The 2008 Replicas Tour in 10 Riveting Chapters:
One man's mission to see the last 10 shows of the UK Replicas Tour
Chapter 4
Norwich
My shiny chariot arrived in Manchester, the 9:24 to Norwich. There was some rail construction on the weekend. This means my trip would stop in Ely to catch a "rail replacement bus", basically a bus that would take me the rest of the way to Norwich.
The sun shone almost too brightly as I grasped at that sometimes fickle mistress called 'sleep'. I awoke just before Ely in time to collect my gear and catch the bus. Ely was a pretty little town from my view, but Norwich beckoned as did the bus. The railroad apologetically let people on the bus without even checking tickets. The driver lifted heavy pieces of luggage to the back storage area for us.
I found a great seat in the front to watch the road only to sleep the entire way. I had just sat down when I saw Jeanette board the bus as well. I would see Jeanette at the front of the queues each night and we were becoming a familiar sight to one another. We shouted "NUUUUUMAN" as she found a seat.
Outside a couple hugged and kissed goodbye and he found a seat next to mine. The bus pulled away as they frantically waved to each other as she choked back tears.
From scattered bouts of consciousness I could see the ride to Norwich was mostly on a lonely 2-lane road. My last 4 trips around the UK were by coach bus and I recalled them fondly. This was a local bus and stopped in a few tiny towns to pick up more passengers. Each time we made a stop, I woke up and asked my seat mate if it was Norwich. I pointed out a rainbow to him at the back of a farmer's field.
We disembarked in Norwich at 2 pm and I walked into the train station to look for city maps. I knew my bed and breakfast was up the hill somewhere behind the train station. With my luggage in tow I started up the hill to find my abode. On the way there was a city bus stop where Jeanette asked where I was staying. She found a great place right across from the UEA venue at the college four miles away where Gary would play. It was more expensive but it would be a short walk for her after the show. I liked my location as it included breakfast and the train station would be nearby the next morning, and a cab to the show if I needed one.
A couple of blocks up the hill I saw a row of B&Bs as it began to rain. The Abbey Hotel had been recommended to me, but its reputation meant it had a 'No Vacancy' sign on the door. On the corner I saw the Marlborough House with a 'Vacancy' sign out front. I sauntered inside and got a great deal on a private room with shared bath. It had started to seriously rain outside. The newspapers I saw were talking about the "1 Billion Pound Storm". And indeed, the satellite radar showed what looked like a hurricane bearing down on the UK. Despite its appearance, it wasn't a hurricane, but it was packing some serious wind and flood potential. The forecast had called for the monster storm to hit the UK Midlands the hardest.
I showered, assembled the Machman look and ripped out the tiny Norwich map of my Lonely Planet book to bring with me on my walk to the distant UEA. The map was a little misleading. It appeared to be only a two mile walk. Luckily the rain coaxed me into walking to the train station instead to score a taxi to the show. As the ride continued I noted how far away it was to the Numan show. The driver said that I looked like I was in a band. I get that a lot.
This older cabbie talked about his son the entire trip. It seems the son lacked direction and drive but had incredible musical talent. This dad believed in his son, and was doing everything he could to jumpstart his son's chosen career in music. It was like I was talking to Gary's dad Tony Webb back in 1977.
The venue was on the UEA Campus around some twists and turns from the main road. Soon I saw a good-sized queue of Numanoids waiting to get inside. Jeanette was once again right up near the front. She was always lively and made those long waits before the show fly by. Also in the queue was Phil who said he really enjoyed the NAGNFC website.
The tour bus was parked just outside the front doors. I got the chance to speak with The Big G once again. Because of the approaching storm, he said they were going to waste no time getting to the next city after the show tonight.
Our group laughed it up with Numanoids around us until the doors opened. As folks streamed inside to get a good spot, I went to the counter to pick up my ticket. The girl there looked at me incredulously and wondered why I didn't already have my ticket. I told her the UEA doesn't seem to mail their tickets overseas. Not too many international concertgoers at the Norwich UEA I guessed. Luckily my name was on file and I was handed a ticket for Gary's performance.
I ran inside securing a great spot front and center behind those in the front row. You could tell the crowd was there to party that night. I loved Gary's college gigs on this tour and the energy he got from the relatively young crowds there. Before long, opening band Rubiks took to the stage. There were two guys right ahead of me flanked by their girlfriends. The girls and I laughed at the guys as they were getting just a little too into the Rubiks performance bopping right along, banging their heads and generally having a blast. They also coined a cool phrase during the Rubiks performance that I used for the rest of the tour: "RUUUUUUBIKS!"
The place was absolutely packed and heaving by the time Gary took the stage. There was a great vibe in the crowd and Gary put on a memorable performance. Gary created many fans among the younger demographic that night. I always made sure to take several pictures of Gary playing the keyboards. We were closer to the stage than most other nights so I scored some great shots!
see Gary play We Have A Technical in Norwich!
