Tickets for the London 2012 Olympic Games went on sale this week.
But will you be splashing out on the spectacular?
For one thing, you’ll need a Visa card to pay – as they won’t accept anything else online.
Secondly, the money will go out of your bank account before you know what you’ve been allocated, so if you’re trying to second-guess what might be popular and over-book as an insurance policy, it may and up being rather costly.
And if you get too many tickets, you can’t get a refund. You can sell them on in a specially-licensed website.
Getting there may be tricky – and if you want to stay over, the hotels are already getting booked up.
But it will be the experience of a lifetime and with so many tickets on sale for a choice of dates over more than two weeks – some events free and others from £20 – you’d be kicking yourself if you didn’t take a trip down the A1 for the experience.
Six million tickets went on sale with 500 days to go.
I feel as though I’d be doing my children a disservice if I didn’t at least try to get some.
They’d love to see Becky Adlington swim to gold, because their swimming teacher coached her when she was starting out. Or perhaps Lincolnshire Olympian Kate Haywood in the pool going for a gong in the breaststroke.
That would be between £50 and £450 per seat, depending on where you sit and the session runs from 7.30pm to 9.30pm.
The opening ceremony would be the memory of a lifetime, even if it really will be the austerity games, done on a budget.
We might be able to get some of the 2.5 million tickets which are on sale for the minimum £20.
But they’re probably for early morning shooting or fencing, or something that wouldn’t mean that much to the under-eights.
If we wanted to stay for the day that might involve three sessions though, with the later ones coming in at £70 or more. So we could be looking at about £500 for a day out, excluding travel, food and an overnight stay.
It is true that many of us are worried for our jobs nowadays but this WILL be the memory of a lifetime.
As the credit card that isn’t Visa would say: “Priceless”.
Tuesday, March 22
Five minutes with Graham Gouldman, 10cc
Art rock band 10cc visit The Embassy Centre in Skegness on Friday, March 25. Founder member Graham Gouldman spoke to Patrick Astill ...
Were you propelled to stardom with 10cc?
10cc just kind of evolved. We were like the house band at the studio, working on different projects.
When the studio wasn’t working we wrote and performed together. We recorded a B side, Donna, and that was that!
I have Deceptive Bends and Bloody Tourists at home – do you have a favourite project?
The most pleasurable album for me was Sheet Music. I’m particularly proud of Deceptive Bends, though.
It was the first that Eric [Stewart] and I did after Kevin [Godley] and Lol [Creme] left the band. We kept the name on and there was expectancy. Half the team had left.
So did you fear for the future after the departure of Godley and Creme?
There was no fear for the future. It was more whether we had the right to keep the name. We had something to prove.
People know you best from the 1970s. Do you feel as though you are trapped in time?
There’s no point in looking back. We want to create something different.
At the beginning you have your influences, then you hear things and you want to bring those styles into your work. I don’t think anyone cares about persona with 10cc. People care about the music.
That’s held us in good stead.
How easy is it to work with the band you’ve got touring? A couple of them have been with you for many years now.
People should have the best, if it’s possible. Paul Burgess has been with us since 1973 and Rick Fenn since 1976, so it has not been thrown together just for the tour.
Mike Stevens, who’s on keyboards, is the musical director for Take That and as soon as our British tour is finished, he’s going to get into that.
Mick Wilson is a fantastic singer and multi-tasks. People always say we’re a fantastic unit.
You started off your career as a writer in the 1960s, penning hits for the Yardbirds, the Hollies, Herman’s Hermits and Jeff Beck. What work have you got on after the tour?
There’s still writing. I’m working on a solo album as various other projects, some of which will reach fruition and some won’t. There’s pleasure in the attempt, and that’s always good.
Were you propelled to stardom with 10cc?
10cc just kind of evolved. We were like the house band at the studio, working on different projects.
When the studio wasn’t working we wrote and performed together. We recorded a B side, Donna, and that was that!
I have Deceptive Bends and Bloody Tourists at home – do you have a favourite project?
The most pleasurable album for me was Sheet Music. I’m particularly proud of Deceptive Bends, though.
It was the first that Eric [Stewart] and I did after Kevin [Godley] and Lol [Creme] left the band. We kept the name on and there was expectancy. Half the team had left.
So did you fear for the future after the departure of Godley and Creme?
There was no fear for the future. It was more whether we had the right to keep the name. We had something to prove.
People know you best from the 1970s. Do you feel as though you are trapped in time?
There’s no point in looking back. We want to create something different.
At the beginning you have your influences, then you hear things and you want to bring those styles into your work. I don’t think anyone cares about persona with 10cc. People care about the music.
That’s held us in good stead.
How easy is it to work with the band you’ve got touring? A couple of them have been with you for many years now.
People should have the best, if it’s possible. Paul Burgess has been with us since 1973 and Rick Fenn since 1976, so it has not been thrown together just for the tour.
Mike Stevens, who’s on keyboards, is the musical director for Take That and as soon as our British tour is finished, he’s going to get into that.
Mick Wilson is a fantastic singer and multi-tasks. People always say we’re a fantastic unit.
You started off your career as a writer in the 1960s, penning hits for the Yardbirds, the Hollies, Herman’s Hermits and Jeff Beck. What work have you got on after the tour?
There’s still writing. I’m working on a solo album as various other projects, some of which will reach fruition and some won’t. There’s pleasure in the attempt, and that’s always good.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)