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The Herald Scotland
01-07-2025
- Entertainment
- The Herald Scotland
‘Scream for me, Glasgow' - Age has not wearied Iron Maiden
Age has not wearied Iron Maiden. At 8.50pm on Monday evening the band roared onto the stage at Glasgow's OVO Hydro and played hard and fast for two hours solid. No let-ups, no pauses for breath. 'This band is 50 years old,' front man Bruce Dickinson, sporting a man bun and looking more and more like the actor Kenneth Cranham's younger brother, reminded us. 'We plan to go on for at least another 50 years.' Probably from the grave, he added, in a nod to the fact that most of them are now in their late sixties. But in Glasgow this evening they had the energy of the first flush of youth. Playing a setlist that drew on the band's early years, this was Maiden in excelsis: Steve Harris 'machine-gunned' the audience with his bass at regular intervals, Dave Murray's fingers danced up and down the fretboard of his guitar like a surgeon in a hurry, Janick Gers -, when he wasn't planting his leg on top of the highest speaker he could reach (and for a 68-year-old man that was pretty high) - hopped and bounced and duckwalked around the stage looking like a slightly demented overgrown leprechaun, whilst Dickinson threw his mic stand into the air in between dressing up in cloaks and masks, acting out lyrics, playing carnival barker and, inevitably, demanding that the audience, 'scream for me, Glasgow.' Adrian Smith and new boy drummer Simon Dawson played their part too, alongside dry ice and fireworks and video-game quality visuals of ghosts and fighter pilots and band mascot Eddie (who invariably also appeared on stage a couple of times, 10ft tall and wielding an axe and a sabre respectively). Read More: In short, the whole evening was the manifestation of a 12-year-old boy's id in song and visuals. That was always one of the appeals of Iron Maiden. They displayed none of the leery cartoon sexism of some of their heavy metal contemporaries. Instead, their songs and performances ransack the toybox. The result is endearing and hugely popular. This sold-out Hydro gig came after the band had played to 75,000 in the London Stadium. A reminder that there is a corner of British pop that will be forever metal. That corner can be overlooked. Even written out of the story. When pop culture remembers the 1980s - when Maiden were at their peak - it's always deely-boppers and Duran Duran and Princess Di that get mentioned. It's never snakebite and black and headbanging. But here in the audience were all those long-haired kids from back then now grown up, the hair gone, still ready to rock. And they came with their wives and their sons and their granddaughters. This was an all-ages crowd. It seems appropriate as Iron Maiden are a band who have never grown up themselves. Yes, they can shift gears, as on the extended eerie instrumental coda in the middle of Rime of the Ancient Mariner; an ominous moment of musical tension that would grace the soundtrack of any horror movie. But for the most part they're happiest gunning through tracks like Run to the Hills and Aces High. The result is both exhilarating and, maybe, a little bit exhausting. But that might just be sixty something me talking. And for a band who constantly sing about death and destruction, Iron Maiden are perversely full of life. Tonight, Glasgow belonged to them.
