26 June 2010: Paul McCartney live at the Millennium Stadium, Cardiff

Paul McCartney performed at the Millennium Stadium in Cardiff, Wales, on 26 June 2010.

It was the 11th show of the Up And Coming Tour, which lasted for 38 dates between March 2010 and June 2011.

This was McCartney’s first show in Wales since 1975. Support came from The Joy Formidable, an up-and-coming group from north Wales, and Manic Street Preachers.

The Beatles performed in Wales on 15 occasions, including a six-night residency at the Odeon Cinema in Llandudno in 1963. They also played their last ever UK tour date at Cardiff’s Capitol Cinema on 12 December 1965.

Wings also performed in the city in 1973 and 1975, the last of which was McCartney’s last Welsh concert for 35 years. Cardiff, incidentally, is the birthplace and home of The Beatles Bible website.

I’ve had my eye on it for a long time – since it was built. I’ve often said to my promoter, ‘What about Cardiff and the Millennium Stadium?’ but it’s always been booked. So it’s been a long-term ambition of mine.

Paul McCartney

McCartney began the Millennium Stadium concert with ‘Venus And Mars’/‘Rock Show’, before performing a mixture of Beatles, Wings and solo songs. He appeared in good spirits, thanking the crowd in Welsh (“Shw mae Cymru! Croeso Stadiwm y Mileniwm!”), spoke of how he and George Harrison had hitchhiked to Harlech as teenagers, and jokingly referred to Liverpool as the capital of Wales.

After performing ‘Foxy Lady’ he spoke of his admiration for Jimi Hendrix, and how The Beatles had been flattered when Hendrix performed Sgt Pepper’s title track in concert. He paid tribute to Linda McCartney, George Harrison and John Lennon, and performed ‘Paperback Writer’ using the Epiphone Casino with which he recorded it in 1966.

The setlist contained one extra surprise: an unscheduled performance of ‘Ram On’, in response to a placard request held up by an audience member. McCartney performed the song on George Harrison’s old ukulele prior to playing ‘Something’.

McCartney’s band was Paul ‘Wix’ Wickens (vocals, keyboards, guitar, percussion, harmonica), Brian Ray (vocals, guitar, bass), Rusty Anderson (vocals, guitar), and Abe Laboriel Jr (vocals, drums).

Concert setlist

Up And Coming Tour dates

28 March 2010: Jobing.com Arena, Glendale, USA
30 March 2010: Hollywood Bowl, Los Angeles, USA
31 March 2010: Hollywood Bowl, Los Angeles, USA
3 April 2010: Sun Life Stadium, Miami, USA
5 April 2010: Coliseo de Puerto Rico, San Juan, Puerto Rico
27 May 2010: Foro Sol, Mexico City, Mexico
28 May 2010: Foro Sol, Mexico City, Mexico
12 June 2010: RDS Arena, Dublin, Ireland
13 June 2010: Isle of Wight Festival
20 June 2010: Hampden Park, Glasgow, Scotland
26 June 2010: Millennium Stadium, Cardiff, Wales
27 June 2010: Hard Rock Calling Festival
10 July 2010: AT&T Park, San Francisco, USA
13 July 2010: Rio Tinto Stadium, Salt Lake City, USA
15 July 2010: Pepsi Center, Denver, USA
24 July 2010: Sprint Center, Kansas City, USA
26 July 2010: Bridgestone Arena, Nashville, USA
28 July 2010: Time Warner Cable Arena, Charlotte, USA
8 August 2010: Air Canada Centre, Toronto, Canada
9 August 2010: Air Canada Centre, Toronto, Canada
12 August 2010: Bell Centre, Montreal, Canada
14 August 2010: Wells Fargo Center, Philadelphia, USA
15 August 2010: Wells Fargo Center, Philadelphia, USA
18 August 2010: Consol Energy Center, Pittsburgh, USA
19 August 2010: Consol Energy Center, Pittsburgh, USA
7 November 2010: Estádio Beira Rio, Porto Alegre, Brazil
10 November 2010: Estadio River Plate, Buenos Aires, Argentina
11 November 2010: Estadio River Plate, Buenos Aires, Argentina
21 November 2010: Estádio do Morumbi, São Paulo, Brazil
22 November 2010: Estádio do Morumbi, São Paulo, Brazil
13 December 2010: Apollo Theater, New York City, USA
18 December 2010: Hammersmith Apollo, London, England
20 December 2010: O2 Academy, Liverpool, England
9 May 2011: Estadio Monumental, Lima, Peru
11 May 2011: Estadio Nacional, Santiago, Chile
22 May 2011: Estádio Olímpico João Havelange, Rio de Janeiro, Brazil
23 May 2011: Estádio Olímpico João Havelange, Rio de Janeiro, Brazil
10 June 2011: MGM Grand Garden Arena, Las Vegas, USA

Last updated: 12 February 2024

Also on this day...

Want more? Visit the Beatles history section.

Latest Comments

jenn Saturday 10 July 2010
The moment when he stepped to the side to “drink all this in,” i.e. the atmosphere and fans’ adoration, will go down as one of the coolest things I have ever seen. What a rockstar, what a legend.
It was a night that defies description for me…”a dream opportunity” comes close, “magical” tries, but it’s best to let the memory capture it all.
Loading...