How do you solve a problem like an England crowd after a World Cup defeat? Quite easily actually, if you're Paul Heaton.
The singer who first made his name as the frontman of The Housemartins and later as one half of Beautiful South was a woman down. On Friday it was revealed his singing partner Jacqui Abbott had to bow out of several of their shows, including Manchester. She had an issue with her throat - but this didn't stop him - and his band - from delivering a set peppered with kitchen sink drama, escapism and tunes with the energy and passion of a footie anthem.
You might recall that when Paul celebrated his 60th birthday back in May he stuck his own cash behind the bar of 60 pubs across the UK - with two of Manchester's six tabs awarded to his locals - The Orion on Burton Road and Albert Wilsons on Wilmslow Road in Withington. We knew he was sound then, but when he heard that England would be facing France in the quarter finals on the same day as his Manchester gig, he pulled out all the stops to accommodate everyone coming to the show.
