Cardiff, 17th March 2013 (25th show!)

Cardiff was my 25^th show, and to celebrate, I took a scrapbook with me to get the lads to write something nice in it for me.
The messages I got were as follows:

“Anything. Happy 25^th anniverrerree! Love Lorance”

“Happy 2twenty poopth gig.  YOU SMELL…great! Drew”

“HAPPY! 25^th We really do appreciate the love. Despite the physical abuse!  Love, Kier.”

“Lovely Meg. Hope you had a lovely 25^th gig! Zhane (with a backwards ‘e’)”

“Happy 25^th gig!! From your homeboy Nahn! Xx”

…..Some of them were nicer/made more sense than others, I will admit.

The gig was…rammed. I remember bailing pretty fast because we were stood on the end of the stage and there were people everywhere and it just really wasn’t comfortable. It was another Taking Hayley/FVK/Yashin show so luckily we didn’t have to be uncomfortable for long. I’m not a huge fan of Yashin (which I’ll mention more when I get to a slightly later gig) so I never had a problem with bailing when they hit the stage. I did used to quite like Taking Hayley though, it’s a shame they’re not a band any more.

Anyway. Cardiff was the first time I was ever aware of being in the presence of drunk Kemp. (Apart from like…. Yeneville, but I didn’t spend much time with him then.) I don’t know how I knew he was drunk, he wasn’t falling over or slurring or anything, but I was very aware that he was tipsy, and it was hilarious. 

A girl had fainted during Yashin’s set and had to be carried out and was lying on the floor by the bar. Her friend was sat with her and as she came round Kemp crouched next to her and then leaned over and asked if she was okay. She cried for all of about three seconds and then passed out again. It was one of the funniest things I’ve ever seen in my life. Kemp ran away so fucking fast.

I asked for two photos with each of them at this gig with the intention of having an ‘odd photo’ and a nice photo. My odd photo with Kemp actually made me cry with laughter when I looked at it. Other than Drew, I don’t think I’ve ever met a man capable of pulling the faces he pulls. As I went in for my nice photo about 5 minutes later cos I’d forgotten to ask immediately after my ‘odd’ one, and as Kemp and I went to rest our heads against each other we misjudged HORRIBLY, and ended up headbutting each other so fucking hard. Like I think I actually saw stars. I apologised profusely and he just laughed. I swear that boy doesn’t have a brain, you know.

I’d bought Beveridge a present to this gig, and I couldn’t wait to give him it cos I really thought he’d love it. I knew he was a huge Green Day fan and in about… 2005, I think, as charity called Whatever It Takes signed up a load of rockers to make charity wristbands and stuff. I’d bought myself a HIM one and a Green Day one, but I’d never really worn the Green Day one, so I decided to give it to Beveridge as a lovely gift. I gave him it and he put it on immediately, (which I thought was just cos I was standing there but it turned out he really liked it) and I remember him asking if I was sure he could have it. I told him I’d never worn it and he’d get more use out of it than me so, yes, I was sure. Bless him. I went on to get him another three, including the last one ever which ended up getting lost in the post. I was gutted about that.

One of my favourite things about this night was my ‘odd photo’ with Beveridge, cos we had to take it outside as I’d forgotten inside and then we’d been kicked out. He lunged forward into a very odd position and stuck his tongue out. The photo is amazing, cos it was so cold that you could see his breath, and in the haze was the figure of a tiny man. I showed it to Beveridge and he was really freaked out, he took my camera off me to squint at it to make sure he was seeing it right and everything. I wound him up over it for about 10 minutes before I caved and told him it was actually a painting of a rugby player on the wall behind us and it was just a well-timed and well positioned photo. I wish I’d kept him going longer really but I started to feel mean…

When we were stood by the van I apologised to Beveridge for what I’d told him in Birmingham on the K! tour because I didn’t want him to think I was offloading my problems on him and he very sweetly informed me that he heard so many people saying things like that that it went “in one ear and out the other”.
…I don’t think he meant that as harshly as it comes across... 

Until next time, 

Meg Mercury xoxo