Week 48

Week 48 – Sunday 27^th November + Wednesday 30^th November – Foster The People + Kasabian – Anson Rooms, Bristol + Motorpoint Arena, Cardiff – £11 + £37

Part One – Foster The People

“There really is nothing to say. . .”

A week after my first ever visit to Anson Rooms, Sandro, Flapjack, Gavlova and I headed back there to see a show from Foster The People . As Flapjack’s beloved Swansea City were live on TV at half one, the plan was to arrive early in Bristol to set up a grand day out.

It was always going to be a long Sunday, but turned out to be a very long day indeed. 

Normally I would describe in detail the various taxi drivers we encountered, the pubs we stumbled out of and the types of beers I dribbled down my chin and spilled down my shirt, all of which usually seem so vital. 

But on this day, all of this paled into insignificance, with the sad news that reached us on the train at midday. 

Wales’ footballing hero and national team manager, Gary Speed, had been found hanged at his home at just 42 years of age. Usually when a public figure that I like but have never met dies, though I may feel a tinge of sadness momentarily, my thoughts soon return to the cymbal-banging monkey that guards my brain.

But this was different. Speedo was a player who Welsh football fans (and others) had watched and loved for nigh on twenty years. Being a Welsh football fan isn’t always the most rewarding experience. In fact, it mostly involves being pretty downbeat and miserable most of the time, except for moments before an international fixture, when suddenly and inexplicably you feel a strong enough surge of optimism to predict a brave but fortunate 1-0 win. Generally speaking, this doesn’t happen, which is why we all drink so much.

Welshmen dream of qualification for the World Cup (or even the Euros) in the way that I imagine someone from a bigger country dreams of winning it. The trip abroad and tournament itself would be our open-top bus ride, although no doubt we’d start to dream of winning it ourselves if we actually reached the damn thing. 

Speedo was an influential young player in the team that came so close to qualifying for the World Cup in the US in 1994 and then captained the side that came equally close to reaching the European Championships in Portugal in 2004. Qualification was his and our Holy Grail, but only since he became manager did it seem plausible again. 

Of course there’s no danger of the Speeds stumbling across Gigaweek, but hopefully his family will have been comforted by the incredible and heartfelt tributes that have subsequently been made in his honour, in the football world and beyond, which prove that he will be missed, but remembered by many.

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Part Two