OV9

All very chipper this morning. The show was great. Bruce is amazing. He’s 66 years old and still singing and running around the stage. The whole band very tight. New drummer is good but isn’t quite Nicko. Nobody is.

Great gig, amazing how strong they are as a band nearly 50 years after they formed, just around the corner from this stadium. I am a little gutted about Nicko not being there, although the new drummer is really good and his style suits the band, Nicko genuinely was one of a kind and an insanely gifted drummer, he didn’t play the kit, he inhabited it. But nonetheless it’s a fantastic show and all of costumes, Eddie puppets and backdrops make it a really theatrical performance too.

Head is sore, ears are ringing. I've been watching Maiden live since 1990 and it was by far the lest and loudest ones I've been to. The new drummer plays a lot harder and I think it really suits