What Gary Barlow had to say about Sunderland and its people in an Echo interview 15 years ago
‘Everyone was lovely to us. The North East is our lucky charm’
Gary Barlow had nothing but praise for the people of Wearside when he spoke to the Sunderland Echo 15 years ago.
The Take That star chatted to us ahead of the Progress Live tour which had its opening night at the Stadium of Light on May 27, 2011.
He reflected on the fantastic welcome that the band got when it first came to Sunderland to perform at the SoL during The Circus Live series of shows.
“We had a great start to the tour last time and everyone was lovely to us,” he said in 2011. “The North East is our lucky charm so we’re hoping for the same this time.
“Progress Live will see us move on from the Circus tour and we’re really excited about what we’re going to do. We think this will change stadium tours forever.”
The band is back once mor at the Stadium of Light with the return of their spectacular 'The Circus Live' tour which starts in Sunderland on Tuesday, June 9.
It promises to be something special, just like the show was for fans 15 years ago.
A mini village of fans sprang up near Black Cat House. While the Fab Five warmed up in the background, fans in hoodies and scarves listened to music, chatted and looked forward to seeing their heroes reunited.
Tanya Kane, 28, of Winlaton, Gateshead, queued for 72 hours to make sure she was first in line when tickets went on sale in October 2010. She was back at the stadium with her tent again in 2011 and she got an even better experience than most. She won a competition to see the band’s dress rehearsal.
She said: “It was absolutely amazing. One of the production guys got me and a couple of other people into the dress rehearsal and we watched it from start to finish.”
“It’s nothing like the Circus tour was, which was a story from start to finish. This is like three separate chapters.
Also among the first in the queue was Emma Shamone, from Tooting, in South London. The 30-year-old nurse said: “It must be about 100 times I’ve seen them.”
Fellow fan Dawn Tierney, from Torquay in South Devon, also travelled hundreds of miles for the gig. The 32-year-old already had a brush with fame after bumping into Sunderland AFC chairman Niall Quinn in McDonald’s.
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