Christmas in Lewisham...
December '79 The Police were EVERYWHERE, TV, radio, music press, tabloid press, teen mags you name they were in or on it. Police tickets were like gold dust - no moon dust! You couldn't get them anywhere!
I'd tried several times to get tickets but to no avail. So when I heard that a Radio station was giving...! yes...! giving...! away tickets in return for a toy I knew there was now way I would miss out this time.
So my friend and I made our way to Capital Radio in Central London. We arrived around 4-5pm and were surprised to find a few people already queuing outside. We were told the doors would open a 9am tomorrow morning, so we took our place in the queue and prepared for a long cold night ahead. As the night went on more and more people steadily joined the queue, and although it was freezing cold, there was a great atmosphere.
I was just dozing (around midnight) off when I heard a girl a few people down the queue scream? I rubbed my eyes and looked to where she was pointing (still screaming)... climbing out of a large black limo was three blonde haired men...Sting, Andy and Stewart!!! I look towards them, then looked to my friend and said 'Am I dreaming? That really is Sting, Stewart and Andy walking towards me'? 'Yes'!!! She screamed 'Yes'!!!. Sting went to the front of the queue, Andy to the middle and Stewart went around the corner to back. As my friend and I were about 6/7 in the queue it wasn't long before Sting came over to us, he shook our hands, thanked us and asked '...if we were warm enough'? Nods were all we could manage, I was genuinely speechless. The Guys stayed for about 20 mins signing autographs, posing for photos etc. It turns out they were on there way back home from the infamous Hammersmith Odeon and Palais gigs - this is when they drove a tank from The Palais (matinee gig) to the Odeon. Well as you can imagine no one got much sleep that night, everyone in the queue reliving there hand shake and chat with The Police.
By 9am the following morning there must have been 200-300 hundred people queuing outside it was insane! The doors opened late (of course) and they allowed the first ten through. I walked over to the desk handed over my toy and walked out with a 'front row centre seat ticket'!!!
'For the last time in 1979... The Police'!!! Miles screamed into the mike, this is about as much of the gig as I remember, it's a total blur, honest!
The show was filmed and many years later I was shown clips from the show and low and behold there in the front row in a black sweatshirt with POLICE transferred in silver across the front was... ME! It was the weirdest thing, watching this 15yr old girl singing along at the top of her voice to each and every song. These clips were used in the video 'Outlandos to Synchronicity' - blink you'll miss'em.
(c) Tina for Sting.com
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