Oasis Says No2 O2

Whatever superstar talent is being lined up to play London’s O2 Arena, there’s no chance of Oasis being on the list, according to songwriter/guitarist Noel Gallagher.

Gallagher said the new jewel in the city’s live entertainment crown is "too Americanised" and "too far away."

He squashed rumours of his band playing a "Prince style" residency at the venue by telling Radio 5 listeners, "It means we are going to have to do 640 nights at Earls Court.

"We’ll never play the O2," he explained. "We went there to see Led Zeppelin and to be honest the gig was fantastic, but it was the most soul-destroying venue I’ve ever been to.

"And much to our manager and agent’s disappointment, we came back and said we would never play there. … Any gig you can get to by boat that hasn’t got a beach is wrong."

The O2 isn’t rising to the bait and looks to be taking the view that a dignified silence is the best way forward. It’s a luxury the arena can afford, as Gallagher’s comments coincided with a Daily Telegraph piece eulogising what AEG has achieved since converting the old Dome.

"Only now is Greenwich’s gigantic white elephant living up to the inflated hype of its original launch," the paper gushed as it revealed that U.K. concert promoter Harvey Goldsmith was a central figure in the deal.

Goldsmith reportedly acted as a middle man between Philip Anschutz and the Labour government at a time when it was wondering what to do with the building and the vast tracts of wasteland surrounding it.

"Philip was looking for a flagship venue in London and I said, ‘Come and see the Dome, this is an opportunity to turn a lemon into melon,’" Goldsmith told the Telegraph.

"I said to the government, ‘You’ve got to have someone here who knows what they are doing. … AEG have got the experience, and if [Anschutz] likes something he writes a cheque out.’"