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The Close Encounters Tour 2006

De Niro
in Robbie Williams and Take That

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I have been thinking about his performance tonight in Dubai since I got in from work. Waiting for the reports now.

 

Do you think he will be on his way home now? :cheer:

Edited by Susie

How many hours ahead is Dubai?

Will the Robbie concert be over by now? :unsure:

 

Wonder if he's ok or in jail...... :cry:

 

 

 

Oops. Spookily similar posts Susie.....

Edited by jupiter9

Thinking alike Jupiter - Dubai is 3hrs ahead, so he has finished the show now. Hoping it went really well and they loved him like they did in South Africa..fingers crossed.

 

Some nice live pictures from South Africa thanks to TRWS

 

http://img158.imageshack.us/img158/6411/robdurban36kr.jpg

 

http://img158.imageshack.us/img158/7154/robdurban44ox.jpg

 

http://img223.imageshack.us/img223/6336/robdurban66bv.jpg

 

A Berlin staging set up...great. :thumbup:

Dubai is 3 hours ahead. Robbie's show is over now. I haven been sending my good vibes to him in the last couple of hours. Lets hope it all went smoothly and Dubai now knows what has hit them. :thumbup:

 

Susie you missed one of the best ones LOL I love this one. Don't you just love all those mobiles, gone are the days of security trying to stop you taking pictures. One up for technology. :dance:

 

Durban concert.

http://i74.photobucket.com/albums/i276/HORUSCAFE/l001.jpg

 

 

thanks to robbiewilliamssite via rwinfo and rwitaly.

Edited by Jackie

Still no news from Dubai? :cry:

 

I've not seen any mention of bared bums, boobs, swearing, arrests or jail on Sky News so I'm quite hopeful RW is still at liberty.... :P

Still absolutely no news from Dubai.

 

So to compensate, here is a photo from the Dubai Tourism Website. :rolleyes:

 

It is a cultural dance apparently. ;)

 

http://i3.tinypic.com/w1y6o2.jpg

Still no news from Dubai? :cry:

 

I've not seen any mention of bared bums, boobs, swearing, arrests or jail on Sky News so I'm quite hopeful RW is still at liberty.... :P

 

that is reasuring Jupiter9, No news flashes tonight, so it must have gone A OK.

 

Hopefully we will get something tomorrow.

Latest picture just in with thanks to robbiewilliams-turkey. Who said "After an amazing evening I will share my picture with you. Thanks Tugba.

 

http://usera.imagecave.com/robstwo/B/img00264rd-copy.jpg

looks like they liked him. LOL. Fantastic Robbie. :cheer:

 

 

Oh brilliant!

 

Robbie is not in jail!!! (I think :unsure: )

 

 

Hurrah Robbie :cheer: Can't wait to read the reviews of this concert! :)

Short clip of the Dubai concert on 'Youtube' :)

 

 

 

 

 

From Gulf News-Fun unlimited as Robbie storms stage

By Kelly Crane, Staff Reporter

 

 

 

Dubai: It was as crazy as expected and then some.

 

More than 25,000 excited Robbie fans descended on Nad Al Sheba yesterday, as the fun officially started for what eventually turned out to be a sellout performance.

 

Billed as the biggest music event in Dubai's history, Robbie Williams stormed the stage at around 9pm just a half hour later than schedule to the screams and cheers of delirious fans who let the rock star entertain them.

 

Robbie's show featured all the expected hits like Angels, Let Me Entertain You, Feel and Radio.

 

Endless queues

 

"This is one show that's lived up to its billing, until now," said one fan, as the rock star launched into his act.

 

But the lead-up to the musical extravaganza had started much earlier in the day.

 

Endless queues of traffic surrounded the venue despite shuttle buses and taxis coming and going to the venue from around 3pm amid the organised chaos.

 

Some fans were reported to have started queuing for entrance from as early as 2pm almost four hours before the gates were due to open.

 

Despite the crowds, the occasional complaint about serpentine queues, most fans appeared determined to enjoy themselves at the show and overlooked such minor inconveniences.

 

 

 

http://i3.tinypic.com/w6s0ox.jpg

Edited by jupiter9

This is one show that's lived up to its billing, until now," said one fan, as the rock star launched into his act. :no:

 

 

I think this should read "There hasn't been one show thats lived up to its billing, until now"

 

Or at least I hope thats hope it should read :o

More from Gulf News-

 

 

 

 

Close encounter with Robbie

By Kelly Crane, Staff Reporter

 

 

 

The 25,000 capacity crowd screamed uncontrollably as the lights went down at Nad Al Sheba at 9pm. The waiting was finally over - and everyone knew that one of the world's greatest showmen was just about to rock the stage here in Dubai.

