Music / Bristol
Manic Street Preachers fans prepare for Bristol gig
Beata Szczepanowska has lost count of the number of Manic Street Preachers gigs she has been to, but estimates that it now must be around 28 or 29.
In preparation for Thursday evening’s Manics gig at the Lloyds Amphitheatre, Beata had arrived on Millennium Square soon after 6am preparing to queue all day.
But no queuing was allowed, leaving around half a dozen fans milling around near Las Iguanas wondering how they were going to occupy themselves for the rest of the day.
is needed now More than ever
“I’m going back to my hotel for a nap,” one said. “I haven’t slept for days.”
Beata, 32, who had traveled to Bristol from her home in Birmingham, has been a Manics fan for 20 years. “The fans are so close,” she said. “We know each other from the queue. We recognise each other.
“There are certain rules about how we organise ourselves in the queue. It’s always very polite.”
For Klaudia Portala, 29, from London, another of the first group of fans to arrive in Millennium Square, the barrier is the only place to be to watch a Manics gig.
“If I wan’t here, I wouldn’t be able to get in the front row,” she says. “If I don’t get to the barrier, I would end up standing at the back.
“It’s a great feeling being on the barrier. It’s always an amazing atmosphere. We’re like a Manics family.”
Manics drummer Sean Moore lives in Bristol so won’t have far to come for the gig. Coming from even closer is Jess Siggers, who walked the short distance from Cliftonwood to find the non-existent queue.
Thursday’s gig will be the 40th Manics show that Jess has seen.
“Going to a Manics gig and being somewhere near the back is nowhere near the experience you get on the barrier,” says Jess, 38.
“It’s a bit like coming home for me. The fact that listening to their music has an affect on you when you’re out and about; that’s magnified about a thousand-fold when you see them live.”
The Manic Street Preachers play as part of Bristol Sounds on Lloyds Amphitheatre on Thursday, June 22. Bristol Sounds continues with Craig David on Friday and Hacienda Classical on Saturday. For tickets, visit www.bristolsounds.co.uk.
Main photo left to right: Beata Szczepanowska, Jess Siggers and Klaudia Portala
Read more: Manic Street Preachers & Craig David to play outdoor Bristol gigs
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