WordPress Posts: Coldplay News

Coldplay's Oracle confirms pop-up album delays, and throws doubt on Xylobands for summer 2012

Thu, 01 Jan 1970 00:00:00 +0000

More questions answered by The Oracle... (over 2380 questions now answered - submit yours now!)

December 15, 2011 - submitted by Giulia, Germany

Q. I see that Emeli Sande has done the openings for some of Coldplay's concerts recently. Do you know whether she will do the same for the summer 2012 concerts (I would love to see her at the September concerto in Munich). Thanks!

The Oracle replies:

It's not usual for the support slots to do more than one leg (yes, I know that Bat For Lashes did but that was a Latin American tour sometime after the initial run). I think Emeli will be very busy doing her own tours anyway. Did you know that yesterday it was announced yesterday that she has won the Brits Critics Choice award. Congratulations Emeli!

December 15, 2011 - submitted by Sandi, Australia

Q. Hi Oracle, Can you tell me what song the guys were playing at the rehearsal for Ellen. It's the one that Ellen interrupted when she popped up in front of Chris at the piano. Cheers

The Oracle replies:

I'm stumped! I have listened but I just do not know if it's an impromptu jam or an actual song. Sorry but I don't recognize it at all. I shall ask...

December 15, 2011 - submitted by Cherry, United Kingdom

Q. Disappointed that you chose to ignore my question about not getting a wristband at the 02 gig. Is that it then?

The Oracle replies:

Eh? I didn't choose to ignore it, I haven't seen it! You will have to ignore my acerbity - I'm ill. Do you have any idea how many questions I receive perchance? I try to get through as many as I can but can't be expected to remember who sent what, about what and when - especially before I have read it - so please give this Oracle a break. Anyway, to attempt a reply... I have met a few people who didn't get wristbands. Some just didn't notice them on the way in, some got there late when the boxes were gone and some just didn't get them. There was no mention of every single person getting one by the way. Until I stumble upon your question, I won't know if I have answered it exactly, so am just guessing...

December 14, 2011 - submitted by Nick, United States of America

Q. Dear Oracle, Wasn't my pop up album supposed to show up today? I was really hopeful that I would get it today and it never showed up.

The Oracle replies:

The date you sent this Nick was indeed the original shipping date for the pop-up album. Apologies for not letting you know sooner that the date has in fact been pushed back until Dec 19th. Sorry about that folks.

December 14, 2011 - submitted by Brandon, United States of America

Q. Dear Awesome Oracle, I was at both the recording of ACL and at Music Midtown and I tried so hard to get to chat with Matt (Jonny's Guitar Tech) about his book Roadie. Is he just so focused on doing other things that he blocks out the environment and just focuses on his job or was I just being to annoying?

The Oracle replies:

Don't take it personally Brandon or think you were annoying - you're not. The roadies are all there to do a job and so they are focused on the task in hand. They obviously can't take the time to chat to everyone - much like anyone when working, except me of course, as my job IS to talk to fans I guess.

December 13, 2011 - submitted by Shantell, United States of America

Q. Does Roadie42 have a Twitter account? I just saw him mention it in a recent blog post and I was wondering if I could follow him on Twitter! (:

The Oracle replies:

No, I'm afraid #42 doesn't have his own twitter. You don't necessarily have to have an account to read tweets though, as you probably know, he sometimes signs in and tweets on Coldplay's official twitter.

December 13, 2011 - submitted by Marilla, Australia

Q. Hi Oracle, I saw in the latest Roadie #42 post, the video of Jonny singing Don't Panic and I noticed that Chris had strapping tape on his shoulder. Is he ok? Hope it's nothing too serious. Thanks, have a good one!

The Oracle replies:

Nothing serious, he's fine. Please don't worry.

December 13, 2011 - submitted by Paul, United Kingdom

Q. I have been trying to get my hands on a copy of the CD of Christmas Lights since 2010... is there a chance you are going to sell it or stock it in any way shape or form, really wanna own it

The Oracle replies:

Does it have to be a physical copy? We don't have any. There were a limited number made but we didn't make them available for purchase. Anyway, the track is 59p this week from iTunes!

December 12, 2011 - submitted by Simon, United Kingdom

Q. Went to see the boys in Manchester they were unbelievable best I've ever seen them, but one problem they didn't play Christmas Lights :( How come they haven't been playing it?

The Oracle replies:

The Manchester gig was on the 4th December which is a little early to be rolling out a Christmas song, no? They performed it at Dingwalls last Tuesday but only as that is being broadcast this week on Radio 2 - a much more acceptable date to be playing festive songs I feel. Oh and they did give it an airing on Saturday at the O2 as part of the Under 1 Roof night. It was interrupted by a certain Mr. Alan Partridge...

December 12, 2011 - submitted by Pedro, United Kingdom

Q. Why Us Against the World was a fixed song on the Festivals Tour setlist and now on the Arena Tour hasn't been played? It is so good! Probably my favorite from MX...

The Oracle replies:

Yes it has. You sent this question on Saturday, yet it was definitely played on Friday in London at the O2 Arena. I don't normally answer questions on Saturdays but this week I did - about that very song in fact. I mentioned last week it was also played at Dingwalls but that's not an arena, not by a long way.

December 12, 2011 - submitted by Harri, United Kingdom

Q. What was the name of the band who supported Coldplay on Friday 9th at the O2? Thankyou!

The Oracle replies:

The Low Suns were first on followed by Emeli Sande.

December 10, 2011 - submitted by Greg, United Kingdom

Q. She said yes :) Thankyou, thankyou, thankyou.

The Oracle replies:

Rare for a Saturday question but - YES! Great news. I was sat there when Us Against the World was played thinking, 'Uh oh, Greg may already have popped the question during What If and he's gonna be mad at me'. I was telling people around me 'someone is proposing right now'! Congratulations to you both. * And Greg waited so asked during Us Against the World...

December 8, 2011 - submitted by Stan, United States of America

Q. Will they be playing Christmas Lights at any of their upcoming shows?

The Oracle replies:

On 1 December Will wrote "Christmas Lights being dusted off for the festive season" on the band's Twitter. It has been performed live this week already and I have a feeling it will be again...

December 8, 2011 - submitted by Tracie, Canada

Q. Greetings, alll-knowing One! I've noticed that some setlists that find their way online have certain titles underlined, followed by a symbol that looks like D#. Since I know that not all of these songs are in the key of D# (Being a geek, I've gone to my piano and checked!), I'm wondering what that means. Cheers, and thanks! Tracie

The Oracle replies:

I'm pretty sure that's a guitar tuning reference.

Kit yourself up for the forthcoming MX tour and get spotted with Coldplaying's new range of merchandise! [click on the items for the full shop]

The new range of Coldplaying merchanise (unofficial of course to the official shop) has hit our stores, with our biggest range of goods so far. Prices are as low as they can be for a Cafepress shop so more people will be able to afford them. We don't take any profits for the sale of the merchandise as a result. Take a browse in one of the online stores nearest to you: UK | US | Canada | Australia | European (shipping is worldwide, but you can choose what currency to pay in) - simply alter the country dropdown menu at the top of the shop page. [thanks to TracieMorgan and zzz]

New photos of Coldplay at the Radio 2 gig at Dingwalls, London (6th December 2011):

Coldplay round-up: Stephen Fry thanks Chris Martin, fake Manila tour date, You Me At Six praise

Thu, 01 Jan 1970 00:00:00 +0000

Stephen Fry [pictured] has Coldplay frontman Chris Martin to thank for his role in the new Sherlock Holmes sequel, the film's director has revealed to the Press Association this week. Chris is an avid fan of Sir Arthur Conan Doyle's famous detective, and thought TV presenter and raconteur Stephen would be perfect to play the sleuth's brother Mycroft in Guy Ritchie's film Sherlock Holmes: A Game Of Shadows.

At a press conference to promote the film with Robert Downey Jr and Jude Law, who play Holmes and Watson, Guy said: "Robert and I, we have a mutual friend, Chris Martin out of Coldplay, he's a Sherlockian. He's very enthusiastic about the whole thing, like Stephen Fry, and it was his idea. I think he told Robert first." Robert quipped: "Every good idea in this movie came from Chris Martin."

And Guy revealed Stephen had no qualms about appearing naked in one scene in the film, which also features Robert dressed up in drag. "I thought it was going to be an issue when we presented him with the pages and it says he's naked. But then he turned up on the day naked and there was no great resistance, rather like getting Robert into a dress. I've got a sneaky suspicion it could've been his idea, anyway, he turned up to work without any clothes." [More on this article is at the messageboard now (thanks Mimixxx)]

Rumours that Coldplay will hold a concert in Manila have been around for the better part of the year. This was only made worse this week by a fake concert "poster" [pictured, right] that supposedly confirmed the 2012 gig, and caused quite a stir among the excited, and later on, disappointed fans, writes the GMA News Network. Read on for the rest of their article...

A photo made the rounds over social networking sites Sunday afternoon showing a polished, professional-looking poster that tagged the concert, “Viva Manila,” a play on the words of Coldplay's album, “Viva La Vida.” The concert, according to the poster, will be held on April 18 next year at the Smart Araneta Coliseum. MTV was shown to headline the project, with footnotes that included Smart Telecommunications, Ticketnet and Manila-based concert promoter Dayly Entertainment. Dayly Entertainment, on its Twitter page issued a statement Sunday, denouncing the concert as a hoax and eventually revealing the person behind the fake poster. Dayly uploaded a screencapped Facebook status of a certain Roe Alfaro who said the poster was one he made for a Computer Graphics class and it was "not intended to spread any rumors."

Damage has been done though. More than false hopes, Dayly claimed they are now being questioned for "false marketing by different organizations including the Coldplay management" because the company logo appeared on the poster. In a Facebook reply to a user who suggested taking legal actions, Dayly Entertainment said "we are pushing."

In an email to GMA News Online, however, Dayly Entertainment said the group will, for now, focus on clearing up the issue and their company's name. They also said they have not heard anything from Alfaro. Alfaro has not replied to GMA News Online's Facebook message yet. Dayly also said the incident may affect the chances of bringing Coldplay to the country. Alfaro's photo has earlier convinced fans including events manager Teddy Dario and radio disc jockey Andi Manzano that Coldplay was indeed coming to Manila. Dario even replied to inquiring fans that the concert was "confirmed" and that it was an "MTV Philippines event." He, along with others retracted their own postings upon learning it was a hoax.

“Coldplay in Manila” even landed on Twitter’s top trending topics in the Philippines and, as of posting, is the 3rd top trending topic on PHL Twitterverse. It was not clear whether Alfaro posted the photo on a public site or his Facebook profile, or whether it was distributed by others after the original upload. Netizens are arguing that a photo of such nature should not have been posted on the Internet at all, but some are sympathizing with Alfaro for an "honest mistake" that just went "horribly wrong."

Others, on the other hand, were quick to conduct their own research and noted that the band's official website clearly indicated Coldplay will indeed perform in another country–but in Canada on April 18, 2012.

You Me At Six have branded Coldplay one of the "best bands of all time", report Digital Spy today. The band made the claim ahead of their intimate gig last night (December 13th) celebrating the Hard Rock Cafe's 40th anniversary and insisted that everyone likes at least one Coldplay track. Frontman Josh Franceschi told Absolute Radio: "I saw Coldplay the other night and they are the best band of all time."

Guitarist Max Helyer continued: "You know with Chris Martin and you hear that acoustic guitar part in 'Yellow'? He kicks it off second song in and it's probably their biggest song, you just go, 'Wow, this hour and a half is going to be full of hits'. And it was."

Franceschi added: "After that show I did a thing afterwards where I said I wish I'd written 'Fix You'. Then some kid on Twitter was like, 'I can't believe you like Coldplay. They're the blah, blah band in the world' - like the worst band or whatever. "I was just like, 'How are you alive and functioning like a human?' I think everybody in the world likes at least one Coldplay song. There's a song in there for everyone on any level. They're the biggest band in the world right now. Their last album went to number one across the world, so they're the ones having the last laugh, right?!"

