Coldplay celebrated the end of their record-breaking 10-show run at Wembley Stadium with a dazzling, multi-coloured night of musical magic.
Playing hits from every era of their 25-year career, they filled the stadium with light, and even indulged themselves with a giddy version of Whitney Houston’s I Wanna Dance With Somebody. “This is the song I warm up to in the car park,” joked singer Chris Martin.
The show closed the latest leg of their Music Of The Spheres Tour, which has circled the world four times since 2022. It is now the highest-attended tour in history, with more than 12m tickets sold.
On stage, Martin promised it would resume “somewhere in southern Africa in about 18 months”.
Friday’s show was held almost a week late, after a strike by London transport workers forced the band to postpone.
“I know it caused a lot of inconvenience for a lot of you,” Martin told the crowd. “In return we’re going to play a show fifteen times better than any show we’ve ever played before. That’s the pledge.”
They might not have achieved that goal – Coldplay have already set themselves a ridiculously high bar – but this was stadium stagecraft at its absolute finest.That’s a contrast to most stadium concerts, where the message is more like: “Look upon me, puny mortals, and be astonished by my divine talents and somewhat improbable physique.”
Coldplay don’t bother with any of that. Martin’s bandmates Guy Berryman, Will Chamberlain and Jonny Buckland would rather that no-one noticed them at all. Instead, they’d rather make a fuss ovIn London, that means Venezuela’s Simón Bolívar Orchestra – a group of youth players who’ve supported the band at all of their Wembley dates. They come out twice, for Viva La Vida and feelslikeimfallinginlove, twirling their cellos and jumping up and down as they provide the stirring string accompaniment.
