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U2 scraps Asia-Pacific shows because of illness
Posted on Thursday, March 09 @ 08:33:49 CET by Macphisto
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ONDON (Reuters) - U2 have postponed the Asia-Pacific leg of their sold-out world tour due to a family illness, their promoter said on Thursday.
"This action is unavoidable due to the illness of an immediate family member of one of the band," tour promoter Arthur Fogel said in a statement on the band's Web site (http://www.u2.com/news).
"Any fan of U2 will realise that this decision has not been taken lightly. We will announce further details as soon as we have them."
The band's publicist in Los Angeles declined to elaborate on the announcement.
U2 was scheduled to begin the Asia-Pacific portion of its "Vertigo" world tour in the New Zealand city of Auckland on March 17, and then play Australia, Japan and Hawaii. In all, it postponed 10 shows.
U2 last played New Zealand 12 years ago and Australia eight years ago. The band has been touring the world in support of its Grammy-winning album "How to Dismantle an Atomic Bomb" since March 2005.
It completed the Latin American leg in Buenos Aires last week. In Brazil when tickets went on sale, people waited for more than 12 hours in queues stretching round city blocks, despite tickets costing about $75, or two-thirds of Brazil's minimum monthly wage.
In Mexico, lead singer Bono and the band played hits including "I Still Haven't Found What I'm Looking For" to 90,000 fans at the capital Mexico City's Azteca Stadium.
The band -- Bono, guitarist the Edge, bass player Adam Clayton and drummer Larry Mullen, Jr. -- received an Amnesty International award for its human rights work before going on stage in Chile.
U2 were among the top three highest earning touring bands in 2005, making close to $140 million from concerts, according to trade publication Pollstar.
U2's tour is promoted by TNA, a unit of Live Nation Inc., the recently spun-off live-entertainment arm of Clear Channel Communications Inc.
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