Photos from behind-the-scenes of Coldplay's video shoot for new single Charlie Brown (13th December 2011):

Dont' forget to check out your tour discussion thread if you are getting tickets/excited for the European & North American 2011 and 2012 shows:

DECEMBER 2011

14 - Paris, France @ Bercy [discussion]

15 - Cologne, Germany @ Lanxess Arena [discussion]

17 Rotterdam, Netherlands @ Ahoy [discussion]

18 Antwerp, Belgium @ Sportpaleis [discussion]

20 Frankfurt, Germany @ Festhalle [discussion]

21 Berlin, Germany @ O2 World Arena [discussion]

APRIL 2012

17 Edmonton, AB @ Rexall Place [discussion]

18 Calgary, AB @ Scotiabank Saddledome [discussion]

20 Vancouver, BC @ Rogers Arena [discussion]

24 Portland, OR @ Rose Garden Arena [discussion]

25 Seattle, WA @ KeyArena [discussion]

27 San Jose, CA @ HP Pavilion At San Jose [discussion]

MAY 2012

1 Los Angeles, CA @ Hollywood Bowl [discussion]

2 Los Angeles, CA @ Hollywood Bowl [discussion]

18 Porto, Portugal @ Dragao Stadium [discussion]

20 Madrid, Spain @ Estadio Vicente Calderón [discussion]

22 Nice, France @ Stade Charles Herman / Nikaia [discussion]

24 Turin, Italy @ Olympic Stadium [discussion]

26 Zurich, Switzerland @ Letzigrund [discussion]

29 Coventry, UK @ Ricoh Stadium [discussion]

JUNE 2012

1 London, UK @ the Emirates Stadium [discussion]

2 London, UK @ the Emirates Stadium [discussion]

4 London, UK @ the Emirates Stadium [discussion]

7 Sunderland, UK @ the Stadium of Light [discussion]

9 Manchester, UK @ the Etihad Stadium [discussion]

10 Manchester, UK @ the Etihad Stadium [discussion]

22 Dallas, TX @ American Airlines Center [discussion]

25 Houston, TX @ Toyota Center [discussion]

28 Tampa, FL @ St. Pete Times Forum [discussion]

29 Miami, FL @ American Airlines Arena [discussion]

JULY 2012

2 Atlanta, GA @ Philips Arena [discussion]

5 Philadelphia, PA @ Wells Fargo Center [discussion]

8 Washington, DC @ Verizon Center [discussion]

23 Toronto, ON @ Air Canada Centre [discussion]

26 Montreal, QC @ Bell Centre [discussion]

29 Boston, MA @ TD Garden [discussion]

AUGUST 2012

3 East Rutherford, NJ @ Izod Center [discussion]

7 Chicago, IL @ United Center [discussion]

11 St. Paul, MN @ Xcel Energy Center [discussion]

28 Copenhagen, Denmark @ Parken Stadium [discussion]

30 Stockholm, Sweden @ Olympic Stadium [discussion]

SEPTEMBER 2012

02 Paris, France @ Stade de France [discussion]

04 Cologne, Germany @ Rheinenergie Stadium [discussion]

06 The Hague, Netherlands @ Malieveld [discussion]

12 Munich, Germany @ Olympiastadion [discussion]

14 Leipzig, Germany @ Red Bull Stadium [discussion]

16 Prague, Czech Republic @ Slavia Eden Stadium [discussion]

19 Warsaw, Poland @ National Stadium [discussion]

22 Hannover, Germany @ AWD Arena [discussion]

Read also: European Stadium Tour announced! (general discussion thread for the Europe tour)

Read also: North America Tour announced! (general discussion thread for the US/Canada tour)

Coldplay's X Factor performance thrusts flashing 'Xylobands' into the world spotlight

Thu, 01 Jan 1970 00:00:00 +0000

Coldplay have replaced the rock tradition of illuminating the stadium with lighters and mobile phones during big anthems by handing out radio-controlled glow bands, the Daily Mail writes today, in a mini-review of Coldplay's X Factor performance on Sunday night. Below is the rest of the article. If you want to watch Coldplay on the X Factor again click here, and if you want to download the performance head to the Multimedia forum [thanks Denise, timyyy & Mojo Pin]

The band gave out 10,000 of the multi-coloured wrist bands to the audience when they played in the final X Factor show at Wembley last night. They performed two songs from their new Mylo Xyloto album, while the innovative new bands lit up and flashed in time to the music.

"It’s like asking everyone to hold their mobile phones up without having to ask," said Chris Martin. They also handed out 20,000 wristbands, called Xylobands, to everyone at the O2 arena at the weekend, where they played as part of their December tour. The LED light bands worked during four songs at the O2 gig when people would normally have waved lighters. It looked absolutely amazing to see everyone wearing them and the whole stadium lit up,’ said Claire Adams, 36, from London.

‘I was given the wristband when I entered the arena and I had no idea what it was until it started flashing during the first song, it’s a fantastic idea.

‘Until now people have always waved their mobiles, but this is so much better.’ They have been developed by RB Concepts, based in Honiton, Devon, and Coldplay has now bought part of the company. Entrepreneur Clive Banks and Jason Regler approached the band to see if they would be interested in using the wristbands and were stunned when they agreed. According to Chris Martin, Mr Regler used to manufacture sex toys. He told Xfm: 'There's a guy called Jason who likes Coldplay. He used to make mobile phone vibrating sex toys. I think he came to Glastonbury this summer and he had an idea while we were playing to make these glowband things. 'He contacted us and said... "what do you think?".. and we said "it sounds like the best idea ever"... and now we have them for every person who has a ticket.'

Mr Banks said: ‘It was a huge challenge to design, manufacture and deliver the wristbands at very short notice, but we are now working with the hottest act on the planet. ‘The big thing is audience participation and this means bands can relate more to the audience. 'It means there is a lot more audience participation, as opposed to it being static.' He said the wristbands could even be used at the Olympics.

‘The next move would be to have the wristbands at sporting events and night time events,’ added Mr Banks. ‘We are also looking towards using them at the Olympics.’

Money maker: Coldplay could make a fortune on the devices after buying a stake in the company that makes them

Kit yourself up for the forthcoming MX tour and get spotted with Coldplaying's new range of merchandise! [click on the items for the full shop]

Coldplay on X Factor preview: will we see Charlie Brown and flashing wristbands in front of 17m viewers?

Thu, 01 Jan 1970 00:00:00 +0000

UPDATE: Coldplay performed Charlie Brown and Paradise on the X Factor towards the end of the show - and 'Chris Martin', #coldplay and 'Guy Berryman' all trended worldwide on Twitter! Let us know what you thought of the performance at the messageboard now! (42 pages of discussion so far and growing!)

Coldplay were reportedly asked to duet with an X Factor contestant at this weekend's final, but turned the offer down, according to reports published in the lead up to this weekend's two final shows. The move is apparently what led to judges Gary Barlow, Kelly Rowland and Tulisa Contostavlos being asked to sing with their acts instead. [You can join in the full discission on Coldplay's performance tonight on the X Factor at the Coldplay forum now - 11 pages already!]

STV reports that, though the band had initially agreed to join forces with Janet Devlin, her elimination left them unwilling to perform with anyone else. Chris Martin spoke of his praise for the show last week, telling Absolute Radio: "We really feel grateful for it because they don't often have bands on, and we get to play what we want to play and play songs that we wrote, and no-one's asking us to change anything. It's amazing. There's no other TV show, really, except for Jools Holland, that gives you that."

Now that we know Coldplay will be appearing on their own, we will be hoping for a performance of Charlie Brown complete with flashing wristbands for the entire audience at Wembley Arena. Coldplay are joined on the bill for the Wembley Arena finale by Michael Buble, One Direction, JLS, Leona Lewis and Westlife.

Meanwhile, ITV bosses will be keeping their fingers crossed for a ratings boost with The X Factor final after audiences took a huge tumble this year, that is according to The Mirror this weekend. The change of judging panel and a line-up of performers which many critics thought was lacklustre have seemingly conspired to cause viewers to plummet.

Last Saturday's semi-final saw the average audience more than three million down on 2010, while the peak audience was four million fewer. The higher stakes of a spectacular final - plus performances from stars such as Coldplay, Leona Lewis and One Direction - could go some way to bring the show on track at the weekend. But it will have to go some to beat last year's final ratings with an average 14 million watching the Saturday show and 17.2 million watching the Sunday finale (peaking at 19.4 million). In contrast, last weekend's two shows drew audiences of 10.6 million and 11.9 million. Although still respectable in terms of terrestrial ratings, those figures will be seen as a disappointment. For many years the show seemed unstoppable, getting bigger each year, and building throughout each series.

But 2011 has seen the average audience barely budge on Saturday nights, hovering around the 10.5 million mark. Sundays have fared better with the added drama of a sing-off and a big name act. But the Saturday night woes have been exacerbated by a swell of support for BBC1 rival Strictly Come Dancing, which has had a resurgence this year. Strictly has beaten X Factor not only when they overlapped on occasion, but also outright in some weeks as the ITV1 show stalled.

Even the show's spats and scandals, which included a bust-up between judges Tulisa Contostavlos and Kelly Rowland, as well as the axing of contestant Frankie Cocozza for boasting about his drug use have not delivered extra viewers.

the appearance of Coldplay will be a welcome relief for Record Labels at least, as it has been reported by Unreality TV that some labels have complained to Ofcom over the repetitive X Factor guest stars. According to the Guardian, music industry insiders have hit out at the continual appearance of former X Factor contestants and related acts on the show.

This weekend’s final will see the return of former X Factor finalists Leona Lewis and JLS, as well as One Direction, who have appeared on this series FOUR times. Michael Buble, who has made appearances almost every year, will also be back again, together with Westlife once more. Only Coldplay have no previous connection to the show, making their debut on the programme this evening.

A source moaned: "The X Factor final should feature the biggest acts in the world. Leona Lewis is already frankly on the way down. JLS and One Direction have already been on this series, and you have to question the choice of Westlife."

However Syco hit back at the complaints, pointing out that three of the judges – Gary Barlow, Tulisa and Kelly Rowland – were all signed to Universal. They also revealed that the Universal label will have accounted for 13 of the performances, compared to Sony – who own the X Factor format and Syco label – accounting for 10. An X Factor spokesman said: "The X Factor ensures acts from a range of labels appear on the series so one label is not favoured over another."

New photos of Coldplay at the MEN Arena, Manchester, UK (4th December 2011):

More photos courtesy of PGMorris @ Flickr (Click for more!)

Kit yourself up for the forthcoming MX tour and get spotted with Coldplaying's new range of merchandise! [click on the items for the full shop]

Coldplay Roadie #42 - Blog #157 (Glasgow to Manchester to London...)

Thu, 01 Jan 1970 00:00:00 +0000

Check out coldplay.com for a new blog entry: #42 reports back from the first two arenas shows and the tiny Dingwalls gig

Discuss this blog entry in the Coldplay forum here onwards [thanks suzanafg]

Greetings. I’ve one foot out the door to the O2 show, so not much time to catch up on what’s been a pretty eventful week. The arena shows finally kicked off in Glasgow on Saturday. I’m pretty sure that the first UK arena on the Rush Of Blood tour was the SECC in Glasgow. We’d done a bunch of shows, but it was the first one where we had the “Cinemascope” bendy screen above the stage.

This time, the production is somewhat different. The cinemascope screen back then was to try to ensure everyone got a great view of the show no matter where they were. This time however, things were somewhat different. This time, the production is more about making the audience *part* of the show. Indeed for several songs in the set, the lightshow isn’t something to wow the audience into submission - instead, for a good portion of the night, the audience

the lightshow....

It’s a good turnaround. At its worst, tour production can be about a designer building a monument to themselves and putting the band somewhere within it. By working with the right people, these guys have thankfully avoided that throughout their career. Now they’re at the height of making the show about the crowd. Quite who has the best seat in the house is now entirely debatable.

Glasgow isn’t without its own first night gremlins. There’s howlingly bum notes, equipment failures and all the usual merry gang that accompanies getting it all out in public for the first time. But what a crowd though. I remember my favourite live album when I was growing up had in its liner notes a special thank you to the Glaswegian audience, crediting them with backing vocals. I always wondered quite how amazing a Glaswegian crowd could be - and every single time I come here I’m reminded.

The following show at Manchester MEN arena marks the first “back to back” meaning that the gear is loaded out from one show until the early hours of the morning, driven to the next city and set again up a few hours later. It will surprise nobody that there are plenty of tired folks around come showtime. The band walk on though, and the shape of the arena (and the fact that there are folks behind the band too) makes the wristbands look completely stunning. The video in the digi tour pack gives you some idea.

Before the show, I bump into Jonny’s dad, who’s wandering around taking it all in. I muse that he’s probably seen them in some smaller places than this. The first time he saw Coldplay was at Telford Warehouse, which is essentially the back room of a pub. Wonder what he thought as the show took flight tonight?

I have to say, that through the festival shows, I was a bit worried that the Viva chant was going to overshadow everything. Fans would start singing it before the band came onstage and even in the gaps during the show. It’s clear though that Charlie Brown is going to become an absolute highpoint of these shows. I also checked Twitter on the way home and pleasingly, someone had posted that “Paradise seems to be the most whistled song as everyone walks out”. Looks like the new record has brought its own magic with it.

So from huge arenas, to….. a 450-capacity club of course!

The band are doing a show for Jo Whiley on BBC Radio 2 at Dingwalls in Camden. Both Jo and the venue are hugely instrumental in the band’s early history, so it’s a special day. The soundcheck is hilarious. Half the BBC appear to have come down, prompting the question as to whether there’ll be any room for punters later on.

