Coldplay day. My alarm went off at 6am. The day was bright, and dry, thank goodness. I left home at 8am, after getting my son up and off to school and my husband off to work.

After a train journey where I lost one coffee, (don't ask!) bought another and spent 60p in loo fares, I arrived at Hackney Central Station at around 10.15 am. I managed to find my way to St Johns Church, the venue, which is just what it says, a large church, in it's own quite attractive grounds, which was about a 5 minute walk from the station.

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There are large trees, squirrels, pigeons and seagulls in the open space in front of the church, it was almost not like being in London at all.

 

I got there to find two chilly girls on the steps of the church, Jo and Laura, and a couple of security guys. They were on chairs, supplied to them by the security people, who it seemed had been extremely nice, in offering them a bottle of coke as well as the chairs. They'd been there since 7am!

I introduced myself, and made myself as comfy as I could on the hard wood chairs. A few minutes later, Mich and Anna arrived from the shops, where they had been buying supplies. Again I introduced myself and we got to know one another.

After about another half an hour, two more people joined the queue.. This is it we thought, this is when they all start to arrive. Half an hour later, Sarah arrived, and joined us in our little group of now 6.

Fast forward another two hours, Kate arrives. And there is a slightly heated discussion with the other two people at the end of the queue as to why Kate should be allowed in front of them. We made 9 people in total, so they weren't really going to be that far down. But it was a little awkward. However it all settled down when we agreed to let them in front of Sarah and Kate when the doors opened in another 7 hours!

Fast forward another two hours, we get colder, the security guys want their chairs back and we are moved onto a metal grilled walkway. We get colder still, we get hungry, Miller comes out and takes photos of the surroundings and sits on a bench in the grounds down from us all on his own. We consider asking him if he wants a chocolate button, but decide he is probably happy on his own.

A van turns up and off loads Coldplay gear, I take a photo, so that I can prove it DID arrive.. Coldplay it says on the side of a large trunk..

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The hunger and cold gets to us and we decide to order a pizza. Kate calls them up and places the order with someone who clearly has NO idea where we are. It's about a five minute walk to the church from the Pizza place. The church is huge, sign posted from the High street and station and really you can't miss it. I've never been to Hackney before and I found it easily!

During this time Sarah makes a call to her boss to explain how sick she is! As a helicoptor flies overhead, she pretends she's ill in bed!

About an hour later we get a call from the pizza guy. 'He's outside the Salvation Army Church' somewhere completely not where we are! We direct him again.. and eventually, he turns up on his moped, somewhat bemused when we greet him like a long lost brother! FOOD!   Meanwhile another three people have joined the impressive queue, which is now 12 people long.

Photo Borrowed from Twitter :)

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Another few hours pass.. coldly.. quite quite coldly.. There are no loos at the venue, so we have to trek down through the churchyard to the public loos at the cost of 20p per pee.. We obviously take it in turns as there is now no way we're leaving our spot.

Lots of cars come and go, people who we vaguely recognise and people we don't, crates of beers and wines are delivered, then bizzarely are taken out again in some sort of in and out beer dance. (things are a bit boring in the queue and you need to make your own entertainment where you can!) we speculate as to when the band might turn up for the sound check.. but other performers turn up and do their soundchecks and still no sign of Jonny or Chris. We hear someone playing Clocks inside, so they aren't doing their own sound check today? Then the roadies all get into a car and zoom off.. so we decide a little sadly that maybe they won't be in until the performance then.

A little later, Roadie 42 comes over and asks us how long we've actually been there. We tell him 7am (well some of us have) and he asks if he can take our photo for coldplay's twitter. We of course oblige, although Sarah has to hide in case someone at her school sees her!

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A long, cold, stiff time later we all decide that another loo trip is on the cards, I haven't drunk ANYTHING since 10 am this morning and it's now threatening to start getting dark. I really didn't want to have to keep popping to the loo every ten minutes. But in retrospect it was quite a silly thing to do, more on this later.

We  take it in turns to visit the loo before it gets dark. I appreciate this story is quite full of trips to the loo, but really there isn't anything else to break up the monotony ! You get your kicks where you can!

