Reports/Pics/Videos - Olympia, Dublin, Ireland Feb 15 2010

Sorryyyyyyyyyyyyyyyy!

Oh my goodness, I just don't know where to begin with writing this report-

I don't think that I'm going to be able to do it justice!.

Mika Mad is back! So happy to see you here and reporting!

Thanks so much for writing -- glad you got to see Mika (despite

Mr. MM ) and that you're going again to Bristol! Wish I could

join you -- I'd let you stand behind me, any time, o tall one! Hope

you figure out your camera before the next show... can't wait to

read about it then!

Set list was like this:

 

Rain

Big Girl

Stuck in the Middle

Blame it on the Girls

Billy Brown

Any Other World

Blue Eyes

Touches You

I See You

Dr John

Good Gone Girl

Happy Ending

Love Today (with opera intro)

Relax

We Are Golden (remix)

 

***

 

Toy Boy

Grace Kelly

Lollipop

 

OH thank you so much !!

you're NO.1

It's fantastic~~ Always thank you:mf_lustslow:

Hi everyone,

 

I am back from Ireland but pnly another short report again as I have to wake up really early again tomorrow..

 

First of all, the support act is worth mentioning. His name escapes me, although he mentioned it several times, adding the release date of his new album. He was a cool guy singing pretty good songs but most importantly, he had a great sense of humour. He was slightly prejudiced against the 'pop' (Mika) audience he was called to perform to in the last minute (i.e only a couple of hours before the show, apparently) but all was forgiven as he looked like Harry Nilsson. He was well-received, so I hope he will spread the word about Mika's phenomenal audience in the pubs of Dublin

 

Mika's gig was phenomenal as usual:mf_lustslow:

The Belfast gig basically functioned as a dress rehearsal while the Dublin one was already a fully functioning performance (although someone forgot to bring in the toy boy marionette, which Mika was not particularly pleased about, I think.....)

To me the Belfast performance is more memorable but it could be just the circumstances, really, and also the fact that I love his clumsy moments, too.

 

That's it, really... At this point I don't really want to add anything else at except that I realised he is much brighter and sweeter than I ever thought he was - that is another story though.

I almost fell in love with the support act in Dublin I really liked him. His music was okay, but he told the most random things, at least he could make them look very random, and it was really funny.

And I can agree about Belfast. Many people say Dublin was mind blowing and Belfast was like a rehearsal, but for me Belfast was very special too. I love seeing the whole process, the whole journey. And it was really interesting to see what was different in Dublin. Like that huge toy boy, I couldn't see what was the meaning of it in Belfast. And the whole band looked different in Dublin, so much more relaxed, and I could see those little signs Mika gave to Imma and Jimmy for example. Poor David was very nervous in Belfast. But he did well, and I think it was easier for him in Dublin. Awww, I love it how Mika gave this role to David. David is not popular like the other members. I know he makes mistakes sometimes, but he was really good in the beginning part.

But I cannot give a neutral opinion between these two shows, because there are so many other little details I have in mind, like that Belfast was a big surprise to me as a place, I really liked it, and met many interesting people there, like non fans too.

And as Suzie, I love his clumsy moments too. He is so talented, but I love that he is human too. He has many ideas, and he makes them work, it's really interesting to see the whole progress And he is cute when he makes mistakes. Sometimes I think he makes them on purpose, because he knows they are cute

I came back from Dublin a few hours ago....uploading some pics and vids, so I can also share them, even if maybe I'm a bit late

I don't know if I'll be able to write a proper report..but the first thing I want to say is: FOR ME THIS HAS BEEN THE BEST BIRTHDAY EVER!

Awww, I'm so pleased for you and everyone I met in Dublin! You are the girl in the red coat? Or am I confusing people? It was heart warming to see all happy faces after the gig

Edit: Oh, I can see I made mistakes in almost every word... So sorry. I caught a bad flu in ireland, can't think clearly, and obviously there 's some sleep deprivation too.

Mika Mad is back! So happy to see you here and reporting!

 

Thanks so much for writing -- glad you got to see Mika (despite

Mr. MM ) and that you're going again to Bristol! Wish I could

join you -- I'd let you stand behind me, any time, o tall one! Hope

you figure out your camera before the next show... can't wait to

read about it then!

Hi Deb!