Chris asks jokingly whether we should “check the B-stage now”, before realising that the B-stage on the current arena show is a good deal bigger than the stage they’re currently on.

The setlist gets a slight alteration before showtime. The news somehow doesn’t make it through the information superhighway to me, which leads to the band being onstage and my keyboard corner being in complete chaos and confusion. Thankfully, this isn’t a live broadcast, so it’s not a major issue.

Things going south can put you in a strange mood for the gig though. I spend the rest of the show in “under fire” mode, constantly waiting for the next hostile visit from the fuck-up-fairy.

I’m led to believe it was a blinder of a show. Maybe I’ll watch it on the telly and see….

R42

Kit yourself up for the forthcoming MX tour and get spotted with Coldplaying's new range of merchandise! [click on the items for the full shop]

Coldplay announce a European stadium tour for 2012 - another 13 dates in total (May, August & September so far)

Thu, 01 Jan 1970 00:00:00 +0000

Coldplay have just announced another 13 dates as part of the 'Mylo Xylotour' as 2012 is starting to get hectic with new dates.

Today's announcement sees a European stadium tour that brings in Portugal, France, Italy, Switzerland, Denmark, Sweden, Germany, Netherlands and the Czech Republic. Below is a full list of new concert threads for these dates in the Coldplay Live forum - bookmark them for all discussion for each of these new shows! Visit coldplay.com now (all times given there are local times) for all the pre-sale and general links. Don't delay as Coldplay tickets are available for these shows as early as tomorrow (starting with Portugal). Read on for the dates and discussion links.

Good morning. Following yesterday's North American tour announcement, we're pleased to unveil Coldplay's European stadium dates for summer 2012. The dates announced so far are as follows...

MAY

18 Porto, Portugal - Dragao Stadium [discussion]

22 Nice, France - Stade Charles Herman / Nikaia [discussion]

24 Turin, Italy - Olympic Stadium [discussion]

26 Zurich, Switzerland - Letzigrund [discussion]

AUGUST

28 Copenhagen, Denmark - Parken Stadium [discussion]

30 Stockholm, Sweden - Olympic Stadium [discussion]

SEPTEMBER

02 Paris, France - Stade de France [discussion]

04 Cologne, Germany - Rheinenergie Stadium [discussion]

06 The Hague, Netherlands - Malieveld [discussion]

12 Munich, Germany - Olympiastadion [discussion]

14 Leipzig, Germany - Red Bull Stadium [discussion]

16 Prague, Czech Republic - Slavia Eden Stadium [discussion]

22 Hannover, Germany - AWD Arena [discussion]

Read also: North America Tour announced! (general discussion thread for the tour)

Dont' forget to check out your tour discussion thread if you are getting tickets for the North American 2012 shows:

APRIL 2012

17 Edmonton, AB @ Rexall Place [discussion]

18 Calgary, AB @ Scotiabank Saddledome [discussion]

20 Vancouver, BC @ Rogers Arena [discussion]

24 Portland, OR @ Rose Garden Arena [discussion]

25 Seattle, WA @ KeyArena [discussion]

27 San Jose, CA @ HP Pavilion At San Jose [discussion]

MAY 2012

1 Los Angeles, CA @ Hollywood Bowl [discussion]

2 Los Angeles, CA @ Hollywood Bowl [discussion]

JUNE 2012

22 Dallas, TX @ American Airlines Center [discussion]

25 Houston, TX @ Toyota Center [discussion]

28 Tampa, FL @ St. Pete Times Forum [discussion]

29 Miami, FL @ American Airlines Arena [discussion]

JULY 2012

2 Atlanta, GA @ Philips Arena [discussion]

5 Philadelphia, PA @ Wells Fargo Center [discussion]

8 Washington, DC @ Verizon Center [discussion]

23 Toronto, ON @ Air Canada Centre [discussion]

26 Montreal, QC @ Bell Centre [discussion]

29 Boston, MA @ TD Garden [discussion]

AUGUST 2012

3 East Rutherford, NJ @ Izod Center [discussion]

7 Chicago, IL @ United Center [discussion]

11 St. Paul, MN @ Xcel Energy Center [discussion]

Kit yourself up for the forthcoming MX tour and get spotted with Coldplaying's new range of merchandise! [click on the items for the full shop]

Coldplay announce 2012 North American tour dates (includes the new discussion thread links & press release)

Thu, 01 Jan 1970 00:00:00 +0000

Coldplay will launch its first North American tour in nearly three years on April 17. Below is the official announcement just made on Coldplay.com - below is a full list of concert threads in the Coldplay Live forum for all discussion for each of these new shows...

Good morning. We are very pleased to announce that Coldplay will head to North America in 2012 for a string of shows in the USA and Canada. Coldplay tickets go on general sale on Saturday, 17 December at 10am (local time) from 1-800-745-3000, Ticketmaster.com and LiveNation.com. Before that, you can use any American Express card to purchase advance Coldplay tickets, from Monday, 12 December, at 10am (local time) until Friday, 16 December, at 10pm (local time). The advance AMEX tickets will be available from here for all shows except Portland (here) and Houston (here). NB: The tickets for the two LA Bowl shows will not go on sale until January 2012.

Here is the full list of shows announced so far...

APRIL 2012

17 Edmonton, AB @ Rexall Place [discussion]

18 Calgary, AB @ Scotiabank Saddledome [discussion]

20 Vancouver, BC @ Rogers Arena [discussion]

24 Portland, OR @ Rose Garden Arena [discussion]

25 Seattle, WA @ KeyArena [discussion]

27 San Jose, CA @ HP Pavilion At San Jose [discussion]

MAY 2012

1 Los Angeles, CA @ Hollywood Bowl [discussion]

2 Los Angeles, CA @ Hollywood Bowl [discussion]

JUNE 2012

22 Dallas, TX @ American Airlines Center [discussion]

25 Houston, TX @ Toyota Center [discussion]

28 Tampa, FL @ St. Pete Times Forum [discussion]

29 Miami, FL @ American Airlines Arena [discussion]

JULY 2012

2 Atlanta, GA @ Philips Arena [discussion]

5 Philadelphia, PA @ Wells Fargo Center [discussion]

8 Washington, DC @ Verizon Center [discussion]

23 Toronto, ON @ Air Canada Centre [discussion]

26 Montreal, QC @ Bell Centre [discussion]

29 Boston, MA @ TD Garden [discussion]

AUGUST 2012

3 East Rutherford, NJ @ Izod Center [discussion]

7 Chicago, IL @ United Center [discussion]

11 St. Paul, MN @ Xcel Energy Center [discussion]

Read also: North America Tour announced! (general discussion thread for the tour)

Below is the official press release as found at MarketWatch today:

Coldplay will launch its first North American tour in nearly three years on April 17. The run, which kicks off at Rexall Place in Edmonton, AB, will include a two-night stand at Los Angeles' historic Hollywood Bowl (May 1 & 2). The band is touring in support of its new RIAA-certified Platinum record, Mylo Xyloto, which has scored the most No. 1 rankings of any album this year worldwide, topping the charts in 34 countries to date. Mylo Xyloto's first two singles have received GRAMMY nominations - "Every Teardrop is a Waterfall" for Best Rock Performance and Best Rock Song, and the Gold-certified "Paradise" for Best Pop Duo/Group Performance. Coldplay is nominated for a People's Choice Award in the Favorite Band category.

Use any American Express® Card to purchase advance tickets for Coldplay beginning Monday, December 12, at 10am (local time) through Friday, December 16, at 10pm (local time) before the general public on Saturday, December 17, at 10am (local time). Tickets are available at 1-800-745-3000, Ticketmaster.com and LiveNation.com. Dates and times may vary. See below for itinerary. Additional dates to be announced soon.

"Coldplay understands how to make a shared moment from a song...their respect for their fans is obvious," said The Times of London in a review of the band's Glastonbury set. Coldplay's headline appearance at Lollapalooza before the release of Mylo Xyloto prompted Time Out Chicago to observe: "I've never seen a band's unheard material go over so well" while USA Today noted: "Standouts included Charlie Brown with Jonny Buckland's sticky, uplifting guitar work, and the soft, romantic Us Against The World, which featured drummer Will Champion on piano and backing vocals."

"Charlie Brown," Coldplay's next single, will go to radio later this month. You can check out the band performing "Charlie Brown" at summer festivals in this new live video, directed by Mat Whitecross and Mark Rowbotham:

http://www.vevo.com/watch/coldplay/charlie-brown-live/GB0401100200

"Austin City Limits," the world's longest-running live music television series, will ring in the New Year with a performance by Coldplay. The first-ever ACL New Year's Eve special - a rare 90-minute episode - can be seen on PBS stations nationwide on Saturday, December 31, at 11 p.m. (check local listings). "Coldplay New Year's Eve: An Austin City Limits Special" can also be viewed on demand on www.pbs.org starting at 11 p.m. ET that evening.

Mylo Xyloto (Capitol Records) is Coldplay's third consecutive studio album to debut atop both The Billboard 200 and the U.K. album chart. It also hit the No. 1 spot in all 35 iTunes stores around the world, breaking the record for the highest number of download sales in one week - a milestone Coldplay first achieved with the release of Viva La Vida, which was the No. 1 selling album worldwide of 2008, according to IFPI.

Coldplay - comprising Guy Berryman, Jonny Buckland, Will Champion and Chris Martin - has sold more than 50 million records worldwide and won numerous awards, including seven GRAMMY® Awards, six Brit Awards and four MTV Video Music Awards.

Kit yourself up for the forthcoming MX tour and get spotted with Coldplaying's new range of merchandise! [click on the items for the full shop]

Reports: Coldplay and Rihanna to play Princess Of China live at Brit Awards 2012 (plus X Factor preview)

Thu, 01 Jan 1970 00:00:00 +0000

Coldplay and Rihanna will teaming up to perform their duet Princess Of China live at the Brit Awards 2012, it has been reported today. [You can discuss the latest on this at the Coldplay forum now (thanks _Tash)]

The reports continue saying: Brit organisers are keen to get both acts on stage to perform the track, which is taken from Coldplay's latest album Mylo Xyloto, live together for the first time. A source told The Sun: "Coldplay are really looking forward to performing Princess Of China with Rihanna already. Brits bosses set their sights on getting them on stage together early doors. They are two of the biggest acts around right now."

Meanwhile, talking of one off performances, Chris Martin has claimed that The X Factor is important for the music industry. Coldplay, who are booked to perform at this weekend's final at Wembley Arena, said that they are huge fans of The X Factor and believe in its contribution to today's music market.

Chris told Geoff Lloyd's Absolute Radio show: "We really feel grateful for it because they don't often have bands on and we get to play what we want to play and play songs that we wrote, and no-one's asking us to change anything. It's amazing. There's no other TV show, really, except for Jools Holland, that gives you that. So we were like, 'Thank you, we'd love to'... I understand that there are people who are musically not into it, but I don't agree with them and I say that with all respect. I really love it and I think the music's great."

Explaining why he thinks the series is so important for today's music scene, he insisted: "It always has great songs on it every week. [There's] no CD:UK. No Top of the Pops. No MTV, really." And asked whether he'd like the judges to evaluate their performance, Martin joked: "We've heard many crazy opinions from many people over the years, so four more won't hurt!"

Read also: ITV: Coldplay confirmed to perform on X Factor Final on Sunday 11th December at Wembley Arena (X Factor preview thread)

Read also: Ri-Play at the Brit Awards (Brits preview thread)

Some relevant poll results from the messageboard (correct as of 7th December 2011):

New photos of Coldplay at the Radio 2 gig at Dingwalls, London (6th December 2011):

New photos of Coldplay - iTunes Festival, Roundhouse, London, UK (22nd July, 2011):

Images courtesy of Laura84 from the messageboard - click here for more photos!

Kit yourself up for the forthcoming MX tour and get spotted with Coldplaying's new range of merchandise! [click on the items for the full shop]

Coldplay's Oracle is inundated with questions about the glowing wristbands

Thu, 01 Jan 1970 00:00:00 +0000

More questions answered by The Oracle... (over 2380 questions now answered - submit yours now!)

December 6, 2011 - submitted by Carl, United Kingdom

Q. I was at the Manchester MEN concert on the 04/12/11 it was AMAZING!! Thanks lads for yet another mind blowing performance, just 1 question. On the reverse of the glowing wristbands was your code/number. As I was jumping and singing the number to the wristband has come off? Is there any way of getting the code for it or is that it useless without that code? Please can you help.

The Oracle replies:

Blimey, lots of wristband questions after their arena tour launch at the weekend. You don't actually need the number as it is only relevant to the radio-controlling light part. It's the code to activate the sequence. There is a website address on the back though, so maybe you should go and check that out... The wristband doesn't do anything once you've left the show so it's just a keepsake now.

