You wouldn't normally think there was any connection between Ayrshire and mega-rock band, The WHO, but you'd be wrong. Thanks to Prestwick Airport, Ayrshire has had occasional brushes with rock greatness -- it was the only place in the UK that Elvis Presley ever visited -- and this is how Ayrshire came into contact with the madcap drummer of what was then unquestionably one of the biggest rock bands in the World.
The story begins when The WHO played two sell-out gigs at the Glasgow Apollo in 1975. Keen to return south, they headed for Glasgow Airport only to find that it was fog-bound. Somebody then had the bright idea of heading for Prestwick, famous for being a relatively fog-free airport. But there too, it wasn't to be. The fog had reached Prestwick, and The WHO were forced to cool their heels.
On the coach down to Prestwick, Moon had been slugging from a bottle of brandy and may have been missing his "meds," because, once faced by the bad news of yet more fog, he started acting up in typical Keith Moon style.
As reported by a 2018 story in the Glasgow Herald:
He spent a night in the cells at Ayr, which he later told reporters had been the best night's sleep he had in ages, although he woke once during the night to ask the station officer to order fresh lobster from the nearest hotel.
The next morning, October 18th, 1975, he was in Ayr Sherriff Court, dressed in a fur coat and a T-shirt with the logo "The Greatest Rock n' Roll Band in the World" and an apologetic grin on his face.
Sheriff Hugh Hunter told him that his conduct had been a "disgrace" and fined him the princely sum of £60 for "breach of the peace" and "malicious damage" to a computer. A mere slap on the wrist, but it's not everyday that Ayrshire entertains rock royalty.
The story begins when The WHO played two sell-out gigs at the Glasgow Apollo in 1975. Keen to return south, they headed for Glasgow Airport only to find that it was fog-bound. Somebody then had the bright idea of heading for Prestwick, famous for being a relatively fog-free airport. But there too, it wasn't to be. The fog had reached Prestwick, and The WHO were forced to cool their heels.
On the coach down to Prestwick, Moon had been slugging from a bottle of brandy and may have been missing his "meds," because, once faced by the bad news of yet more fog, he started acting up in typical Keith Moon style.
As reported by a 2018 story in the Glasgow Herald:
...Moon verbally abused the British Airways counter staff and punched over a computer terminal. Despite a warning from police, Moon continued to act up, commandeering a wheelchair and careering down a flight of stairs. When he started waving a gun (imitation variety) the police arrested him.
He spent a night in the cells at Ayr, which he later told reporters had been the best night's sleep he had in ages, although he woke once during the night to ask the station officer to order fresh lobster from the nearest hotel.
The next morning, October 18th, 1975, he was in Ayr Sherriff Court, dressed in a fur coat and a T-shirt with the logo "The Greatest Rock n' Roll Band in the World" and an apologetic grin on his face.
Sheriff Hugh Hunter told him that his conduct had been a "disgrace" and fined him the princely sum of £60 for "breach of the peace" and "malicious damage" to a computer. A mere slap on the wrist, but it's not everyday that Ayrshire entertains rock royalty.
No comments:
Post a Comment