Many consider the Plaza de Toros de Las Ventas to be the home of Bullfighting in Spain and when you drive up to a building like this, it's hard to disagree. The recent announcement that the Catalan parliament is to ban the sport will most likely only harden the resolve of the pro-bullfighters here. That of course is not what was on our mind today as we prepared for one of the most anticipated shows of the tour. A tour which has quite literally flown by, we now find ourselves with only three shows to do. Unbelievable.

The day started as usual for me, opening the laptop and assembling the day's images, then compiling the diary whilst waiting for an over-priced bowl of muesli to arrive. I used to get out more and go buy the stuff from the store but I got tired of carrying it around and the yoghurt goes off! Dan and I decided to have a tapas lunch and since we are here in one of the most elegant cities in the world, it would be daft not to get out a bit. As soon as we hit the street after a brief consultation with a charming concierge at the hotel, the heat hit us. It's a very dry heat here in Madrid, the altitude doesn't help either and we walked the four blocks or so, seeking shade from the sun wherever possible. My thought at that moment was for the crew who were setting up in the direct sunshine inside the bullring. Our destination was a highly regarded, modern tapas bar called Asador Fronton on Calle de Velazgues. The tapas was unsurprisingly delicious.





Suitably nourished, we wandered back to the hotel for a nap. Those late nighters catch up with you you know. With the alarm set for 6pm, I woke at 5:59 and showered, ready for departure to the venue at 6:45pm.



With the magnificent Plaza de Toros de Las Ventas in sight, I thought about the memorable gigs we've done here in the past. Even though I wasn't particularly hungry, a pan fried entrecote steak somehow managed to find it's way onto a plate in front of me and it was just what I needed. I then grabbed the camera and went in search of diary pics. 







Richard, cooling off



45 minuted before show-time, I was on the stage taking pics and showing our pilots and Daniella (who were on a day off) around the various intricacies of the technical side of the production when I noticed a few worried looks on the faces of the sound crew. I asked Kerry and Ben what was up. The monitor desk had just blown up. Well, crashed, died...whatever..it wasn't working.



The flurry of activity was interesting to witness as a flight case appeared and a huge rack unit appeared. A new Brain! As with most things we carry on the road, there is a spare, and in this case it was the central computer which had overheated and destroyed itself. Hardly surprising when you consider the intense afternoon heat. The boys had a fan on it all day but it wasn't enough. Kerry booted up the desk with fingers crossed and then punched the air as the thing burst into life. He inserted a USB stick which he carries around his neck containing the afternoon's settings and hey presto, we were ready to rock.

And rock we did, we took to the stage at 9:50pm to a huge roar from the 11,000 or so in the arena. For me, this was the best show of the tour. The sound was nothing short of stunning and I thought the band all played out of their skin. The runner was swift and we were back at the hotel just after midnight. Eventually a few of us gravitated to my room for a nightcap..or two. We chatted, laughed and listened to wonderful music until the very small hours, courtesy of my NHT system and once again toasted a wonderful tour. Two to go.