December 6, 2011 - submitted by Adam, United Kingdom

Q. Oracle! This one is from Scotland! Is there anyway at all that I can get my LED wristband to light up? It is a great thing to have but to demonstrate how it looked at the Glasgow show would be great!

The Oracle replies:

You can't light it up but you can show people the effect by watching the video from that very Glasgow show. Also, when you get to the digital tour pack, there's access to another video from Sunday's Manchester gig that also shows them in action. Mighty fine they are too.

December 6, 2011 - submitted by Daniel, United Kingdom

Q. Hey Oracle, I was just wondering, seeing as I'm seeing Coldplay on Friday (9th) at the o2, will everyone be given the wristbands that light up? Thanks in advance, Dan.

The Oracle replies:

Yes, one will be handed to you on the way in.

December 5, 2011 - submitted by weirdcoldplaynerd, United States of America

Q. Back when Coldplay was still a relatively small band (if you could call it that!) did they ever have autograph signings after concerts? I know they wouldn't do that now since that would take forever, but I wondered if maybe they did it in the 90's?

The Oracle replies:

They didn't have organized autograph sessions but yes, they did sign stuff. Sometimes it would be on their way in or out of a venue but the very first time they got asked for their autographs was at Manchester Roadhouse where people stood and waited at the dressing room door next to the stage.

December 5, 2011 - submitted by Pocoyo, France

Q. Hi, Is it really the

? Thank you.

The Oracle replies:

Yes, that is Guy taking lead vocal on Apparatjik's Sequential.

Kit yourself up for the forthcoming MX tour and get spotted with Coldplaying's new range of merchandise! [click on the items for the full shop]

New photos of Coldplay at the Radio 2 gig at Dingwalls, London (6th December 2011):

Coldplay Roadie #42 - Blog #156 (start of the 'Mylo Xylotour'!)

Thu, 01 Jan 1970 00:00:00 +0000

Check out coldplay.com for a new blog entry: #42 gives us the inside line on rehearsals for the arena tour

Discuss this blog entry in the Coldplay forum here onwards [thanks _Tash]

I’m sitting in the lounge waiting for the flight up to Glasgow. I suppose technically, tonight is the first proper show of the Mylo Xylotour. It’s not surprising really that it doesn’t feel like it. The Rock Im Park festival was the first gig show we did with these songs. That was on June 3rd - exactly six months ago to the day, come to think of it. I’ve worked for bands whose entire album campaign lasted less than six months and that was our round of promo to warm up and get us underway...

So when we got into production rehearsals this week, it was a slightly different experience than previous times. Production rehearsals are usually a rather fraught affair. There is usually the stress of an album launch hanging over everything and an entire album’s worth of new songs to learn.

In fact, it’s bizarrely the reverse this time. The new songs are down (apart from a couple of additions). It’s the old ones that they’ve decided to bring out of mothballs that are causing the trouble. Chris turns to his microphone during one run through and advises nobody in particular “If you want to get a video of us completely fucking up a song we haven’t played for ten years, then get your phone out now”.

I think better of it, partly as it would hardly be fair to film it - and more so because I’m buried in keyboard programming. It’s not just them who haven’t been near this song in ten years…

I’ve written at length before about how Will gets a rum deal in reporting sometimes. He’s often painted as a stern “no man”. Someone slightly scary, who constantly exercises his veto on proceedings. In situations like this though, he shows his true role as the rock. When the band all disappear off into slightly different versions of the old song, it’s him they turn to (quite literally) because he will always be the one mouthing the words and counting the time into the chorus. He is the memory bank, the metronome and the collective safety harness.

The setlist gets thrown into the blender most days. It’s hard to keep up, as everything is completely fluid - things change from moment to moment. This is as it should be, of course. There’s only a few days to overhaul and retool before taking it out into the world once again.

One thing I couldn’t help but notice, though, is the most major difference between this and previous production rehearsals: it seems to mostly be about the audience this time. When a song stops and changes are discussed, it’s not in order to throw more impressive technology, staging or effects at things. The comments from the stage are all about the folks who will out there up in the seats.

“Hmmmn, if we put that there when we’re down here, what’s the view going to be like over there?”

“Actually, in this bit of the song, it needs to feel more human, lets turn off all of this, this and this and just let it be about them."

Normally, we’d be throwing everything *including* the kitchen sink at the setlist at this point. One is reminded of a famous quote (amongst the roadie world, anyway) from a seventies megastar frontman in a production meeting. He simply waved his hand and said, “Just blind them and deafen them for the first 5 minutes and after that, they’re all mine dahhhhling.”

Perhaps it’s the confidence gained from the solid shows already behind us, or the fact that there’s no anxiety about whether the record is going to do OK out there in the world. Either way, there’s a beautiful show here that’s wrapped entirely around the songs and the audience.

Of course tonight in Glasgow could still be a train-wreck, but more than worrying about it, I’m actually looking forward to seeing how it all turns out.

R42

Kit yourself up for the forthcoming MX tour and get spotted with Coldplaying's new range of merchandise! [click on the items for the full shop]

MyloXyloto.com announcement expected Monday 5th December - flashing wristbands reveal domain is official

Thu, 01 Jan 1970 00:00:00 +0000

UPDATE! The website is now live - you can start discussing the site and its features at the Discuss the site at Mylo Xyloto sub-forum now!

A new domain, myloxyloto.com, registered in 2009 and currently hosted through EMI, is expected to reveal something sometime during Monday 5th December (woah, that's today!) - and according to the early Mylo Xylotour live shows it may be related to the digital tourpacks that were being advertised in Glasgow and Manchester over the last 48 hours. You can read all the discussion (12 pages so far!) on this anticipated announcement at the Mylo Xyloto sub-forum now. Stereoboard explains more in an article published today:

Coldplay have unveiled an innovative new accessory for fans who make their way to see the band on their December UK tour – as one of their roadie’s has designed radio controlled glow bands for attendees to wear in during the gigs. The new bands will be apparently be given to audience members for free, and glow in the dark in time to the music. The band have already tested them out at a show in Glasgow, and you can see a video of them working in spectacular fashion during a rendition of Charlie Brown.

The wristbands also display a URL on the back – www.myloxyloto.com – which, when pasted into your browser, tells you to return on Monday 4th December (we’ll disregard the fact that it is indeed Monday 5th December today), meaning a special announcement or post is likely to be made later today. For now, check the video out of Charlie Brown being performed with the bands below. [Article Ends]

Advertisement for the digital tourpacks, as seen at the MEN Arena in Manchester last night (4th December 2011)

How about this for a stash of radio-controlled wristbands (4th December 2011)

Kit yourself up for the forthcoming MX tour and get spotted with Coldplaying's new range of merchandise! [click on the items for the full shop]

ITV: Coldplay confirmed to perform on X Factor Final on Sunday 11th December at Wembley Arena

Thu, 01 Jan 1970 00:00:00 +0000

If you didn't believe it before, you can believe it now as ITV have revealed on their own website today that Coldplay will be performing on the second night of this year's X Factor final at Wembley Arena on Sunday 11th December. Read on for their article... [More discussion on the news of Coldplay's appearance on the X Factor is at the Coldplay forum now]

We've just heard that Coldplay, Michael Buble, Leona Lewis, JLS AND One Direction will be among the stars performing at the biggest ever X Factor Final next weekend - and we just had to tell you. In a first for The X Factor, the Final is being held at Wembley Arena with a massive 10,000 strong audience there to watch it.

The Final will be split over two nights and will feature exclusive performances from some of the biggest music acts on the planet as well as the exciting and nail-biting performances from our final three contestants, battling it out to be crowned X Factor winner 2011. Alongside Coldplay, who will perform live on the Sunday night, and Michael Buble, former contestants Leona Lewis, JLS and One Direction will return. WOWSERS!! The Saturday night show will see our three Finalists sing two songs each while the public vote for who they want to win. At the end of Saturday’s show the lines are frozen and the contestant with the lowest number of votes goes out of the competition.

The two remaining singers then go head-to-head in Sunday’s show when one of them will be crowned the winner of The X Factor 2011. We cannot wait! Coldplay’s Chris Martin said: "We're all big X Factor fans so we're very excited to play live on the show."

And Gary Barlow reckons: "This is the biggest final The X Factor has ever done. Being at Wembley Arena for the first time and in front of 10,000 people with Coldplay performing, I can't wait - it's going be an amazing night." He's not wrong. We wouldn't miss it for the world. And neither should you. [Article ends]

Kit yourself up for the forthcoming MX tour and get spotted with Coldplaying's new range of merchandise! [click on the items for the full shop]

Coldplay's Oracle covers Graham Norton, cars owned by the band, and broken guitars in this week's questions

Thu, 01 Jan 1970 00:00:00 +0000

More questions answered by The Oracle... (over 2380 questions now answered - submit yours now!)

December 1, 2011 - submitted by Shunit, Israel

Q. So I this dream a few days ago, I was at a Coldplay concert, and suddenly for the last song of the concert Chris asked the audience if there was anyone who wanted to sing along with them on stage. Of course he selected me, and so we sang together Princess of China (I sang the parts of Rihanna). No need to say I sounded great... Did Coldplay ever do this kind of thing in their concerts? Is there a possibility for it to happen?

The Oracle replies:

Ha, that sounds like the kind of daydream I have. No, the band don't do that. I know a singer who did (and may still) so maybe if you go to see

and practice Melanie C's part of When You're Gone...

November 30, 2011 - submitted by Ken, United Kingdom

Q. Will the band ever return to places that are so famous to Coldplay fans? Like Durdle Door or Studland beach? Just to reminisce? Thanks :)

The Oracle replies:

There's no need to as they have the memory - and the videos - if they wish to reminisce.

December 1, 2011 - submitted by Nicol, United States of America

Q. Hi, my name is Nicol and I am 18 years old, and I have a boyfriend and we been going out for like 6 months and I really like him but he gets too jealous and doesn't let me do anything like I can't even speak to my close friend Joseph without him getting mad and I really don't know what to do, can you help me? By the way I am a huge fan of Coldplay one of my favorite songs is Yellow, my dad used to sing it to me before he passed away.

The Oracle replies:

The fact you don't have your Dad around made more of an impact on me I have to say. With him gone you've not got a great male role model in your boyfriend. His jealousy is out of control if you can't even speak to a friend just because he's a guy. You've not been going out with him all that long but you need to tell him straight; either quit acting out or he'll lose you. Do not put up with this possessive behaviour, it isn't healthy for either of you.

November 30, 2011 - submitted by Dave, United States of America

Q. I heard or read an interview where some of the band was saying the didn't drive or own cars. I am a car guy and was wondering if that was true and if any of the members have any cool/exotic cars?

The Oracle replies:

I won't dwell too much on this but it's well documented that Guy has a love of cars and has built up quite a collection though his favoured London car is a Smart car. Will tends to zip around on a scooter. Chris is able to drive but doesn't often. I have never ever seen Jonny drive... whether he can or not.

November 30, 2011 - submitted by Mig El, Mexico

Q. Hi Oracle, I'd like to know how many guitars Chris has broken so far since they started playing this new upbeat version of GPASUYF. I've already seen Chris using several different guitars. The version is awesome! But it huts watching those beautiful teles going kamikaze.

The Oracle replies:

As far as I know, one. Fast repairs are made if there's any lasting damage.

November 29, 2011 - submitted by Joseph Rogers, United Kingdom

Q. Once Again Hello Oracle! I couldn't help noticing that for the Children In Need concert, Coldplay were one of the acts that didn't make use of the orchestra that was present. It got me thinking...have the band ever considered a gig with a live orchestra? I know that it wouldn't suit every song of their's, especially on Mylo Xyloto, but to hear In My Place, Yes or even Paradise in this format would be great. I can see it now: "Coldplay At the Royal Albert Hall". Would be interesting to hear your thoughts on this. Also, am I standing or "seats on the floor" at MEN next weekend? Joe x P.S. If this happens...it was my idea OK?

The Oracle replies:

I haven't seen CiN Rocks but the orchestra won't have been there to be utilised by every act. I personally think they could probably have any of their songs performed with an orchestra because a good song is a good song no matter whether it's performed acapella, acoustically or Mark Ronson'd! Anyway, there hasn't been talk of such a gig though you may recall they performed Politik at the 2003 Grammys with an New York Philharmonic Orchestra.

November 29, 2011 - submitted by Amelia, United Kingdom

Q. Dear Oracle, Christmas is coming, and i was going to purchase something really special for my best friend. Since i'm young and the gift was $100, i was going to give it to her for Christmas/Bday and a bunch of made up holidays. I was waiting for a paycheck to purchase all the gifts with the one amount, but now the item is sold out. I've been checking the website every day to see if they'll release it again for Christmas, but haven't yet. Later i found out that for my present, she's making some of it and buying some of it and putting a lot of effort into it and now i don't j=know what to do for hers. I don't know what route i should take for her present now: waiting and hoping, or finding something else. If i try finding something else, what should i look for now, because nothing could compare to the Jacket i was going to purchase. Thank you.

