For me the first London Astoria gig was far and away the best. The lads were in a great mood, and it showed! Justin said how much he liked the venue - and that if we didn't like the band there was a bar at the back so we could have a drink or two There were a group of lads from Leeds standing behind me and they seemed a little merry. I was remembering the trouble I'd had with drunks at Croydon, but I needen't have worried. These lads were great fun, and they made the gig for me. The heckled, but in a good natured way, and Justin played up to them, and to me as I am never afraid of joining in!
When Andy came on for his first accordion solo he got a rousing cheer. Justin announced that people who cheer the accordion are obviously not getting enough sex. So when Andy came on for Be My Downfall EVERYONE cheered. He got a standing ovation (not hard, as we were all standing anyway) which went on and on. Justin fell about laughing, and then did a "we're not worthy" bow towards Andy, who announced "The people have spoken!"
We came out of the gig on a complete high, and then some of us waited around for the Devlins, as it was their last night. They wanted to thank us for supporting them throughout the southern half of the tour.
I travelled home on the train, listening to my recording of the gig with Jackie, and we kept laughing all the way back - only to be told to "Get a life" by some poor soul whose idea of "a life" is probably sitting in front of the TV with a can of beer!

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