Features
Morrissey Under Missile Attack
Although a film of the incident that’s been posted online indicates that he wasn’t hurt when struck on the head by what appears to have been a plastic bottle, he said “Goodbye,” turned his back on the 8,000-strong audience and walked off the stage.
The former Smiths frontman was kneeling down shaking hands with fans on the front row when he was hit.
Later a member of the crew announced that the singer had been hit on the head by a bottle and the concert would not continue. The audience was then told there would be a full ticket refund.
At press time it wasn’t possible to confirm a Liverpool Echo story saying the incident led to the sale of alcohol and food at the venue to come under review.
The paper quoted venue general manager Tim Banfield saying, “We are exceptionally disappointed that one individual should choose to recklessly cause the concert to be abandoned, ruining what should have been a brilliant night out for thousands of Morrissey fans.
“It is extremely difficult to prevent people who are determined to act in this way but, in the light of this incident, we will review all arrangements with regards to stewarding and food and drink consumption in order to assess what more we can do to tackle the small minority who appear incapable of behaving in a responsible manner.
“However, we do have to be mindful of the overwhelming majority of customers who buy tickets, attend the show, behave responsibly and thereby ensure we continue to attract large acts to Liverpool.”
The crowd attending the show Nov. 7 were reportedly split between those who were furious at whoever threw the missile and those disappointed because Morrissey didn’t soldier on through the gig.
Morrissey was hospitalised after collapsing onstage at the Swindon Oasis Oct. 25, the second night of the UK leg of his world tour. He was forced to postpone the following night’s show in Bournemouth.
His next scheduled show was in Nijmegen, The Netherlands, Nov. 9.
His US tour opens in Seattle Nov. 29.