The Oracle replies:

Presents are not about the cost. $100 sounds far too much for you to spend on your friend no matter how amazing the gift. I would spend time rather than money. Think about what she likes and focus your energy and maybe a little money into that. She'd surely appreciate something affordable that you've put time and effort into. You could make her a compilation CD. Or film something personal. Or write her a poem or song if you're able. Maybe a photo of something she loves in a beautiful frame? There are so many gestures you can make that don't have to cost the earth.

November 28, 2011 - submitted by James, United Kingdom

Q. Dear Oracle, I've been looking at the Graham Norton Show on the BBC iplayer to see Coldplay's performance as Roadie said they were on it but for some reason JLS were on it? Are Coldplay on it next week or something or is it a mix up? Thanks, James.

The Oracle replies:

The majority of TV shows are taped in advance of their transmission date rather than going out live. There are a couple of exceptions of course. Graham Norton is an advance filming so the band's performance will be going out at a later date. JLS were this week's musical guests, Lenny Kravitz is next so look out for Coldplay on December 9th.

November 28, 2011 - submitted by John, United States of America

Q. If a girl posts lyrics from a song right after you hangout with her, can you assume that the lyrics are related to how she feels about you?

The Oracle replies:

You'd have to take into consideration what else is going on in her world. For all you know, she may have just been listening to that song. I would say it's highly likely though. Beware, if it isn't you might look a little foolish.

November 25, 2011 - submitted by Tambourine Woman, United Kingdom

Q. I brought my tambourine to the Little Noise Session last night and wanted to check that I didn't annoy Chris and Johnny too much by playing it?! Thank you guys for a never-to-be-forgotten show, it was just BRILLIANT xx

The Oracle replies:

I realize that this is an unusual extra Friday question but I could not help myself today. Somehow I doubt you are really the

, Harry? I can't speak for anyone else but, annoy too much? Playing it at all was. I'm sorry love but you got right on my nerves. I can't blame you at all for impromptu percussion though as I feel it is an ABSOLUTE travesty for the venue to allow anyone into a live performance with an instrument of any kind. To be honest, I'd prefer people who can't hold a tune to refrain from singing too but I am the music equivalent of The Grinch. Please leave it at home next time eh? Cheers! It was great though...

November 24, 2011 - submitted by Paty, Mexico

Q. Hi Oracle! I have a little question... If I have the opportunity to visit UK, what place can I visit to say that I visited a Coldplay's Place? For example a Beatles' Place is Abbey Road, so what place could be Coldplay's Place? Please, answer my question. Thanks :)

The Oracle replies:

I'm sure many fans would disagree and say The Bakery or The Beehive are Coldplay places but I wouldn't say they are as synonymous as Abbey Road is to The Beatles. I think the iconic image of the band crossing the zebra crossing has more to do with that. To me Coldplay places are video locations (e.g. Studland Beach) or venues played (the site of the now defunct The Laurel Tree) etc. Maybe it's all about finding the place that means the most to you as a fan.

November 24, 2011 - submitted by Billie, United States of America

Q. Hi, Oracle. I was wondering why Coldplay never plays my two favorite songs at concerts and such, why they don't have music videos (I know that they aren't very popular). The songs are Swallowed in the Sea" and 'Til Kingdom Come. Thanks.

The Oracle replies:

Well Billie I have to say "never say never". 'Til Kingdom Come was a permanent fixture on the last tour and was played more recently on 26th October in Madrid.

To "know they aren't very popular" simply is not true - given they're your favourite songs, you won't be alone in that view. 'Til Kingdom Come especially is a fan favourite. The only reason there were no videos made for either of those songs is because neither were released as singles.

November 23, 2011 - submitted by Shady, Egypt

Q. Yesterday I found - by chance - a live version of a song called Bucket For a Crown and it was absolutely gorgeous. I wanted to know whether there is a chance we'll be hearing a studio version of it or not. Thanks for reading and I hope you respond to my question.

The Oracle replies:

To be honest, as with many of the songs that are discarded during the recording process, its time and place has passed. There are a few notable songs that have had a very long incubation period before finally making it to a record (In My Place certainly springs to mind) but there just isn't room for them all. Bucket For a Crown was so long ago now that it just isn't likely to reappear. Speaking of, it seems quite fitting to be answering this on the eve of Chris & Jonny's MENCAP Little Noise Sessions performance as I seem to remember that's where Bucket For a Crown got its first public airing back in 2006.

November 23, 2011 - submitted by Andrea, United Kingdom

Q. Hi, Oracle! What is the paper that is always at Chris piano on the shows? Hope that you answer my question :)

The Oracle replies:

There are typed setlists that are usually taped to the floor but I have seen them on the piano too. I think what you've seen might actually be translations. Chris likes to find out how to say things in the local lingo at every show and so he asks for interpretations.

November 22, 2011 - submitted by Kirsten, United States of America

Q. Dear Oracle, I was wondering if Coldplay planned on putting out another Christmas song like they did last year with Christmas Lights (which I am listening to right now.) Thanks for reading this and I hope you respond to my question. Have a good day.

The Oracle replies:

I did say there'd be no Christmas album from Coldplay a couple of weeks ago, same goes for a Christmas song* too. However, if you want to get in the festive mood with two new Christmas albums, I recommend Coldplay friend and collaborator Tim Wheeler's This Is Christmas, an album made with with Emmy the Great. It was released on 21st Nov. Another is an album released on 28th Nov by two wonderful people, Smith & Burrows. *This Friday is the one year anniversary of the Christmas Lights video shoot. How times flies. We'll be hearing it in stores the world over soon eh?

November 22, 2011 - submitted by Elmo, United States of America

Q. Is Moving to Mars available to listen to at all or is that just a song that was pulled from MX? I love the new album more than I thought I would if that's even possible.

The Oracle replies:

If you visit our Recordings section and scroll to the Every Teardrop Is A Waterfall EP, you will see that it's available to buy. Moving to Mars is track 3 on that.

November 21, 2011 - submitted by Conor, United Kingdom

Q. Why has Chris changed his watch from a yellow one to a purple one?

The Oracle replies:

I'm assuming you noticed on Children in Need. He doesn't always wear the yellow one - er, obviously or you wouldn't have asked - he just chooses whichever one he wants to wear at the time. Each member (including Phil) has one but as they don't all wear them, Chris has the pick of 5.

November 21, 2011 - submitted by Eric, United Kingdom

Q. Hi Oracle! Just saw Coldplay on BBC Children in Need show in Manchester. I was wondering what "7070s" means which is written in Chris's hand during the song Paradise?

The Oracle replies:

It actually says 70705 which is the number to text to donate to Children in Need.

Kit yourself up for the forthcoming MX tour and get spotted with Coldplaying's new range of merchandise! [click on the items for the full shop]

News round-up: Guy Berryman has been producing again, Wretch 32; Coldplay for Queen's Jubilee?

Thu, 01 Jan 1970 00:00:00 +0000

Guy Berryman has revealed that he intends to do more producing in the future, that is according to DigitalSpy who have regurgitated a Daily Star article. They wrote: Guy said that he enjoys the technical aspects of creating a new record, but insisted that he would never want to produce a Coldplay album. Asked whether he would be game for producing the band's next effort, Berryman told the Daily Star: "It'd be too big a challenge."

However, he maintained that he will not be leaving the group to pursue a solo career as a producer. Berryman explained: "I'm never happier than when I'm being creative, whether that's with Coldplay or other artists. I just love being in the studio."

Berryman recently took charge of The Pierces' hit album You & I and has just worked with James Levy and The Blood Red Rose. Speaking about his working methods, he added: "I don't concentrate on technical things like where a microphone is placed and things like that. As a producer, I try to keep the initial feeling from when I first heard a song and make sure we do what were initially aiming for."

This just in from the official site: We're pleased to report that Guy has produced the upcoming album for James Levy & The Blood Red Rose, which is released on 6 February, 2012. Check out a track, featuring Allison Pierce, above. Says Guy: “The songs document romance in all its guises; dark, twisted, hopeful and joyful. The sounds, drawing upon classic arrangements from the '50s and '60s, are melodic and lush and are hopefully a breath of fresh air in a world dominated by urban electronica.”

Meanwhile, rapper Wretch 32 has his sights set on teaming up with Coldplay and Jessie J, writes Capital FM. The 'Unorthodox' singer is currently working on his new album and hopes he can tempt Coldplay into a collaboration. "I'd love to get the lads in and do something and kind of mash two genres together and see what we come up with," he told Capital FM.

Finally, a new Coldplay performance could be announced, if Contact Music are correct in their prediction today. Gary Barlow is eyeing a star-studded line-up for Queen Elizabeth II's 85th birthday celebrations - he's planning to include Jay Z, Coldplay and Sir Cliff Richard on the bill. And what's more - Coldplay will be in London that week performing three concerts at the Emirates Stadium. [More discussion on this rumoured performance is at the Coldplay Live forum now.]

The Take That star has been charged with organising the entertainment for the British monarch's joint birthday and Diamond Jubilee party in early June next year, to mark her 60th year on the throne. He has been consulting members of the royal family for tips on who they'd love to see performing at the bash - and he'll have to call in favours from a wide range of showbiz pals if he's going to keep all the VIP guests happy.

Barlow tells Grazia magazine, "Two hours to fill, who can I book? I've had three requests from the royal household. The Princes want Jay Z and Coldplay, and the Queen wants Cliff Richard."

Scans of Coldplay article as featured in Q Magazine (edition Q306) released on 29th November 2011 (view even larger): [thanks Mimixxx]

Coldplay: 'We were split over playing X-Factor but The Smiths saved us' (Q306 article preview)

Thu, 01 Jan 1970 00:00:00 +0000

Coldplay have given a rare insight into the democracy at work within their band - revealing that they were deeply split over the offer to play The X-Factor, according to the Q Magazine, who will publish a new Coldplay article in their Q306 edition that is out tomorrow (29th November). Speaking for an exclusive cover story interview in their new issue that hits UK newsstands on Tuesday, Chris Martin explained how the band come to their decisions. [Full discussion on this new show is at the Coldplay forum now (thanks Mimixxx)]

"Sometimes the things that you're offered split the band and that always means you end up not doing them," said the singer. "I think half of us would love to play The X-Factor and half of us say that's a bad idea... Me Phil [Harvey, band's manager and unofficial member], Jonny [buckland] would probably do anything."

However with it now strongly rumoured that the group will play this year's final, it seems the band's patent way to get over disputes came in handy, with drummer Will Champion explaining: "If one of us is down about something generally it can be resolved by grabbing some guitars and playing a Smiths song."

Get the full interview, plus details of where Coldplay's album Mylo Xyloto fared in their Top 50 Albums of the year countdown, in Q306 which hits UK newsstands tomorrow.

Meanwhile, The Sun have also wrote about this story. They published the following:

When it's time for Coldplay to quit, Chris Martin will have plenty of time to sample wife Gwyneth Paltrow's veggie recipes. The frontman believes he would struggle to get any gigs as a solo star — and that even holiday parks would turn their noses up at him. Chris said: "I'd just be terrible. I don't think I could even get a gig in Butlins — and I've been to Butlins. I think me and my keyboard would be outside Woolworths most days, getting shouted at."

There goes his chance of ever becoming a Redcoat. Considering Stacey Solomon, Danyl Johnson and Stavros Flatley are on the Butlins bill next year, Chris must think he's average without his bandmates. He has known Jonny Buckland, Guy Berryman and Will Champion since their uni days and the lads have gone on to become the world's biggest band. Chris and Jonny played a top set for Jo Whiley's brilliant Mencap Little Noise Sessions in London last week.

Speaking to Q Magazine, out tomorrow, Chris said: "They're very good friends to me because they know that, as the singer, and especially because I'm married to Gwyneth Paltrow, I get eight times as much media as them. They know how much I need them, I just couldn't do it on my own."

But the bond with his bandmates isn't the only friendship Chris holds close to his heart. The man he respects most in the music industry, Jay-Z, is also a trusted pal. He said: "When Jay first said, 'I like your band' I was, like, 'What the fuck are you talking about? No, you don't!' Then I realised he doesn't bring any baggage. 'I like your songs.' It was as simple as that."

But Chris does admit finding his friendship with Jay-Z "hilarious", given their contrasting backgrounds. He said: "What's the common denominator? Well, underneath he probably feels a bit like me and I feel a bit like him." Chris's missus has another idea. Gwyneth said: "They balance each other out. Chris and I are like Jay and Beyonce: two paranoid ironists and two calm, grounded people." She should know. The four of them have been away on enough holidays together.