You'd be my ideal person to stand behind:roftl:

It really was such a great gig, I can't stop thinking about it. I'll be better with the camera next time -promise!

Hi Deb!

You'd be my ideal person to stand behind:roftl:

It really was such a great gig, I can't stop thinking about it. I'll be better with the camera next time -promise!

Yeh was a great report! so nice to see you back!

Hi Deb!

You'd be my ideal person to stand behind:roftl:

It really was such a great gig, I can't stop thinking about it. I'll be better with the camera next time -promise!

ciao sarah!

i missed your report so i'm going to read it immediately after!

i'm so happy you're still on your mikacloud, time passes, the boy grows up but we still love him apparently!

hope life is being good to you and your dear ones and i hope to see you at one point...so miss the old times!

Goodnight all, flying back to Tokyo in a few hours, if I can find the right thread, I might post more than just

 

In the meantime, let me sum up the meeting Blue Sky experience from my perspective...

MFC meeting Blue Sky:

The band meeting Blue Sky:

Mika meeting Blue Sky:

...and list probably continues....

In the meantime, let me sum up the meeting Blue Sky experience from my perspective...

 

MFC meeting Blue Sky:

 

 

The band meeting Blue Sky:

 

 

Mika meeting Blue Sky:

 

...and list probably continues....

i'm SO looking forward to her report...she teaser!!!

in the meantime, we can say she's golden decadent donut for 2010!!!

In the meantime, let me sum up the meeting Blue Sky experience from my perspective...

 

MFC meeting Blue Sky:

 

 

The band meeting Blue Sky:

 

 

Mika meeting Blue Sky:

 

...and list probably continues....

now i really cant wait to read her report:biggrin2:

who's the squirell in the meeting with the band?

who's the squirell in the meeting with the band?

they all are both the squirrel and the one bowing, I think, but it is not from first hand experience (apart from the vibes I saw coming from the stage), so I am afraid you need to wait for the decandent donut herself to tell it all.

they all are both the squirrel and the one bowing, I think, but it is not from first hand experience (apart from the vibes I saw coming from the stage), so I am afraid you need to wait for the decandent donut herself to tell it all.

so both smilies represent all the band members reaction. this is going to be a very exciting report to read:biggrin2:

Posted? Irish blog

http://swearimnotpaul.blogspot.com/2010/02/setlist-mika-olympia-theatre-dublin-15.html

Nice version of lollypop

Posted? Irish blog

 

http://swearimnotpaul.blogspot.com/2010/02/setlist-mika-olympia-theatre-dublin-15.html

 

Nice version of lollypop

Could it be they used Tiibet´s vid???

Could it be they used Tiibet´s vid???

Yes, it's mine. You can see it in youtube if you double click it.

Actually, Lollipop hasn't been one of my favorites lately. But I think the new intro is absolutely amazing, all five drumming together, love it!

Yes, it's mine. You can see it in youtube if you double click it.

 

Actually, Lollipop hasn't been one of my favorites lately. But I think the new intro is absolutely amazing, all five drumming together, love it!

So you are our famous filmgirl. We tell you all the time how much we adore your vids, we love them. And now the press took notice of the brilliant quality too.

How do you feel today? I hope a bit better than yesterday.

Yes, it's mine. You can see it in youtube if you double click it.

 

Actually, Lollipop hasn't been one of my favorites lately. But I think the new intro is absolutely amazing, all five drumming together, love it!

Thats your video! well done its fabby !

OMG, just seen those head-dresses. F*ck that, I'm not wearing that I can be lollipop girl another time. *Goes off to read whatever Blue Sky has written*

Hi hi

Dublin Report Part One (of three) Sunday and Monday

O.K. this bit isn’t about the gig; it’s the day before, feel free to skip it but some have previously said that they like to read about the whole experience….

My long suffering son was arm-twisted into taking me to the airport and I was there way too early, which gave me time to walk from the wrong terminal to the right one! No check-in just a wait till the gate opened. Mikafish joined me and we were together on the plane. There was a fanfare on landing as Ryanair are proud of their punctuality! We got the cheaper bus into the city (as I’d done my homework) and found Abigail’s, the hostel, easily. Our room looked over the Liffey and although we were way too early they let us leave our bags.

In the evening we went to the hostel where Biekje was staying – almost opposite ours, across the river, and we met up with Taurus Lady, Shazza and Ordinary Girl, Shady and Blue. I cannot imagine what the other hostel guests thought as we took over more and more of the living room.

