Blog : No More Mr Nice Blog - Karen Hunter's Thoughts From Huntersville

Posted on Karen Hunter's blog "Thoughts From Huntersville."
Read more at http://karenannhunter.blogspot.com

I wanted to write about the UK part of the tour as we went through the cities but got too darned tired! So here is a synopsis of our time in my homeland.

We actually went to London from the Netherlands first because the boss was recording some TV shows, this meant that we had time to get to Camden Market and buy some cool hats. I got two and the man got three, add them to the others and we now have a fine collection of hats between us, as the Queen might well say "One can never have enough hats"....oh well maybe she never said that but you know what I mean.

There was a snack bar there with the coolest seating arrangement....see below

Sheffield was the first show, the place was heaving and all went well. I took a couple of silly pics backstage (see below).  I was excited at the thought we would be going to Bristol the next day, I would get to see some of my closest friends and my children Holly and Mathew.

I wanted to get as much time with my kids as possible so the idea was for them to get to Bristol from Torquay around the same time as we got there from Sheffield which was supposed to be 2pm.

In fact we got there at 1pm, giving more time for the boss and Ori to shop and time to get acquainted with the venue and find catering which is always the priority for me and my man.

It goes without saying that the reunion with my children and old mates was the best part of the day for me, we spent some time talking and laughing then going for something to eat whilst Steve got some rest before the show. My small circle of close friends in England are very special to me, they put up with me living in a far off land and I always feel relaxed and at home in their company.

The band and the boss were fab as always that night and my friends were impressed despite not being huge followers of AC before the show they were firm fans after the show....of course!!!!!

Steve's self adopted nick name is Skoop Doggy Do and Holly has started calling him 'Old step skoop' which is hilarious. Saying goodbye to everybody was horrible but I start working towards being in one place with them again as soon as the last one is over.

Next up Birmingham,  it was a bit grey and wet there although the show that night would warm everybody up. We were joined by the New York Dolls or as my mum called them "The New York Dollies", (and were they all girls she wondered).  They stayed with us until Glasgow and were brill. Guitarist Earl Slick is an old friend of Steve's and both players decided to make sure they keep in closer touch next year.  My good friend Tony Brinsley drove up from Devon to see us here, Steve and I spent some relaxed time with him before the show. He was another friend who was not sure if he would enjoy the show and ended up loving it.....of course!!!!!

We saw a great deal of the AC fans from 'SickthingsUK' on all these shows, they never cease to amaze me with their loyalty to Alice and the band and I eagerly looked forward to spotting them in the front rows of every show and meeting up afterwards.  I have gained new friends on this tour through both Sickthings and Facebook and now we have left for the rest of Europe I will miss their happy 'Sickthings' company.

London was next, Alexandra Palace is amazing with it's history both grand and eventful.  It was Halloween and we were joined by Arthur Brown who at 70 years of age was simply fantastic. Steve had done a great arrangement of Arthur's big hit 'Fire', a three guitar assault on a great song, Arthur himself jumped and rolled about like a teenager.   Arriving on stage with his hat on fire, he and the boss were clearly having fun along with the band.

Manchester was a great show, they really know how to rock there.  I was back on old stomping ground for a lot of these venues as I had done them as a backing singer with Gary Numan in the 80's. For some reason they seemed a lot smaller, especially Manchester which had been the closing gig of the tour with Gary in 1984.  Fun memories all round for those times and it was good to be back again with my gorgeous man and the AC band.

Last but not least was Glasgow before we left my homeland for Brussels and beyond.  Goodbye England but only for now, I will be back!