After having attended The Weekend in 2011 and all the stuff that’s happened in between I think it’s safe to say I was looking forward to this gig more than any other before it. It didn’t disappoint.
Both from an actual playing point of view and from spending time with the lads, this could go down as one of the best weekends ever experienced by anyone, ever. Anyone that knows the band, know we like a good laugh and from the moment we boarded the ferry in North Shields the hilarity became immeasurable. Here are a couple of stories …
Jolly Rogers …
As you can imagine, after exploring the ship for a good 10 minutes (read: following the signs to an outside bar which was understandably shut) we found there was little else to do than head to the real bar and order up a couple of beers. Needless to say, after one or two, Henry and I were left in the company of a stag party clearly heading out to The Dam for a weekend of debauchery dressed as Pirates. We spent the rest of the evening ‘Aaaaaaring’ and ‘Me Heartying’ before retiring to bed nice and early (I think we were the last up on the Ship) with Henry having lost his Jacket somewhere along the line. The next morning we were just getting settled on the bus to head out when Henry announced his unfortunate loss and whilst everyone expressed a little condolence, Micky looked at him dead pan and offered .. “What did you expect, they were Pirates!”
Micky Two Showers – He’s so “Duydy” (read: “Dirty” in a New York accent)
Whilst Henry and I were busy being pillaged, the rest of the lads retired at some point and Micky decided he’d have a shower. Upon realising he’d left it on the bus 6 decks down, he asked the other three sharing his cabin if any of them had a hair brush (see picture). After drawing a collective and bewildered blank, he proceeded to re-clothe and head down to retrieve it from the catacombs. By the time he returned his hair had apparently dried and gone straight … a sight apparently no one has ever witnessed and lived to tell the tale … which necessitated further showering and products (Insette) along with another (this time tongue firmly in cheek) request to the boys for a Hairdryer.
Jamesey and the Giant Onion
After waking on Saturday Morning in a deserted chalet and finding nothing to eat or indeed drink, I figured a good idea would be to go and get some supplies from the little supermarket. I couldn’t get any phone signal so had no clue where the boys were or what was going on, so I did my bare essential shopping (tea, coffee, bread, milk etc) and headed back. I must have been away for an hour or so and in that time someone had beaten me to it and dumped a carrier bag of “essentials” on the kitchen counter. Groaning, I opened the fridge door expecting to see a carbon copy of what I’d bought to be confronted with 3 bottles of wine and some vegetable stock. The wine was understandable but further examination of the carrier bag only compounded my already hazy state, its contents being about 20 onions. Later in the afternoon, there was a large pan of Onion Soup on the go, which although most of it ended up down the sink, was indeed very welcome at stupid o’clock in the morning. At least more so than my Earl Grey tea bags.
Photobombing Champion
We had one or two requests for photos over the weekend, this one had me in stitches. I’d just met Colin and we were just about to have this shot taken when he said almost to himself, “I wonder where the Photo bomber is?” About a millisecond before the flash goes off, the guy in the red shirt comes running across the shot exclaiming, “He’s Here!!” Absolutely BRILLIANT comedy timing by Barnsley, apparently the Marillion Weekend Photo bomber. Check out this shot by Andy Wright of him bombing Lucy’s Rock Disco … Class.
and finally … a small thanks.
this shot is Courtesy of Andy Wright, taken just after coming offstage at MW2013
There were many many amusing moments over the whole weekend and absolutely loads of highlights, not least sharing a stage with Marillion once again. The Band, The Crew, The Fans and indeed Everyone involved in putting together this phenomenal experience do the Marillion name proud and it goes without saying that we’re thrilled and honored to have been a small part of it. DeeExpus would like to thank you all x
Andy