Q Magazine (Q306 edition) front & subscribers' covers featuring Coldplay:

Chris & Jonny at Little Noise Sessions, London (24th November 2011): media reviews

Thu, 01 Jan 1970 00:00:00 +0000

For Coldplay fans, this was a rare opportunity. To see one of the biggest bands on the planet (well, half of them), in the tiny surrounds of a church, writes the Independent in a review of last night's Little Noise Sessions in London (with Chris and Jonny only). For fans of the band this is about as good as it gets. Which makes one wonder then, what made one woman up on the balcony think that it was a good idea to bring a tambourine? Even in the O2 - where Coldplay play two dates next month - it would be rude. But here, where the acts are playing stripped down sets in aid of Mencap, it's an absolute menace.

Chris Martin, to his credit, let's her get away with it during "Viva La Vida", where the audiences' "whoa-oh-oh-ahs" make up most of the noise. But when she starts tapping it during the opening chords of "The Scientist", he's forced to stop and ask her - very politely - to stop - "We've been playing it for ten years without a tambourine. I promise on the next song it's a tambourine frenzy," he laughs. It's a bizarre few minutes - but Martin does his best to soften the embrassment by ad-libbing a coda that pays tribute to the instrument. The rest of the set 10-song set, played just on neon-splattered piano and guitar, is charmingly shambolic for a band of Coldplay's stadium pedigree.

Without a rhythm section, Buckland and Martin contrive to muck up "Yellow", a song that they must have played at every gig they've ever played. There are a few stop-start moments elsewhere (Martin gets the key for the chorus to "Clocks" wrong), but it gives a feeling of uniqueness to the show that their festival and arena sets don't offer...

You can't say the same for the rest of the bill; Devonian folky Ben Howard is pleasant but has the presence of park bench; while Emili Sandé - fresh from a number one single with Professor Green simply screams "fourth place in The X Factor". Even the vicar looks bored. There's a lot to like and dislike about Coldplay, but dressed in all-black, Martin is still pleasingly humble, he even refers to his own band as "the shit Radiohead" at one point. Having your gig sabotaged by a rogue percussionist probably helps keep one's ego in check. But this is a sweet evening though, at no point more than when Martin shuffles his mic stand over next to Buckland's so the two can play "Shiver" from 2000's Parachutes. All it needed was a bit of tambourine...

Meanwhile, This Is London wrote: "This," chuckled Chris Martin at the start of the major coup of Mencap's Little Noise Sessions 2011, "is going to be more enthusiastic than professional". He wasn't wrong. For one night only, the Coldplay machine was replaced by an intimate, chaotic, endearingly ramshackle affair featuring just Martin and guitarist Jonny Buckland, underneath a Hackney church's stained glass windows and even more stained ceiling.

Unquestionably, the under-rehearsed pair missed the engine room provided by their missing drummer and bassist. As if desperate for a beat, Martin initially welcomed the audience member who had brought her tambourine but both men were distracted by the rattling, and Martin halted Every Teardrop Is A Waterfall to beg her to desist. Still, Martin remained cheery, dismissing Coldplay as "the shit Radiohead"; musing on how successful arguably the world's most popular band would be "if we had great bodies" and stopping Paradise mid-song to orchestrate the crowd's backing vocals. Buckland's adventurous guitar work was often lost but The Scientist was given a broody makeover; Martin's stentorian piano added a new layer of fascination to Violet Hill and Fix You's combination of comfort and uplift made the flintiest hearts crumble. Even at half-strength, Coldplay still move mountains.

Finally, the Guardian gives 4/5 stars for Chris & Jonny's performance and their review goes something like this: During the opening chords of The Scientist, the tinkles from the balcony become too much. Chris Martin stops the song, picks out the woman rattling a tambourine and launches a characteristically good-humoured rant about how "this isn't a tambourine song", how Coldplay have "played it for 10 years without a tambourine on it" and hoping she's not "from the Daily Star and going to fuck me over tomorrow". If this were a Van Morrison gig, someone would be receiving a tambourine suppository by now, but for Martin – though with tongue rammed stoutly in cheek – it's still the mock-meltdown of his career. Not the usual between-song banter at a charity acoustic gig in a church, then – part of Mencap's Little Noises Sessions – but it adds to the wit, warmth and intimacy of an enchanted evening. The casual Coldplay listener will claim they're the beigest band in Britain. Nonsense. Witness their album-based forays into krautrock and electronica, the ribbon-festooned revolutionary outfits of 2008 and some of the most dazzling stadium and festival sets in living memory. If the beige-sayers were right, a bog-standard, polished acoustic trawl through their big ballads tonight would illuminate their inherent blandness like a sea flare. Instead, a clearly underprepared Martin and Buckland conduct an open rehearsal on electric guitar and piano, full of bum chords and knockabout charm.

Crucially, the pair don't handle their songs like delicate relics but toss them about like stickle bricks, stopping to remember key changes, perform random beatboxing or get the boisterous crowd to sing backing vocals. Clocks gradually accelerates towards a key-smashing climax. What Yellow loses in bluster it makes up for in mournful import. If Viva la Vida and Violet Hill lack their usual tub-thumping dynamics, instead they're brim full of melodic enchantment and singalong pomp. And both The Scientist and Fix You, stripped bare and full of heart, give the walls goosebumps. "This whole concert's gone to shit," Martin chuckles to Buckland as Every Teardrop is a Waterfall breaks down amid more distraction from their tin-tapping nemesis. More nonsense; it's been like watching the magic happen.

Photos from Little Noise Sessions St John-at-Hackney, London, UK (24th November 2011):

Charlie Brown expected to be announced as 3rd single from Mylo Xyloto, according to European sources

Thu, 01 Jan 1970 00:00:00 +0000

The third Coldplay single from new album Mylo Xyloto is going to be Charlie Brown, sources from some of Europe's music websites are showing today (Thursday). Both Swiss music website Hitparade and respected Dutch radio station website 3FM have published what may well be the cover art to the single. Looking more closely, the artwork is part of the graffiti wall and also the Mylo Xyloto album cover itself. Read on after the jump for the image. We'll soon know if they're right as there will be an announcement on the official site.

If this news is confirmed, it will come as no surprise, as Charlie Brown is one of the best tracks on Mylo Xyloto, according to many Coldplayers, and will be a very strong addition to the singles collection. The media also like it, one example being from the article by Q Magazine published on 10th October 2011 entitled 'First Impressions of... Coldplay's Mylo Xyloto' they wrote of Charlie Brown: "The standout from their headline summer slots sounds even monumental on record; Charlie Brown is one of the best things Coldplay have done. Jonny Buckland's hypnotic guitar lines lead the way, the band channeling Joshua Tree-era, the heady holler-alongs of Arcade Fire and a teeny bit of Sigur Ros stargazing as the song launches into its adrenaline-veined climax. Whilst the music is wonderfully overblown, Chris Martin keeps the vocals cool and calculated, singing of 'taking the car downtown to where the lost boys meet', which might be about nipping to Spar on Hampstead High St But probably isn't."

You can discuss this latest news on the 3rd single at the Charlie Brown/Mylo Xyloto sub-forum here and here on the messageboard now. [thanks Blue Nails, robynature, LoversInJapan, Loki0012, ediskrad73]

Screenshot of the 3FM website with the cover art for Charlie Brown on the artist page for Coldplay.

Charlie Brown single cover art as discovered on Swiss music website HitParade.

Coldplay news round-up: X Factor (Craig Colton, Janet Devlin), Little Noise Sessions preview, Stereoboard suggest new date...

Thu, 01 Jan 1970 00:00:00 +0000

The X Factor star Janet Devlin [pictured] will reportedly sing with Coldplay if she makes it to the series final next month, according to various sources today. Coldplay - whohave apparently been booked to perform with one of the three X Factor finalists - are expected to duet with Janet after she sang their track, Fix You, earlier in the competition.

Insiders claim that the 17-year old is the only act who would suit Coldplay's style, with show bosses allegedly realising that a collaboration with Coldplay would be really special, one report from MTV said today. A source told the tabloid: “There isn’t anyone left in the show who would suit Coldplay’s music apart from Janet. She wowed everyone when she sang Fix You. It shows how confident everyone is that Janet will make the final.”

Meanwhile staying with the X Factor, STV are reporting that axed contenstant Craig Colton revealed that Chris Martin assured him that leaving the show is not the end of his music career. The 22-year-old former biscuit factory worker was voted out of the contest on Sunday night after he went up against Amelia Lily, and the judges’ votes went to deadlock...

But Chris has apparently told him to keep his chin up - and said everything would work out. "A weird experience that happened to me after the show, I was a wee bit down after the show, and I was walking through the corridor and Chris Martin walked past me." Craig said. "He’d left the building but came back to purposely speak to me…and he said ‘everything’s going to be fine, everything’s going to be good. He was a really nice guy as well, so hopefully everything will be," Craig added.

Next up: Chris and Jonny will be headlining a special show for Jo Whiley's Little Noise Sessions on Thursday (24th November) to raise funds for Mencap and the sessions already kicked off last night with a performance from Elbow. In a review of the Elbow show and a preview of the Chris/Jonny performance on Thursday, Mimixxx on the messageboard said, "I went to the Elbow Little Noise gig last night (they were Ah-MAZING) With it being a church (high ceilings etc) the acoustics were awesome and Guy's voice sounded sublime! So if Chris is on point tomorrow we'll all be in for a goosebump filled night."

The show will take place at St John-at-Hackney in London. Also on the bill are Ben Howard, Emile Sande, Michael Kiwanuka and Bebe Black. For the previous five years, it has taken place at the Union Chapel in Highbury. But Hackney will be welcoming the stars of this year’s programme. "We’ve had five years at Islington’s Union Chapel and we felt we were ready for a change," said Kate Tinter, events development manager for mental disability charity Mencap. "Bigger bands are going there now and we thought we had helped them along the way. It felt like the right time to move. We’ve been looking all over London but were thinking more and more that Hackney was the right area. I did not know about St John until I was walking past, but they have been incredibly supportive – it has been a joy working with them."

DJ Jo Whiley said: "Mencap’s Little Noise Sessions are back for the sixth successful year and we’re excited to be moving to St John-at-Hackney – a venue that in its 700 year history has never played host to a music gig like this. Each year we aim to surprise and inspire the audience, with a week of unbelievable shows coupled with a simply stunning backdrop."

[Full discussion on Thursday's show is at the Coldplay Live forum now!]

Stage for Chris and Jonny's LIttle Noise Sessions tomorrow in St John-at-Hackney:

[thanks Mimixxx]

And finally... we think Stereoboard have probably made an error posting a new Coldplay date for 2012 in Liverpool. Probably...

Coldplay to host 'Under 1 Roof' charity show at London O2 Arena (10th December)

Thu, 01 Jan 1970 00:00:00 +0000

Coldplay have announced that, on Saturday, 10th December 2011, they will host Under 1 Roof, a benefit concert in support of the charity Kids Company at the O2 Arena in London. Stars turning out for Under 1 Roof, featuring live music and comedy, include Coldplay, Tinie Tempah, Emeli Sandé, Rob Brydon and Steve Coogan as Alan Partridge. [Full discussion on this new show is at the Coldplay Live forum now (thanks hps & _Tash)]

Coldplay are long-term supporters of Kids Company and have pulled together the line-up at London’s world-famous O2 Arena to raise funds for the London-based charity. Established in 1996, Kids Company works across 4 centres and in 40 schools helping vulnerable children and young people in some of the most deprived areas of London.

Coldplay on the official wesbite said: "Kids Company is a phenomenal organisation that is very close to our hearts. We hope that people get behind the event to raise as much money for Kids Company as possible. On our side, we can promise anyone that buys a ticket that they’ll be part of a very special night."

Speaking about the concert, Kids Company Founder and CEO, Camila Batmanghelidjh commented: "Coldplay’s continuing support is fantastic. They have already provided funds to help thousands of children who have suffered violence and neglect. How amazing that they are now being joined by other generous friends for Under 1 Roof, to establish what we hope will become a regular event, generating vital support for many more children in years to come."