There are food stands setting up around us, and the hysteria of the moment gets to us all when we see a food stand called Hardcore Prawn being set up nearby!

Things are now heating up around us, Emilie arrives with her entourage in a taxi with her keyboards strapped into the front passenger seat like a crash test dummy. She has a photographer and he takes photos of her arriving, it's all starting to get a bit exciting. Still no sign of Jonny or Chris however. It begins to look like they aren't going to come to the gig until later, as Chris tweets a photo of the London eye, which is nowhere Hackney.

Meanwhile a few more people have joined the queue. It's starting to get dark, and after an entire day spent sitting on a metal walkway like homeless people we think perhaps we ought to try and make a bit of an effort about the way we look. Out come mirrors, make up and hairbrushes as tangles are removed and lip gloss applied to take away the recently deceased looks some of us are sporting. It must look quite strange to the people just arriving at the venue, although at the time it felt quite a normal thing to do.

Other artists arrive, the queue starts getting longer at last and it begins to feel like there might actually be a concert on tonight.

More and more people join the queue, it snakes away into the distance of the grounds.. at this point I am shaking with cold and cannot seem to stop. We all get told to get our tickets out.. the moment is arriving!

There is a guest list arriving on the other side and they start letting them in first much to our total dismay, but we are reassured that these people will be going to the balcony. Our much desired and waited for front row position is assured we hope.

At 6.30 we start inside.. our tickets are scanned and our hands stamped with a cool butterfly, there is a dash for the front row.. and we're in! It feels so peculiar to be indoors again after an entire day spent outside. Shuffling ensues, handbags are parked on the barrier.. and we find our comfortable standing position. My back is aching, my throat is dry, my head is starting to ache, I'm still cold, and the insanity of not drinking starts to kick in.. but we're indoors.. and hopefully I can stop shaking soon.

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Finally the first act comes onto the stage, introduced by Jo Wiley, BeBe Black has an amazingly loud voice, is very nervous and was probably my favourite of all the support acts. She does three songs and the space between the barrier and the stage is FILLED with photographers, all vying to take her photo, right in front of us! This won't be good if they do this when Coldplay are on.. but it seems they have a three song limit and after three, they have to leave the space.

Then there is a wait whilst the stage is set up for the next act. Michael Kiwanuka. He sounds nice, his songs are nice.. but after a day in the fresh air, the VERY fresh air, he is starting to send me to sleep. My head is aching, and I wonder if I have any painkillers.. I check my bag, but unfortunately I don't. But luckily by shifting position, and stretching my neck, I manage to aleviate most of my headache. I think it's probably because I haven't had anything to drink most of the day, and wish I had.. too late now though. There is no way I could leave my spot. The place is semi full, but people do insist on talking throughout Michaels set, and I can't stop yawning.

There is yet another wait for the next act to come on, another guitar and singing man, Ben Howard who again does little for me. More photographers than EVER are in the pit this time.. we can hardly see the act who is sitting down on a chair for his performance.. but again leave after three songs. During one song, we spot Chris' piano arriving! Much delight in the ranks of the front row!

Then another wait.. during which time Chris piano is lifted onto the stage and parked at the back. It is awesome, so bright and colourful and covered in letters and writing, lovely, it's a piece of art in it's own right.

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Emeli Sande comes on. She is a good solid singer, but not really to my taste, she does a nice set, but nothing for me to particularly write home about. She has a very elegant Cello player, but I couldn't really hear any cello throughout the performance, despite the techs fiddling with her cello and finally placing a mic right next to the cello. Emeli does around 8 songs and finally leaves the stage to thunderous applause.

Then the moment most of us have been waiting almost 15 hours for arrives... The techs start moving the piano to the front, we spot Jonny's guitar rack almost dead in front of us, and the roadies start tuning up the instruments.. I can't quite believe this is going to happen! Chris' guitar tech, Hoppy, is still, hopping about on crutches, but is surprisingly nimble going about the stage on his knees and crutches. It must be a very hard job to do like that!

FINALLY, Jo comes back onto the stage and gives the intro for Chris and Jonny.. the place is now PACKED to the ceiling.. strange when you consider I'd been there since it was just three of us and some seagulls this morning! Very surreal.

