Christmas shopping, according to www.coldplay.com
Coldplay were introduced on to the stage by Radio One DJ Jo Whiley and her sister. Whiley helped organise the show with proceeds going to Mencap's work with people with a learning disability in the UK. It may have been freezing outside, but the atmosphere inside the venue was red hot.
The band ran through a selection of their biggest hits, including Clocks, Strawberry Swing, Life in Technicolor II, and Fix You. Highlight of the evening was a stripped down version of The Scientist, with Chris hitting the stage on his own. He even changed the first line of the song to "Come down to Devon..." prompting a mass sing along.
The show ended with the storming cover version of John Lennon's Happy Christmas (War Is Over).
Fans of the band described the gig as an unforgettable event. Sadie Heddon, 20, of St Thomas, Exeter, said: "They were absolutely amazing and better than I could ever have imagined them to be. It felt like we were in their front room and it was very personal."
Exeter Coldplay concert hailed by fans
FANS are still coming down to earth after witnessing what has been hailed as one of the “greatest concerts of the decade”.
As the grounds of Exeter Castle begin to return to normal after Coldplay’s memorable homecoming concert on Saturday, many fans faced a long journey home as they travelled from all over Europe for the event.
Reaction to the performance has been universally positive and its success and intimacy has put Exeter on the international showbiz map.
There has been no official word yet on the evening from Coldplay front man Chris Martin but onstage he told the crowd: “It gives us great pleasure to come to finish the Noughties in the place where it all started and play for a small crowd of loyal, hardcore and very loud fans.”
The lucky 500 fans who got to witness the spectacle are still pinching themselves at being present at the event.
Fran Rey, who flew over from Barcelona, said: “It was just amazing. The best concert in music history. It’s very difficult to describe if you were not there. I feel like the band were playing in my living room.”
Sonia Caludio, also from Barcelona, said: “Truly awesome. It was well worth travelling all the way from Barcelona and back, including plane and train delays and the freezing temperatures.
“It was a great gig in a really cosy atmosphere. Just the best Christmas present ever. Still speechless.”
Antony, who travelled from London, said: “I regularly go to gigs of all shapes and sizes. I can categorically say that this was something truly special — a once in a lifetime opportunity to witness one of the most talented bands in the world and currently the biggest selling band in the world play to just you and a handful of people, in a tiny venue which redefined ‘intimate’.”
Locals were equally enthusiastic. Becky, from Exeter said: “Having been to Glastonbury and the O2, among other gigs this year, Coldplay at the castle was quite unique and incredibly special.”
The event, which also featured La Roux and the Tiverton Town Band, was staged to raise money for Mencap and, while the final figure of how much has been raised is still to be calculated, a charity auction on Seatwave for the last five pairs of tickets brought in £4,111.
Tiverton Town Band back Coldplay in Exeter
Six members of Tiverton Town Band enjoyed the biggest ‘gig’ of their lives on Saturday night... supporting Coldplay in a concert at Exeter Castle, writes the County Gazette tonight.
They stepped in at the last minute after singer Lily Allen pulled out with a throat infection, and one of the lucky six was Leah Ellis, a massive Coldplay fan, who said this week: "The day was surreal. In the morning we played for Macmillan nurses at Exeter Airport and in the evening we were on the same stage as Coldplay. When I heard about the concert I was so disappointed because I knew there was no way I could get tickets, and then this happened. We had backstage passes and met Chris Martin afterwards. He said all his band like brass bands, and Jo Whiley, the Radio 1 DJ who compered the gig, said she enjoyed it, too."
The drama began in the morning when the band offered their services after Coldplay appealed for a brass band on BBC Radio Devon. Bandmaster Graham Pillivant then had the difficult task of choosing just six players because there was no room for the band’s full complement of 30 on stage. Leah said: “He just had to pick the players who would be able to make decent harmonies, and luckily I was one of them.”
The sextet played a selection of festive songs, including ‘Have Yourself a Merry Little Christmas’, ‘Mary’s Boy Child’ and Slade’s ‘Merry Xmas Everybody’.
Exclusive: Mencap's Big Noise!
A Night of Big Noise - It's Christmas time, and what better way to celebrate than with an intimate night at Exeter Castle, with Coldplay playing a homecoming gig as part of Mencap's Big Noise Session. Everyone wrapped up warm in their finest winter threads, sipping mulled wine, munching mince pies and hog roasts a-plenty while a local brass band played Christmas hymns...
The show was organised by Jo Whiley for learning disability charity, Mencap, and it was the perfect Christmas event. The first band to enter the sparkling fairy lit marquee was the aptly dressed La Roux, in an equally shimmering outfit. She played a fantastic, electro-poptastic set with her band and now infamous hair, announcing to the audience that just before her performance she realised the quiff was a little too long and cut the top off, donating it to Mencap.
Coldplay came on stage in their usual multi-colored, military-style outfits for the very last time, as they are due to be auctioned off for charity. With Chris on piano, they began their set in keeping with the season with, Have Yourself A Merry Little Christmas. Their set ran through with phenomenal versions of classics such as Yellow, The Scientist, In My Place and Fix You. Chris said, '20 years ago, 400 meters down the road, I played my first gig, and it's fantastic to be ending the decade for our band by playing here'.
Mid-set the band disappeared off stage, only to appear in the middle of the crowd on a platform, playing three acoustic tracks including one from drummer Will, a fantastic version of Billie Jean, and a solo by Chris which he touchingly dedicated to his Dad, who was standing right behind him. The set ended with a gorgeous version of John Lennon's Happy Christmas (War is Over). As arms swayed and the crowd sang in unison, fake snow fell gently over the enchanted audience.
It was a fantastic gig, it marked the end of an era for Coldplay after 10 magical years. I felt completely privileged to have been a part of their last performance of the decade.
http://www.graziadaily.co.uk/fashion/archive/2009/12/22/exclusive--mencap--39-s-big-noise.htm
Live Blog
Live photoblog from Exeter, 19 December 2009
The Oracle on 19 December 2009 - Mencap Charity Concert, Exeter Castle, Exeter, UK
June 17, 2010 - submitted by Monty, United Kingdom
Q. Dear Oracle,
After seeing the guys up in Wembley in September, I cannot wait to see them again, perhaps in the Exeter area where Chis was born and where I live. Is this something the band would ever consider or am I just wishing for silly things?
Thanks.
The Oracle replies:
Oh dear, looks like you're unlucky as an Exeter gig took place last December!