You may remember back in December 2009, Coldplay offered memorabilia for auction during their 'End of Decade Clearout Sale' for their designated charity, Kids Company. The instruments, wardrobe, and other memorabilia items auctioned on eBay raised over $400,000 (£250,000). Items offered at auction covered each of Coldplay’s albums and performances from each era, including Parachutes, A Rush of Blood to the Head, X&Y, and the latest Viva La Vida or Death and All His Friends. In total, Coldplayers from this site spent almost £70,000 ($120,000) on treasured Coldplay items for the Kids Company charity. Here was the list of items won by members of the Coldplaying messageboard during the auction [thanks NumbersGirl]:

Lot 3 - Takamine Guitar - lo&loud - £5,800

Lot 6 - Parachutes Globe - NumbersGirl - £8,100

Lot 8 - Chris' Yamaha CP70 - christopher Martin - £4,000

Lot 9 - Fender Rhodes piano - lo&loud - £2,505

Lot 13 - Shiver Lith - DriftedFar^ - approx £600

Lot 15 - Don't Panic Lith #1 - Pallavi - £650

Lot 17 - Jonny's Fender Thinline Telecaster - Texasluvsjonny - £3,500

Lot 23 - Jonny's AROBTTH poster - Sirhc - £820

Lot 27 - Yellow Lith #1 - DriftedFar^ - £1,021.83

Lot 31 - Chris' Gibson J200 "Til Kingdom Come" - Afeather - £5,100

Lot 32 - Chris' Gibson J200 "A Message" - bonedaddy - £5,650

Lot 38 - Will's Drum from "Talk" video - lo&loud - £1,850

Lot 39 - Jonny's Viva Guitar - Jason-DeBord - £15,000

Lot 45 - Autoharp - silver.lining42 - £3,600

Lot 46 - Guy's Viva Jacket - Afeather - £4,800

Lot 52 - Strawberry Swing Outfit - lo&loud - £6,100

Coldplay photos from the studio during the clearout sale preparations back in December 2009:

Right now, the band are in the studio, sorting out/signing the items for the End of Decade Clearout

Still sorting the auction. This is Jonny's first pedal board!

Coldplay to play New Year's Eve concert in Abu Dhabi, UAE (now confirmed)

Thu, 01 Jan 1970 00:00:00 +0000

Coldplay will headline New Year's eve gig in Abu Dhabi and also kick off the Volvo Ocean Race, which commences on December 31st

This New Year Eve just got even more exciting as Coldplay have been pencilled in to ring in the festivities in Abu Dhabi, reports from the Middle East are saying today (now confirmed via the official site). Coldplay will kick-start the UEA's historic hosting of the Volvo Ocean Race 2011/12 , followed by a concert that will certainly run to a packed house if their previous capital outing is anything to go by. [Full discussion on this new show is at the Coldplay Live forum now (thanks Skuze23, Mimixxx & _Tash)]

Presented by Abu Dhabi Tourism Authority (ADTA), and Flash Entertainment, Coldplay will perform live on December 31st at a unique venue adjacent to the purpose-built Volvo Ocean Race Destination Village on the Corniche Breakwater. Having last played to 20,000 fans in Abu Dhabi in 2009, the British band is relishing a return to the UAE capital to play for their tens of thousands of fans from across the region and beyond.

John Lickrish, Managing Director of Flash Entertainment, said in a statement: "In 2009, Coldplay stunned Abu Dhabi with a phenomenal performance that left us in awe. They are a simply stunning live act with a global fan base of millions, rightfully hailed as one of the biggest bands on the planet. We all know and love their catalogue of hits, but with a hot new album to perform this year, Coldplay live in Abu Dhabi is going to be one of the most memorable New Year’s Eve you’ve ever seen."

Meanwhile, the Volvo Ocean Race will run from December 31, 2011 till January 17. Said Mubarak Al Muhairi, Director General, ADTA: "We promised a destination hosting like no other when we began our Volvo Ocean Race campaign and the confirmation of Coldplay’s New Year’s Eve concert signals our intention to live up to that commitment. With customised travel packages for both the concert and race, we are confident that Abu Dhabi will again raise the bar as a destination of distinction for international sporting events."

Photos from Coldplay's last concert in Abu Dhabi in 2009:

Spotify under more pressure as Coldplay collaborator Jon Hopkins reveals £8 profit from 90,000 plays

Thu, 01 Jan 1970 00:00:00 +0000

The arguments over the value of music streaming to artists roll on, but one thing’s for certain: something definitely hit the fan for Spotify, Rdio and the rest this week. Mercury-nominated artist Jon Hopkins claimed this week that he was paid just £8 (around $13) for almost 100,000 streams on the service, and just hours before it was revealed that an independent record distributor in Britain — representing more than 200 small records labels — quit a range of streaming services, including Spotify, in a protest over 'negligible' royalty payments. (Read some of the other articles and discussion on the Spotify/streaming topic in the Coldplay forum now! [thanks Mimixxx])

We wrote at the end of October that Coldplay had decided not to release their album Mylo Xyloto onto Spotify and other streaming sites last month - and after this latest debacle involving Jon Hopkins, their decision appears to be fully justified. The debate went up a gear yesterday, when independent distributor and UK dance labe ST Holdings pulled its music catalogue from streaming sites. Then the complaints went viral with a blunt tweet from Jon Hopkins, musician and collaborator with Coldplay (on Viva la Vida), Brian Eno and respected Scottish indie performer King Creosote. His message was simple: "Got paid £8 for 90,000 plays. Fuck spotify. Radio 1 pay about £50 for each play."

That set in motion a stream of opinion from industry execs on Twitter. Radio presenter Stuart Miller wrote: "This Spotify thing is a total joke. I make dance music. If Radio 1 plays like 6 mins I get £120 or around that from PRS." Universal product manager Steve Marsh came out in Spotify's defence, commenting: "How much did they get paid from pirated music...would that be £0? Spotify is reducing the amount of pirated music."

Music publishing house Sentric also stuck up for the beleagured platform. They said of Hopkins: "Yes, he gets £120 for a six minute play on Radio 1; because 8 million people are listening to it... If he received 8 million streams on Spotify he'd be earning more than £120 in royalties... Spotify is good for artists & the music industry. Can we all just get along with our lives and embrace it please?"

Universal's Jamie Vaide said: "Streaming can never replace sales as a major income source - but many people are stealing, not buying... I think the killer point is artists get SOMETHING from @Spotify whereas they get NOTHING from illegal downloading." Others were less forgiving. The BBC's Wales Music account Tweeted: "Didn't Madonna get about 3s 6d for millions of plays? Streaming surely can't pay long term for artists..." Record producer Dom Morely called Spotify 'pointless', while UK pop songwriting collective The House of Mammoth said: "Spotify = this generation's mix tapes."

Coldplay decided not to release their album Mylo Xyloto onto Spotify and other streaming sites last month and other famous Spotify snubbers include Tom Waits and Adele - whose album 21 is unavailable on the platform, although individual tracks can be streamed.

UK technology website CNET continue, saying that the 200+ indie dubstep, grime and electro labels represented by distribution network ST Holdings believe streaming services cut into other outlets for their music, as listeners choose to stream music instead of buy CDs or full-priced downloads. And although streaming is a promotional tool and earns the labels some cash, it's nowhere near enough to justify the loss of money from not selling a CD to each listener.

Unfortunately, Spotify's revenue deals are shrouded in mystery, with four major labels having a reportedly significant stake in the service. Ultimately, as music-lovers and technology fans we want to listen in the fastest, easiest way possible and pay for our music safe in the knowledge that it will go to the people who made the music -- but with the music industry in a transitional stage, it's hard to say if that's truly happening.

The comments on Music Week, however, have been mainly in support of Spotify, claiming that streaming music online leads to more sales in the shops through discovery of music:

Since I've started using Spotify about a year and a half ago I've been listening to more music as I've been discovering more music than I personally would otherwise. I subscirbe (£5/mth) and don't have a premium account so can't take my music with me when I'm on the go. As a consequence, I've been gladly spending more, month on month, buying digital versions of the songs that I discover and favorite on Spotify. It isn't very clear what deals Spotify have in place in order to be able to function legally - especially with the majors, and this has also been a matter for much debate recently. But as in most transactions that happen in the music industry, I'm willing to bet that they are the ones getting the lions share of Spotify's royalty payments in terms of percentages of each £1 that they pay out... *have you heard any of the majors, publisher or record company, complaining about this issue as yet?* ...and as usual it's the creators and the musicians that get the sh*tty end of the stick. Spotify is a great tool for me personally, and has changed my relationship with purchasing music, but until there's transparency about who is getting what percentage of the Spotify pie, the creators, artists and small record companies will continue to reach assumptions based on half truths, innuendos and incomplete data that's probably backed by the more dominant competitors in the digital domain. [Dwayne]

Since I've started using Spotify a little more than two years ago, I've spent more money on music than ever. I've visited more concerts and festivals than I ever have, even started buying merchandising just as a small gesture to support the artist. I buy about 5 albums a year of artists that I really, really like. The record labels need to understand that things change - use spotify or other music streaming services to promote music - cash is invested in experiences nowadays. Accept it and work with it. It's as if the record labels are in the Pigeon Post business and complain about Email. I'm sure Gold Panda wouldn't even sound familiar to many people without streaming services and they probably received more bookings than ever. See it as free promotion. [Rosanna Lopes]

Agree with Rosanna on this (above). I started using Spotify when it launched in the UK about 3 years ago and since then the amount I've spent on buying music has soared massively. I calculated that in 2010 alone I had spent just under £1k on content (music, videos etc) on iTunes... For labels to work out whether it's viable for them, they should surely need to work out what attributes users to buy music (eg, a stream on Spotify, for me, often leads to an iTunes purchase, but iTunes would take full credit for that and pay the label that way) whereas Spotify are not seen to be anywhere within that funnel. Labels need to be smarter on how they use digital holistically to drive sales. [Wayne B]

I think its important for labels to realise their business models are changing and embrace the change rather than moaning its not as good as the olden days. Instead running away from streaming services there should be more pressure put onto the likes of Spotify to increase user charges and pay more money to the artists and song writers. Although I haven't bought more music because of Spotify, I would pay upto 4x the monthly amount I do to have free music streamed to me if they increased their catalogue and I knew the artists were getting a better deal. And RE: Gold Panda, maybe its because they're just not very good... [Jon Collins]

Tweet on 17th November from Jon Hopkins: "Fuck Spotify"

Charlie Brown video due in the new year, will not feature nudity despite media excitement

Thu, 01 Jan 1970 00:00:00 +0000

More fall out now from the Charlie Brown video shoot, as The Sun continue with their series of articles drip-feeding us with information from the event. Their latest one reads like this: "Coldplay are hard taskmasters. Girls who applied to feature in the video for the band's forthcoming single, Charlie Brown, had to dance for EIGHT HOURS caked in luminous make-up. Chris Martin, Guy Berryman, Jonny Buckland and Will Champion made up for the gruelling day's work though. They footed the bill for lunch at the pub next door to the church in Brentford, West London, where filming took place – then sorted a free bar. Doubt the boozer had much Red Bull left."

It seems like the media are getting very excited about the video, the internet is full of reports that Coldplay hired 'topless ladies' to feature in their new video for single 'Charlie Brown'. However, the maker of the Xylobands, Jason Regler, who has been involved in the video shoot from a glowband perspective, tweeted this week that it wasn't as rauchy as the media would have liked (see below). He also said that the video would be released in the new year, and this matches the rumour that it is set to be released on 10 January 2012. More discussion on Charlie Brown, the single, and the video release is at the Charlie Brown sub-forum now.

What not to expect in the Charlie Brown video, released in the new year

Photos from behind-the-scenes of Coldplay's video shoot for new single Charlie Brown (December 2011):

Don't forget to check out your tour discussion thread if you are getting tickets/excited for the European & North American 2011 and 2012 shows:

DECEMBER 2011

14 - Paris, France @ Bercy [discussion]

15 - Cologne, Germany @ Lanxess Arena [discussion]

