A woman is clambering on stage and heading for the microphone; a man is making his way up to sing backup. There’s a look of panic on Glenn Tilbrook’s face, but he was the one to instigate this by inviting an audience member to sing Another Nail in My Heart because his voice was going. It’s a risky move that could have backfired horrendously but the woman pulls it off and knows every word. “Sheffield’s got talent,” Tilbrook exclaims, with great relief, before the guest vocalists are quickly escorted off.
It’s not a dream start for the opening night of their 50th anniversary UK tour, Tilbrook having to interrupt the show because he was struggling with his voice – not that you would have noticed – then having to change the set accordingly and cut it slightly short. “There’s some songs we definitely can’t do now,” he says. However there are a good few they still can, and there had already been plenty before the unexpected pause.