Then Chris and Jonny come on, holding hands and looking totally drop dead gorgeous, resplendent in matching waistcoats and black shirts, Jonny is in jeans with a very fetching pork pie hat with white band round it, and Chris is wearing a pocket watch and chain and black trousers tucked into boots. Both men look very dapper.

 

They launch into the first song, which is Yellow, and the gig REALLY begins. There is full video of the concert so I won't review the entire thing, but there are some hilarious moments, Chris and the tambourine lady, for one! Hysterical, why would you bring a tambourine to a gig? Chris handled it very well, but it was a bit bonkers.

Then there was the bit where Chris took off his waistcoat and tie amid catcalls and cheering for him to do more!  He said something along the lines of if he and Jonny had bodies like a boy band, they'd be bigger than Busted or McFly!   Slightly mad when you consider the place was packed with Coldplay fans.  :)

We all sang, clapped our little booties off in the front row, I can't speak for anyone else, but I loved it all! Paradise for me was a highlight. Chris asked us all to sing the second Para part, after he did the first, and it was great fun. So now we can now all put backing singers for Coldplay onto our Cv's and resumes. :lol:

The set went far far too fast, and finally they were doing their, 'have you got time for just one more song'... which also went too fast. Chris said, that they would be going off in a moment to change their sweaty clothes, and come back IF we wanted an encore, or not and we could all go home if we liked. AS IF.

The lights went down and the Viva chant started, and very quickly they came back on, Chris went to his piano, Jonny his guitar, then Chris said..Oh I've fucked up again, we were supposed to come back on from the other side, I've forgotten my guitar, can you all just pretend we didn't and we'll go off and come back on again! Which is what they did. Amid slight confusion and more Viva chanting.. then they came back and this time Chris had his guitar. He went over to his mic stand, and said something like Jonny we are too far apart. So he dragged his mic stand over to Jonny's side of the stage, which happened to be immediately in front of me! For this they performed Shiver. Amazing.

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Finally they did fix you, which was lovely, but over far far too quickly. Then they were off the stage and gone. Jo came back on again to thank us all for coming, and the evening was over.

We eventually all left the church and had decided we might like to stay to see the band come out. We asked one of the security guys if they had left and he said no. But another guy came past, who had seen us there all day and told us they would be going to the after party and wouldn't be out. At that point a people carrier with blacked out windows left and we assumed it was them, and they were gone. So after some deliberations we slowly started to make our way towards the station.

However, when we were halfway down the side of the church, there was another entrance and this door was open and Jonny was coming out! He was the other side of two 8ft metal fences, but we called him over and he came to us, and about a dozen other fans, all pushing CD boxes etc at him for signing. I had brought my CD with me, just in case, but didn't like to join in the melay.. but Mich pushed me, saying go on.. get it signed, and I managed to get it done before he left. Mich then asked him if they were going to be doing the xfactor, and he agreed that they were. I thanked him for his autograph, but I am not sure he heard me.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

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Finally we made our way back to the station, after stopping at MacDonalds for a much needed drink..

I was going the opposite way to the others, so we said our goodbyes. Whilst standing there, I overheard two ladies talking about something being magical just to my right, and being on SUCH a high, I went over to them and just said.. 'Coldplay?' They laughed and said, 'Oh yes wasn't it amazing?' I agreed, and told them I'd been in the front row and we had a quick chat about it until my train arrived, bonded by Coldplay. :)

It was nearly midnight when I caught the train, and it took me eventually back to Waterloo, where I got the last train back home at around 1.am, which was a strange experience on it's own. The people on the train at that time of night are a different species, and the guard on the train went above and beyond, making the end of my day special and funny. He announced at what time we would hit every stop, so that we could set our mobile alarms to wake us up, should we doze off. Then at every stop he would announce over the tanoy where we were, and in a kind and gentle way would remind everyone to take all their stuff with them. I wanted to say 'Thanks Mum' whenever he did that.. it was quite endearing.

I arrived home at around 2am Friday morning.

 

A wonderful exhausting day. One I will never forget, spent in the company of some super people. Thank you guys, for making me feel welcome, and for looking after me in my very first Coldplay experience. I couldn't have asked for better people to share it with.

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Roll on the next one!