17 Rotterdam, Netherlands @ Ahoy [discussion]

18 Antwerp, Belgium @ Sportpaleis [discussion]

20 Frankfurt, Germany @ Festhalle [discussion]

21 Berlin, Germany @ O2 World Arena [discussion]

31 Abu Dhabi, UAE @ Volvo Ocean Race Destination Village [discussion]

APRIL 2012

17 Edmonton, AB @ Rexall Place [discussion]

18 Calgary, AB @ Scotiabank Saddledome [discussion]

20 Vancouver, BC @ Rogers Arena [discussion]

21 Vancouver, BC @ Rogers Arena [discussion]

24 Portland, OR @ Rose Garden Arena [discussion]

25 Seattle, WA @ KeyArena [discussion]

27 San Jose, CA @ HP Pavilion At San Jose [discussion]

28 San Jose, CA @ HP Pavilion At San Jose [discussion]

MAY 2012

1 Los Angeles, CA @ Hollywood Bowl [discussion]

2 Los Angeles, CA @ Hollywood Bowl [discussion]

18 Porto, Portugal @ Dragao Stadium [discussion]

20 Madrid, Spain @ Estadio Vicente Calderón [discussion]

22 Nice, France @ Stade Charles Herman / Nikaia [discussion]

24 Turin, Italy @ Olympic Stadium [discussion]

26 Zurich, Switzerland @ Letzigrund [discussion]

29 Coventry, UK @ Ricoh Stadium [discussion]

JUNE 2012

1 London, UK @ the Emirates Stadium [discussion]

2 London, UK @ the Emirates Stadium [discussion]

4 London, UK @ the Emirates Stadium [discussion]

7 Sunderland, UK @ the Stadium of Light [discussion]

9 Manchester, UK @ the Etihad Stadium [discussion]

10 Manchester, UK @ the Etihad Stadium [discussion]

22 Dallas, TX @ American Airlines Center [discussion]

23 Dallas, TX @ American Airlines Center [discussion]

25 Houston, TX @ Toyota Center [discussion]

28 Tampa, FL @ St. Pete Times Forum [discussion]

29 Miami, FL @ American Airlines Arena [discussion]

JULY 2012

2 Atlanta, GA @ Philips Arena [discussion]

5 Philadelphia, PA @ Wells Fargo Center [discussion]

6 Philadelphia, PA @ Wells Fargo Center [discussion]

8 Washington, DC @ Verizon Center [discussion]

9 Washington, DC @ Verizon Center [discussion]

23 Toronto, ON @ Air Canada Centre [discussion]

24 Toronto, ON @ Air Canada Centre [discussion]

26 Montreal, QC @ Bell Centre [discussion]

27 Montreal, QC @ Bell Centre [discussion]

29 Boston, MA @ TD Garden [discussion]

30 Boston, MA @ TD Garden [discussion]

AUGUST 2012

3 East Rutherford, NJ @ Izod Center [discussion]

4 East Rutherford, NJ @ Izod Center [discussion]

7 Chicago, IL @ United Center [discussion]

8 Chicago, IL @ United Center [discussion]

11 St. Paul, MN @ Xcel Energy Center [discussion]

28 Copenhagen, Denmark @ Parken Stadium [discussion]

30 Stockholm, Sweden @ Olympic Stadium [discussion]

SEPTEMBER 2012

2 Paris, France @ Stade de France [discussion]

4 Cologne, Germany @ Rheinenergie Stadium [discussion]

6 The Hague, Netherlands @ Malieveld [discussion]

12 Munich, Germany @ Olympiastadion [discussion]

14 Leipzig, Germany @ Red Bull Stadium [discussion]

16 Prague, Czech Republic @ Slavia Eden Stadium [discussion]

19 Warsaw, Poland @ National Stadium [discussion]

22 Hannover, Germany @ AWD Arena [discussion]

Read also: European Stadium Tour announced! (general discussion thread for the Europe tour)

Read also: North America Tour announced! (general discussion thread for the US/Canada tour)

Kit yourself up for the forthcoming MX tour and get spotted with Coldplaying's new range of merchandise! [click on the items for the full shop]

Coldplay add more UK stadium dates as general sale tickets sell out in under 90 minutes

Thu, 01 Jan 1970 00:00:00 +0000

Coldplay have added additional dates in London and Manchester after tickets for the 2012 stadium tour sold out after just 90 minutes this morning. The speed at which tickets for the large-capacity venues sold out has prompted the organisers to add another date at the Emirates Stadium in London on June 4th, as well as an additional show in Manchester on June 10th.

In Coventry, the Coventry Telegraph reported that Coldplay concert tickets for the show on May 29th went on sale at 9am and all 40,000 for general admission were gone by 10.30am. Eager fans queued at the box office from 5am and were served free bacon rolls and hot drinks by staff as they waited for the ticket sales to open. Liz Cooper, marketing director at the Ricoh Arena, said she was thrilled. "We always expected demand to be high since they are one of the best bands in the world," she said. "Our telephone lines have also been busy with enquiries for hospitality since this remains the only opportunity now available to see Coldplay in the city. To have sold so many tickets within such a short space of time underlines their popularity and I am sure there are a great many fans who can’t wait to see the band perform in Coventry."

In Manchester, due to phenomenal demand, a further show was announced for Manchester’s Etihad Stadium. Coldplay tickets for the new date on Sunday 10th June 2012 went on sale at 10.30am today when the first date sold out. Coldplay also added a third show at London's Emirates Stadium on 4th June when tickets to the first two sold out in under an hour.

In Sunderland, fans braved dipping overnight temperatures to get their hands on hot Coldplay tickets, according to the Sunderland Echo this morning. Ardent followers of the band pitched their tents yesterday at the Stadium of Light to be first in the queue for tickets for next summer’s gig. They went on sale at 9am today for the highly-anticipated concert which takes place on June 7. Students Jonny Norman, Nathan Fryatt, Jack Wilson and Josh Downs, from Roker and Fulwell, stayed out overnight to secure their place at the front of the queue. "We’re all big fans of Coldplay," said 17-year Jonny, from Roker, "but I’ve never seen them live before. We are really looking forward to it."

Seventeen-year-old Nathan, from Fulwell, said the chance to secure tickets had made the trouble worthwhile. "It has been freezing cold and really windy, but it has been worth it," he said. "It didn’t put us off."

Coldplay have proved popular on Wearside where tickets that were available before the official release have out-sold other venues on the tour. The pre-sale period, which opened at 9am yesterday gave Sunderland fans the chance to book advance tickets through ticketing agency, See Tickets, via a special email code. Gary Hutchinson, head of venue and events at Sunderland AFC, said: "The speed at which the pre-sale allocation was snapped up shows just how passionate people in the region are about having major music acts performing here in the North East. The pre-sale period is a great barometer of how high the demand for general admission tickets will be when they are officially launched."

The full list of UK stadium tour dates is now as follows...

MAY 2012

Tuesday 29 - Coventry Ricoh Stadium [discussion]

JUNE 2012

Friday 1 - London (Emirates Stadium) [discussion]

Saturday 2 - London (Emirates Stadium) [discussion]

Monday 4 - London (Emirates Stadium) [discussion]

Thursday 7 - Sunderland (Stadium of Light) [discussion]

Saturday 9 - Manchester (Etihad Stadium) [discussion]

Sunday 10 - Manchester (Etihad Stadium) [discussion]

Ricoh Arena (Coventry)

Emirates Stadium, London (Arsenal)

Stadium Of Light (Sunderland)

City Of Manchester Stadium

Kit yourself up for the forthcoming MX tour and get spotted with Coldplaying's new range of merchandise! [click on the items for the full shop]

Coldplay to play Christmas show at 'sweaty' Dingwalls in Camden on 6th December (broadcast online, 15th December)

Thu, 01 Jan 1970 00:00:00 +0000

Coldplay are set to play an intimate gig at a venue where they first played 13 years ago, it has been announced via the official site today. They will play Camden's Dingwalls venue next month in a free show for BBC Radio 2. [Full discussion on this new show is at the Coldplay Live forum now (thanks Mimixxx, _Tash, SueDeNimes, twistedleksi2008]

Coldplay first played at the venue in May 1998, to raise money for the recording of the band's first release, The Safety EP. The gig takes place on Tuesday 6th December and will be broadcast the following week, on Thursday, 15th December. The free tickets for the show will be given away via bbc.co.uk/radio2 from 24-28 November. Dingwalls is the Camden venue which was hired by Coldplay's first manager (and now fifth member) Phil Harvey while he was still a student, for a Coldplay show on 25 May 1998. The money raised that night helped pay for the recording of the Safety EP.

The show will be broadcast on BBC Radio 2 on Thursday, 15th December, which you can listen to online worldwide. The performance will also be filmed and shown live via the Red Button and on the Radio 2 site, where it will be available to watch until 22nd December.

Described by the Punk 77 website, Dingwalls is a sweaty venue in Camden NW1. Way before Camden became the hip alternative equivalent of Oxford Street the Camden Lock end was just a bunch of building and Stables just east of the Roundhouse on Chalk Farm Road. Set up by a fellow called H in 1973 when he left the Speakeasy, Dingwalls Dancehall was a venue where punters and musicians alike could mingle. Faces to be seen ranged from Eric Clapton to Mick Jones to Wilko Johnson to Frank Zappa and Bo Diddley and anyone wanting to have a drink beyond 2pm.

In punky times a number of notable events occurred; The Pistols were supposedly banned after trouble during a Ramones gig. Outside was the scene of the face off between bassists Simenon and JJ Burnel of the Clash and Stranglers respectively, that ostracised the Stranglers from the Punk crew. Blondie and Eater played there among many others and the latter met Lou Reed and his transsexual friend Rachel who probably wondered what had happened to his song 'Sweet Jane.'

But despite the onset of Punk, Dingwalls remained primarily the home of grizzled pub rock bands, Sixties survivors from the freak scene and Hells Angels, the latter who would drop in from the Carnarvon (now Fusilier and Firkin) pub opposite.

Outside views of Dingwalls

Children In Need preview: Gary Barlow grateful for Coldplay's charity concert support

Thu, 01 Jan 1970 00:00:00 +0000

Children In Need gig organiser Gary Barlow is relieved Coldplay agreed to headline his upcoming charity concert because the band 'got the ball rolling' for other acts to sign up for the show. [Full discussion on tonight's show is at the Coldplay Live forum now. For those outside of the UK we've heard that there may be live streaming available here and here [thanks Londonerr]

Gary singer has once again been put in charge of organising the Children In Need stage spectacular at the Men Arena in Manchester, England on Thursday (17th November 2011, just a day before the annual BBC telethon on Friday. He also organised the 2009 gig at Albert Hall, London. Coldplay were the first act to sign up for the stage extravaganza and Barlow is glad the high-profile band agreed to the gig. He tells Britain's Daily Star, "My favourite band are Coldplay, lovely guys. I started with them and they got the ball rolling."

Lady Gaga is also set to take to the stage, and Barlow has promised fans her performance will be one to remember, adding, "It's gonna be amazing. She'll be bringing something that will keep us all talking for a week, I'm sure. We're all like: 'You do what you want. Go for it!'"

However, one star may be unable to perform as planned - Girls Aloud singer Cheryl Cole is battling a throat condition. Barlow explains, "We are watching this space at the moment because Cheryl has been ill over the weekend. So fingers crossed, it's all going to be all right. If it doesn't happen, I don't know what we're going to do. I might just have to get on the piano and do a bit of Roll Out The Barrel."

Synopsis for the show: Chris Moyles, Fearne Cotton and David Tennant present a charity concert from the MEN Arena. Led by Gary Barlow, a once in a life time, world class line up including Lady Gaga, Michael Buble, Coldplay, Snow Patrol, Elbow, Kelly Rowland, Ed Sheeran, Hugh Laurie, James Morrison, JLS and Jessie J come together to help raise money for the BBC Children in Need Appeal 2011. Please visit www.bbc.co.uk/pudsey for full details and ways to get involved in this year’s appeal.

Also writing are the Manchester Evening News: For a man organising one of the biggest concerts Manchester has ever seen, Gary Barlow is awfully relaxed. "It’s all going smoothly," he tells The Diary. "It’s a bit worrying actually. We need more chaos."

The Take That frontman and X Factor judge is remarkably calm ahead of tonight’s Children In Need Rocks at the MEN Arena. The event will feature performances from the likes of Lady Gaga, Coldplay, Elbow, JLS, Michael Buble and Gary himself. It will be shown live on BBC1. "This is going to be the biggest musical event on TV this year," says Gary. "We’re going to light up Manchester. You expect a few last minute hiccups but so far everything is going great. It’s going to be a brilliant show, encompassing every kind of music. What we are trying to create is a one-off performance of the like people will have never have seen before or see again."

Gary, who hosted last night’s gala dinner, has taken on responsibility for organising the musical spectacular. So how has he found managing the egos of some of the most famous stars in the world? "It’s strange because as soon as you say those words, Children In Need, everyone puts their egos to one side. Even the biggest stars recognise it’s an opportunity to do some good. I guess that’s a reflection of how people value this wonderful charity."

The 40-year old is one of the best connected men in showbiz. Not everyone could persuade international superstars to perform at a charity gig. "It’s quite hard getting people together. I decided to start at the very top and work down. I aimed for Gaga and Coldplay. Once you get them, everything else falls in to place and thankfully within a week I heard positively from both."

But how do you get in touch with Gaga? "I was able to email her directly. Luckily she was in England at the right time. She is the biggest star in the music world at the moment and it’s fantastic she has agreed to take part."

Gary has masterminded the entire concert, from booking guests to arranging the set-lists and devising the staging. It’s a big task for a man who already has a busy diary thanks to his Take That commitments and his work on The X Factor. "There’s a lot involved. I did another of these concerts for Children In Need two years ago at the Royal Albert Hall in London. I was asked to do it last year but didn’t have the time so I said I’d come back this year. I think once every two years is enough. It’s a real scramble but Children In Need is a brilliant charity so you don’t mind the hard work."

And he was determined to bring the event to Manchester this time. "I said I would only do it if we could take it out of London. London gets everything. Manchester was the obvious choice because it’s where everything started for me 21 years ago and I’ve had some fantastic gigs here."

Kit yourself up for the forthcoming MX tour and get spotted with Coldplaying's new range of merchandise! [click on the items for the full shop]