 

Dramatic Robbie shots flashed on the giant screens and the tension reached almost breaking point.

 

And then it happened. The desperation for tickets on March 8, the media reports, the joy and excitement of finally getting tickets, the controversy over forged and black market tickets were all forgiven and forgotten as the man himself appeared in a jet of smoke at the end of a runway stage.

 

The heat from eight giant flames could be felt across the venue as far back as the grandstand as Williams launched into song with Radio.

 

The crowd literally went wild as he came into focus dressed in a pair of jeans, a knee-length, buttoned jacket and trainers.

 

And it wasn't just about the songs as Robbie continued to vary the show with jokes, conversation, audience interaction and even jibes at J-Lo, who yesterday announced she is mysteriously postponing her concert in Dubai for around a month.

 

"Because she couldn't sell any tickets," Williams coughed under his breath.

 

People of all ages enjoyed the show and many people commented it was well organised by promoters Midas and sponsor The One.

 

And even though the concert "sold out" in three hours on March 8, tickets were still being sold at the venue - but you make up your own mind about that!

 

Williams performed all the expected hits such as Rock DJ, Let Me Entertain You and Angels.

 

Billed as the biggest concert in the UAE, Robbie, who performed for just over two hours, added the date in Dubai as part of his Close Encounters world tour.

 

:thumbup:

 

 

 

 

 

 

Some Readers Letters re the Dubai concert from 7 Days Newspaper

 

Rather mixed shall we say. :cry:

 

 

 

Views on the Robbie Williams concert

 

http://i3.tinypic.com/w89j6d.jpg

 

 

 

 

With all the negative letters that appear following events in Dubai, I felt I had to write to congratulate the events organisers at the Robbie Williams concert.

 

We arrived at 5pm and hardly had to queue, there were plenty of facilities inside the racetrack and at the end of the concert we managed to get home to the Lakes by 11.30pm.

 

I am going to see Robbie again in the UK in September and will be amazed to see if things will be organised so well!

 

No voice left, The Lakes

 

Great concert, well organised and of course Robbie, the showman, was at his best…..

 

Well done to the organisers for getting it right!

 

Robbie Fan, Dubai

 

Organisation: nine out of ten. No hassle, great stadium. Robbie: five out of ten. Have seen the Boss and Tina, that’s ten out of ten! Improvement: Two or three more encores would have made the money’s worth, and please hire a new sound manager!

 

TW, Dubai

 

To the 30 per cent of actual Robbie fans at Nad Al Sheeba on Friday night I would like to say ‘good job buddies’ you set the place on fire.

 

To the remaining corpses and ‘rubber neckers’ who were only there to see what all the fuss was about, please in future do not turn up to a twenty-five thousand capacity venue if you do not, in any way, like to be touched, prodded or bumped into in the presence of one of the greatest live acts of our time.

 

If you simply hire out ‘Robbie Williams: What We Did Last Summer, Live at Knebworth’ you may then watch the show in peace. I do hope the taxi queue was not too long for you and you were home by 12 with your cocoa in hand.

 

No doubt you are already penning your own letter with the disgust of how you could not leave half way through ‘Angels’ fast enough as there were annoying fans stood in the way! Ggrrrrrr

 

Stoke and Oatcakes, COUNTRY

 

What a great concert, great entertainer and a great pay back to those who tried to make a profit by grabbing tickets. Having missed out on the sale of tickets, we just took a chance and turned up on the night.

 

Waited until just before the concert started and, hey presto, four tickets were had for 50 dirhams each ! I am not sure what gave me the biggest smile, the concert or the victory over the shameless people’s attempt at making a quick buck.

 

KD, Dubai

 

As expected all the hype over the Robbie Williams concert was undeserving.

 

The singer did not perform on the night, and lots of fans will have gone home disappointed like me.Yes he has an average voice, but he was incapable of rousing the excitable crowd.

 

His voice and performance on the night was quite frankly average.

 

G Barlow, Dubai :o

I’ve just returned from the Robbie Williams concert and am glad I took the hint from the steady stream of people seen leaving long before the end of the gig.

 

The only saving grace was that I was home by 11pm. I have never witnessed a more lacklustre performance from a so-called premier act. Mr Williams seemed to be under the impression that all he needed to do was turn up and the expats of Dubai would be eternally grateful.

 

Hopefully he won’t be asked back.

 

Colin, Umm Suqeim

 

 

:cry: :cry: :cry:

Edited by jupiter9

Some more letters to 7 Days. Looks like this one could run and run.