All too soon, the gig was over. Phil found me in the crowd and we walked outside to the tour bus parked just outside the doors. Before long Rubiks came out to sign autographs. A group of us including Jeanette and Phil kept each other laughing for the next couple of hours which kept us warm. It was seriously cold and windy outside thanks to the approaching storm. Steve from the excellent website The Touring Principle came up to say hello.
I described to Phil my failed attempts to purchase the Are 'Friends' Electric picture disc in Manchester. He kindly promised that I would have one waiting for me at my house when I got back, and it was! Thanks so much, Phil!
It was getting bitingly cold and I was hankering for a pizza. I thought about ordering one for our group when The Big G came out to make an announcement. Gary would be signing items for us but that we would have to give our stuff for The Big G to take inside the bus to get signed. I totally thought it was a joke when suddenly people started to give their things to Big G for Gary to autograph.
When Big G came back with our stuff, there was no way to ascertain whose things were whose, but somehow everything worked out, except for the pitch dark parking lot making Big G's task difficult. I broke out the spotlight on my phone to aid the process as Big G handed back Numanoids' freshly signed belongings.
People started to break away. I told them I'd see everyone again for The Pleasure Principle Tour. I had seen the occasional taxi by the UEA but they had long stopped showing up now two hours after the show. Not even sure which way it was back to town, I started the long walk back to town. Luckily I had the cursory map of Norwich I had ripped out of my guide book earlier.
The UEA was well off the map but I knew that somehow I had to find Earlham Road to get me back to the city. It was Sunday night and there were no buses to town, especially now it was after midnight. I met up with a couple students on campus who pointed me in the right direction. They wanted to give me a ride but their friends were going the opposite way.
I found a road going the way they mentioned and steeled myself for a very long walk. There were no houses, no shops, barely any cars and no people. Just a lone sidewalk underneath some very bright seaside stars. I didn't mind walking. On a tour like this, one barely gets to see any of the beautiful towns they are visiting. This was finally my chance to see the sights, such as they were here in the middle of the night.
The guy at my B&B said there was barely any inner city crime in Norwich as there is no inner city, just a rural community once England's most important town outside of London. Edward III encouraged Flemish weavers to settle here in the 14th century. The subsequent wool industry fattened up the town for the next four centuries.
I finally approached a large roundabout. By car it is easy to see the signs but on foot you have to walk the entire roundabout to see the signage pointing you in the right direction. Luckily Earlham Road was off this roundabout. Things became a little more civilized as I walked long stretches of quiet brick houses behind evenly spaced stands of short but very creepy looking leafless trees. Their limbs protruded almost uniformly each time in very spooky fashion for as long as I could see.
I had walked for at least a couple of miles when something imposing and monstrous appeared from the spacious darkness. It was the St. John's Cathedral. This structure went on and on both on the ground and into the sky. Its size and history bore down on me as it took ages just to walk past. To think this wasn't even the city's largest cathedral!
Okay, I was now on my map, but the quickest route to town and my B&B would take me again off the map to the south for a time. I found Chapel Field North Road and would need to locate Koblenz Avenue and turn left to the Marlborough House. I was at the mercy of pure luck as I traversed what my guide book called "its steep zigzagging warren of historic streets".
Buildings became taller and it looked like I was downtown. I walked past another campus closer into town. I still came across barely a soul though. In town I walked by an amazing site. Modern glass buildings and shopping centres were built inside the ancient remains of the low walls of an enormous castle which once stood here. These castle walls must have stretched for at least half a mile. It must have been a scary and imposing fortress at one time. Today all you would need to penetrate its mighty walls is your Mark & Spencer's department store credit card and shop the day away.
I had now walked over three miles and the road ahead of me became very lonely and quiet once more. I wondered if I was going the right way. My shortcut took me off the map to the south. There was absolutely nothing ahead of me so I turned left down a hill where I knew the town would be. Maybe there would be better signage to the train station down there.
As I started down the hill I saw the first car for some time approach. It was a group of four kids who shouted at me as they rode past. Behind me from up the hill I heard them turn their car around toward me and start to yell. This is never a good sign, I thought to myself. They rode down the hill in my direction as I kept walking. I heard something being thrown into the bushes ahead of me as they drove off into the night.
But there was light at the end of the tunnel. At the bottom of the hill there appeared signs to the train station and I followed them to my warm bed. I had searched in vain this whole way for even a convenience store to buy some snacks for the room, but to no avail. Oh well, at least there would be a free breakfast in five hours at the B&B. The tracks of the train station appeared beside me and I knew I was going the right way. It was harder than I thought to have found my B&B in the darkness of a strange town, and it was adventurous to say the least. I rewarded myself with a 10" pizza from a shop near the train station and brought it back to my room where I threw off my shoes and watched my pick of two TV channels.
The Marlborough House was a clean, friendly place at first glance, but appearances can be deceiving as I found out the next morning.