It is lovely to meet old friends and fantastic to meet new ones. The Irish contingent is fabulous We started saying our goodbyes and goodnights and then walked over the bridge towards Abigail’s. Suddenly we realised that there was a major incident happening. There was a young man on the pavement, propped up against the shop wall. There was a huge puddle of blood on the ground next to him and a policeman was helping him pull off his tee shirt and pack it into his face/neck. Another police van arrived and we walked away. Then I noticed that there was a trail of blood spots on the path and as we followed it we arrived at our hostel door. We heard an ambulance, presumably whizzing him off to hospital. When I looked out of my room I saw the police following the same trail of blood and realised that it only went a few more steps from our door. The police wrapped incident tape from the hostel door to the bus stop and covered the last of the trail with plastic sheeting. They must have been there all night and were still investigating when Rose and Kath came in the morning.

In spite of that I slept like a log in our rather basic room (3 pairs of bunk beds, for two of us) and had a simple breakfast of cereal and toast which I hadn’t realised was included in the (very low) price.

Mikafish then went to the venue to find out if there was a loop for her hearing, but there wasn’t so, because the queue had already started!!!!! she joined it, so she could be at the front. I went along at 10 –ish and didn’t take a number because it seemed crazy – it IS crazy – to queue all day. It was really cold and there were only about 10 people, but as I already knew most of them I ended up hanging around and finally took a number (17). Everyone had got the message about not abusing the numbers by going out of line, so I ended up doing the full day. Crackers! I justified it by saying to myself that I hadn’t anything else to do; everyone I knew was there too. And, as before, the time does go surprisingly quickly when you don’t think about it. The fans with chairs and stools were kind enough to share. Again it was so good to see people who I’ve met before and such a lovely treat to meet new ones. Blue Sky!!!! The events of the day included Andy filming and interviewing the first in line, John coming to inspire volunteers for lollipop and big girls and Mrs P who wasn’t recognised by the girl she spoke to (no names ) also about being a big girl. Apparently Mika went past with a hat on and wasn’t spotted by the queue.

Then I helped with the hot drinks provided by Mika/management. I think that was at about half past two and we bought, what? 25 drinks. So those cold hours were a waste of time. Virtually all the queuers were MFC. It was the first time I’d moved more than a couple of steps and I was all stiffened up. Still the hot food counter had a hot glass front where I warmed my hands.

I finally went back to change at the hostel at 4:30. I climbed under my duvet for 10 minutes to warm up as, for some unknown reason; the cleaner had turned off the radiator in the room AND opened the windows fully! Not impressed! I couldn’t face peeling my clothes off for a shower or to wash my hair. I pulled my black trousers over the ones I’d worn all day and didn’t change into the thinner top I’d brought.

Then back to the queue. The big girls and lollipops were called for earlier than 6 o’clock and they went off backstage. The doors opened on time, the numbers worked – only a few cheeky ones needed to be moved (mostly not MFCers) – and the entry was pretty orderly. Just before we got into the room the first – I don’t know how many – were given wristbands which gave us entry to the very front section. The venue was fabulous, a bit elderly and seedy from outside but glorious inside. I didn’t see a merchandising stall, it was all a bit narrow to set up shop. The room and the seated areas filled up nicely and a lovely man, called Oliver Cole, sang a short support act. He was very personable, with a friendly, Irish-humour way of getting your attention as he introduced his songs.

Part TWO

The show itself was fabulous. I had studiously avoided listening to, reading, or looking at photos from Belfast, so it was all new and wonderful. It was a pared-down version of the full show because of the size and depth of the stage, but it was totally brilliant. Not as over-the-top theatrical as I had feared and although very professional, it still had fun and character; it was Mika. Whoever is involved in the different aspects of the show: costumes, running order, choreography, the set, special effects etc, had done a great job as the sense of Mika came through in everything. It wasn’t Mika doing steps chosen for him; it was the steps Mika does, woven into a performance. Does that make sense? I know Mika has a controlling input into all aspects of the creative process and it really showed.

Every song was great, every movement was and the whole performance was a delight. I can see why he was so pleased with it when he twittered about it. There seemed to me to be lots of eye contact; he used the stage well so I felt everyone in whatever position would have had a good view and he seemed to be a very happy man.