 

 

 

 

 

i have to laugh, after 12 years in Dubai and very much invloved with the entertainment industry from DJ, to the Dubai 7’s, Channel 4 when it first started and involved with production with a major production company in Dubai, i am very amused by the ‘new’ people to Dubai who have dismissed the Robbie concert so easily. I travelled from Oman to watch Robbie and found the gig great, yes i may not be a fan but i respected everything about the gig, from stage, sound, lighting, organisation, the crew and to his actual (very good) performance i thought it was the best event so far in Dubai. Dubai is a growing city and still cannot match the rest of the world yet, but what it offers on a weekly basis is entertainment and for those of you too cynical to accpet how hard it is and how costly to put on an event of this scale i say, visit Oman, beautiful as it is and ask when and if ever an event as big as this would ever happen, be grateful for the great city you guys live in and if you don’t want to go to these sort of events then wind yer neck in and go back home because these events are unique. I still live in a world of tribute bands, long live the sponsors and guys with the courage to put these events on because 14 years ago it was very, very different.

 

Well done Robbie, well done crowd and well done Dubai.

 

Andy Pyzer (formerly of Dubai)

 

by Clive Temple on April 23rd, 2006 at 8:14 am

 

I thought the whole evening was well organised and I hope the promoters made enough money to do another gig of this size again next year.

The only tiny downside was the two able grown men who took ten minutes of persuading to give up their space on the disabled/childrens platform to the little girl in the Port Vale shirt. I hope you two are ashamed of yourselves…and I hope you’re still washing my ’spilt’ drink out of your hair.

 

by Karen Hernandez on April 23rd, 2006 at 10:39 am

 

ATTENTION CLIVE TEMPLE:

 

For your info, NO persuasion happened that night. The woman just came SHOUTING at us, when there are plenty of other grown ups occupying the center of the stage, when we were just sitting at the edge! How rude of her! Can’t she speak calmly? Is she your relative?

 

What’s worse was that we were about to leave the area when I saw the poor child, then the woman and ofcourse YOU, acted like you owned the stage and threw us out, and admittingly proud about throwing water at us.

 

Frankly, there was no 10-minutes persuasion that happened. The woman and YOU were never calm in the beginning, as she was SHOUTING AND SHOUTING AND SHOUTING!

 

I thought you people are known to be polite and nice, how wrong of me to believe.

 

And don’t meddle into situations you don’t know about. You were a few meters from the area. How easy of you to judge other people!

 

Good things happen to good people - and this won’t apply to you!

 

You don’t know how people get affected with your WORDS and ACTIONS. Please be careful next time. Not all the people are as thick skinned as you.

 

by Kate Alam on April 23rd, 2006 at 10:47 am

 

Well TW and Colin ( and G Barlow whos comments we would expect) 23/04/06, the only thing lacklustre or 5 out of 10 about Robbie was the fact it attracted old foggies like you to attend. You obviously went for the event and not because you are fans. You are also more interested in getting home to beddies on time rather relaxing and getting into the music. Anyone who thinks “the boss†and “Tina†are a 10 out 10 gig above Robbie are in a generational time warp. You couldn’t pay me to either go to their gigs or buy their music. Robbie is a completely different type of entertainer. It was great to see a family atmosphere but please leave the grandpas at home next time. My advice to you both is next time he comes don’t buy tickets and leave them for fans.

 

Finally, did anyone else have the same problem. I bought Grandstand A tickets on the internet from the official site. When I went to pick them up at the gate it transpired that I had been undercharged for these tickets so they wanted to give me standing cheaper tickets. Finally, after some argument and pointing out to them that I should not be penalised for their mistake they gave me the Grandstand A tickets. However, they had been trying to extort another 200 AEDs for their mistake.

 

by Clive Temple on April 23rd, 2006 at 11:47 am

 

Karen,

 

I’m glad the letter struck a chord and I’ll leave the little girl or her mother to reply.

 

by Jason Marks on April 23rd, 2006 at 12:44 pm

 

Robbie Williams exploded onto the stage and the crowd went wild - for over two hours we witnessed a natural entertainer that thrilled us with his songs, tickled us with his humour and wooed us with his charm.

 

Come back soon Robbie

 

ps- fantastic Robbie site at www.purerobbie.com check it out.

 

by J VV on April 23rd, 2006 at 1:52 pm

 

Of all the concerts I’ve attended in Dubai, this is definitely the first where the VIP’s got real VIP treatment. Sorry, not trying to be arrogant, as I know that I am not VIP….just had the opportunity to ride along a great opportunity.

 

We stood in line for only a few minutes, wristbands were handed out in no time, then escorted up to the lovely corporate boxes where the bubbly flowed from 5-12…nice… canapés from sushi to duck all night…all of this overlooking 30,000 people and certainly the most impressive stage I’ve ever seen.

