by Mark Booth

After my experience the previous night I just could not wait for the next gig. We arrived at the stadium at around 8am to ensure we got in the front pen as we did the previous night. We found that we were first in the queue and settled down for a long, long wait as the gates did not open until 4pm! All of us were looking forward to the gig due to the anticipation of hearing something out of the ordinary as it was Edge's birthday.
The gates opened at 4pm and another sprint across the pitch ensured that we got in to the pen in exactly the same spot as the previous night - next to the B stage. Utah Saints were again the first support but tonight PJ Harvey had been replaced with The Stereo MC's. Both put on a good set and before we knew it 9pm had arrived and Bono was appearing once again while the band belted out Zoo Station.  
The crowd seemed even more hyped up tonight than the previous night. The set did not see any change with the first seven songs. Then, Numb came before Stay and we were treated to a very rare live performance of Zooropa in between. This song was dropped soon after as the band did not feel that it fitted in with the set. I think it was excellent and thank them for letting me experience one of those songs live that looks like it will never be repeated.  
Rain came after Angel of Harlem, (which again saw the crowd singing louder than Bono), and then the moment we had been waiting for. After the satellite link up Bono sang Happy Birthday to the Edge and made him sing an unrehearsed version of Lost Highway. Most of the crowd felt sorry for him as this was obviously Bono putting him on the spot as he struggled to complete two verses! This part of the show got the loudest ovation of the gig which will more have made up for Edge's embarrassment.  
When Love Comes To Town got its first play on this tour and sounded amazing. The rest of the set was unchanged however With or Without you was missed from the encore.
My feeling after this gig? A major disappointment to see I Will Follow and With Or Without You dropped. However, Lost Highway, Zooropa and an amazing atmosphere more than made up for this.  
I had one more show of this tour left at Leeds in 6 days time and I knew I would struggle to wait that long. Little did I know that not only would the gig be amazing, I was about to experience U2's biggest gig in the UK since Live Aid.

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