It was a bonus that I knew some of the big girls, but as they were in heads, it wasn’t immediately obvious which was which. They’ll have their own tale to tell.

After the show we slithered out on a thick carpet of golden confetti and went around to the stage door. I never expect him to come after; I don’t get my hopes up as it seems to me that he’s given 100% with the show, anything more is a bonus. I also heard that he didn’t come out after Belfast, so I had low expectations! But, bless him, after a long while, meeting fans inside, he did indeed come out. And he was lovely, not rushing, even posing for photos with people which I thought he had stopped doing. I had brought a tiny gift for him. Most of you may know that I’m a teacher; I didn’t like mentioning it to Mika because he had such a bad experience at school, but I had got a gold star badge for him. It was in a little box and I hadn’t signed up to the latest project so I had it with me. As he got closer, I decided to try to talk to him, not just to give him the box. So I slipped it into my hand and waited. As he was talking to the people in front of me, (Mika Mad?) I tried to take a picture and my camera battery died. Great Blue was next to me and I asked if she’d take a picture if I got to talk to him. And I did, I said that I thought the new show was wonderful and he said that the big show would be even better (I guess the ones on the bigger stages) Then someone asked if he would come back to Dublin, so I thought he would move on and I’d missed my chance. But he stayed where he was so I asked him if he knew I was a teacher (I didn’t get the feeling that he remembered me from previous times, which is a bitter blow, but hey ho!) and I told him I had a gold star for him. he said that he never got gold stars at school, only the nerdy and swotty kids got stars and he was expelled twice. I said he would get stars if he was at my school and I asked him if I could pin it on. He said “go for it!” so I pinned it on his jacket. And Blue got a photo! So yay! And double yay!! He carried on up the line and didn’t rush even when he was next to his car door. He is a lovely man, a terrific performer and a star!

Part Three: Tuesday

As ever, after Mika’s car had driven away, we were reluctant to go our separate ways. We were also dying of thirst after all the singing, talking and excitement. So about 10 of us went to the 24 hour MacDonald’s. We had a lovely time and a sort of debrief about all our different experiences. Luke was so funny. He may as well have been walking on air. I finally went to bed at 2:30 (hope I didn’t disturb my roomies) Kath had gone for her flight when I woke up but Mikafish was still dead to the world so I had that long overdue shower and hairwash then went for breakfast. Finally Mikafish, Rose and Blue joined the land of the living and we had a lingering breakfast. Then MF and I checked out but left our bags in the luggage room, and went back to the Olympia because we were going to take the walking tour around Dublin which started across the road. We noticed that the poster in the booking office window had been changed so I asked if they had it, and guess who has it now? We didn’t even have to fold it to get past the airport nicities of Ryanair! Then we joined the tour and set off with a delightful local young man called Cillian. He showed us good and interesting stuff and took us to good and interesting places. We even crossed O’Connell bridge so I mentioned to incident from Sunday night. He knew about it and said that the young man had died. Which is terrible. Apparently he had been stabbed on the bus and got off outside Abigail’s. The man who did it was also stabbed later that night. All drug related it would seem. So that was all very sad, and a little too close for comfort. Just coming away a few minutes earlier and we’d have seen him before the police arrived!

Anyway, we carried on with the tour, only to lose it (or for Cillian to lose us, I think) in Trinity College, so we went to see ‘the tart with the cart’ (statue of Molly Malone), got our bags, caught the bus to the airport and everything went smoothly. Except that I was rumbled. A neighbour whose children went to the same school as mine was on the flight home and so was treated to a show of fangurly silliness, which shocked them! But they sat with me on the train and shared a taxi home with me, so they mustn’t have thought I was too mad!

Great stuff Ruth .. feel like I was there

Thankyou Freddie.

I'm going to read everyone else's now.

In the meantime, let me sum up the meeting Blue Sky experience from my perspective...

 

MFC meeting Blue Sky:

 

 

The band meeting Blue Sky:

 

 

Mika meeting Blue Sky:

 

...and list probably continues....

Oh yes

Aw Ruth that was a great report. It's not just the Mika bits that hold the magic, it's everything about the whole shebang. I'm keeping a diary this year because I don't want all the gigs to blur into one, and I want record of the little moments that I might otherwise forget, so it's really nice reading about someone else's experience.

And that's so cute that you pinned a gold star to his jacket. Bless him. I wanna see the pic!