 

Now that is what i call VIP treatment!!!

 

If I were asked to pay the same price I did for my ticket again for this type of event I’d do it in a blink….I would have been a happy camper even if Robbie did not show up!!!

 

All respect to the man though, it was great…. Wow

 

 

 

 

Well those last lot of letters are much more like it. I was a bit down in the mouth after reading what Mr Barlow has to say. Thank goodness he just seems like a cranky old **** who wouldn't know how to enjoy anything

 

WELL DONE ROB - you have completed your first leg of the tour in brilliant fashion. We are all so proud of you :cheer:

 

 

More letters from 7 Days. This could run for months and months... :rolleyes:

 

 

Praise and criticism of Robbie Williams gig

 

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Published on: Monday, 24th April, 2006

 

 

A sincere and huge congratulations to one and all that was associated with the Robbie Williams concert. Finally, an event where everything was well organised.

 

In particular, I would like to pay tribute to the local security company that was used for the event, Emirates International Security Services (EISS). What a pleasure to attend a concert where there was enough security that knew what they are doing.

 

Every aspect of our experience was a very memorable one. Well done to the promoter, Midas Promotions. Why can’t every promoter / concert use this security companies services to run all concerts in Dubai properly?

 

Shane Sainsbury, COUNTRY

 

I would like to pass on my thanks to G Barlow and Colin for confirming my belief that Dubai has a higher ratio of whining gits per head of population than any other country in the world.

 

The concert was without a doubt the best organised I have attended in Dubai in many years, and Robbie Williams performance was excellent. May your glasses continue to be half empty and your miserable lives unhappy.

 

Amused, Mirdiff

 

I suppose, out of the twenty-five thousand or so people, these few negative letters aren’t too bad!

 

The rest of us fans left, are the only people who still enjoy watching LIVE music… where the artist will not sound exactly the same as his/her CD, and I would like to offer some of you the opportunity to stand up in front of that many people, and see if you receive the same effect this man did on that night!

 

Close to my home, well organised, reasonably priced, great show. Thanks Robbie, please come back again.

 

Matt, Mirdiff

 

I thought the organisation of the Robbie Williams concert was very good (apart from the limited small exits - what would have happened if there was an emergency and we all needed to get out quickly?).

 

The sign posting was very clear and the sound after the first few songs was fantastic. My only grumble is with the man himself. I have seen Mr Williams play live many times before in small and large gigs, and I have to agree with Colin from Umm Suqiem, that Robbie thought just being there on stage would be more than enough to keep us happy.

 

He seemed agitated that he had to work for his money, bored in places and dribbled on about rubbish half the time, slagging other artists off - this, Mr Williams, is not top quality entertainment!

 

And what’s with the papers stating it was amazing - doesnt your boss pay you to look objectively at things, rather than jump on the band wagon? Heaven forbid you might have your own unique opinion to share!

 

Disappointed, The Greens

 

Is there any chance that G Barlow and Colin who wrote in yesterday slagging off the Robbie Williams concert could be involved in the organisation of the J-Lo concert? They must be.

 

Robbie Williams was awesome, and I am not his biggest fan. The crowd went wild, dancing and singing and everybody I have spoken to had a tremendous night…Jo-Lo’s concert has had to be put back due to poor ticket sales.

 

The Robbie Williams concert wasn’t even formerly advertised. All I have seen for the last few weeks are page after page of advertising in newspapers and magazines for J-Lo, and she still can’t sell enough tickets!

 

Andy, Dubai

 

Personally I thought the Robbie Williams concert was an excellent evenings entertainment. The only negative for me and my friends was the number of people in the audiance who smoked throughout the concert.

 

We were in the standing area and were surrounded by smokers, even after having moved twice. To me this demonstrates that a large percentage of smokers are just plain.

 

selfish, and never miss an opportunity to light up irrespective of other people.or the effect their smoke might have on others. For many years I have been tolerant of smokers.

 

But after three hours of breathing second hand smoke, leaving the concert smelling like an old ashtray I now support a total ban on smoking in all public places.

 

Smelly, Dubai

 

Robbie didn’t sell out. With all the hype on hype I thought I would write to you regarding the Robbie Williams concert - Robbie is a great performer but to see thousands of unsold tickets on the night of what must be one of his smallest concerts of the year was disappointing - this must have been the first concert he has not sold out in years!

 

At Nad Al Sheba lots of fans were moved from the standing area to the empty seating sections but there was still people jumping the fences to get a better standing postiion -where was the security staff? Did anyone else think the sound was poor? I’ll go to see Robbie back in UK.

 

Debbie, Dubai

 

 

 

God they like a good moan in Dubai, don't they? :lol:

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