Yahoo
14-03-2025
- Entertainment
- Yahoo
Iron Maiden 50th Anniversary Documentary To Feature Rare Footage, New Animated Sequences with Mascot Eddie
Universal Pictures Content Group announced on Friday (March 14) that it has begun production on a documentary chronicling heavy metal icons Iron Maiden's 50-year career. The currently untitled film is slated for release internationally in the fall, with U.S. theatrical distribution details to be confirmed later. According to a release, the long-awaited doc is an 'emotive journey through Iron Maiden's 50 Year history told from the perspective of both the band and some of their most devoted followers – from longstanding superfans to established names from the worlds of film and music such as Javier Bardem, Lars Ulrich and Gene Simmons.' More from Billboard Ye Slams Kendrick Lamar for Being on Playboi Carti's New Album: 'I Don't Like [His] Music' Watch Gene Simmons Hilariously Take Over a Los Angeles Weather Report & Deliver a Chaotic Forecast Jay Rock Arrested For Felony Gun Possession in Los Angeles In addition, the doc is slated to feature exclusive interviews with key band members and the final interview with original vocalist, Paul Di'Anno, who died in October 2024 at 66 from a tear in the sac around his heart. In addition to rare archival footage of the group, the doc will also include all-new animated sequences with Maiden's fan-favorite ghoulish grin zombie mascot Eddie, who has appeared on all their album covers. 'We're proud Universal Pictures Content Group has chosen to share the unique story of Iron Maiden with the world,' said Maiden manager Rod Smallwood in a statement about the film that will be directed by Malcolm Venville (Churchill At War). 'We have given them unrestricted access to the band, our fans and musical peers. We trust that they will excite not only music fans but also anyone who loves a story of an underdog beating the odds to become and remain one of Britain's biggest musical exports since our first record released 45 years ago.' The movie description continues, 'The film offers a unique visual experience that highlights Iron Maiden's widespread impact and the strong connection between the band and their truly global army of fans. The film also explores the cultural movement Iron Maiden has helped shape and their enduring legacy in both music and fan culture, challenging common perceptions of the wider significance of rock music and heavy metal.' Iron Maiden formed in East London in 1975 and helped spearhead a resurgent wave of British metal on their way to selling more than 100 million records worldwide thanks to such hard-charging hit singles as 'Run to the Hills,' 'The Number of the Beast,' 'Aces High,' 'Flight of Icarus,' 'The Trooper' and 'Hallowed Be Thy Name.' 'We're thrilled Iron Maiden have entrusted us to bring their legacy to cinemas around the world,' said Universal Pictures Content group executive vice president Helen Parker. 'Working closely with the band and their passionate fans has been an unrivalled experience allowing us to tell their story in a unique way and celebrate their incomparable fearless creativity in their 50th anniversary year.' The film will be produced by Dominic Freeman (Spirits in the Forest – a Depeche Mode Film), with Parker serving as executive producer. Iron Maiden will launch their 50th anniversary Run For Your Lives tour in Budapest on May 27, with 32 other dates currently scheduled throughout Europe through August 2. Best of Billboard Chart Rewind: In 1989, New Kids on the Block Were 'Hangin' Tough' at No. 1 Janet Jackson's Biggest Billboard Hot 100 Hits H.E.R. & Chris Brown 'Come Through' to No. 1 on Adult R&B Airplay Chart
CBS News
04-03-2025
- Business
- CBS News
Can teaching employees poker skills help a businesses thrive?
London — The high-stakes game of poker is making its way into the workplace, thanks to one passionate card player determined to share her skills to help employees master strategic thinking on the job. When it comes to poker, Jo Living knows her way around the table. She grew up around cards, as both her parents were bridge teachers. She told CBS News she could shuffle at age five. But she never picked up a hand to play poker until she was in her 30's, and she never really fell in love with the game until a trip to Morocco nearly 10 years ago. "I was pregnant and sat in a smoky Moroccan casino at four in the morning, and I'd actually just beaten 200 men to win my first international poker tournament," she told CBS News as she sat at a poker table that she uses to teach the skills of the game to others. Her big win in Africa gave her a big idea. Living started hosting home games and teaching the often male-dominated game to her female friends, and said she "quickly saw them growing in confidence, closing client deals and landing promotions." Shuffle forward a few years, and Living founded her company, Aces High. She runs poker workshops across the U.K., aimed at empowering employees — and especially women — to raise their game across a wide range of businesses. "People think it's about bluff and bravado, but actually it's a lot of female skills," she said. "There's so many skills from the poker table that are transferable to the boardroom table, from negotiation, communication, deep listening." Stepping Stone Media was one of the latest companies to get an Aces High makeover, with poker tables rolled into its London office, complete with cards, dealers and chips for betting. "I mean, it feels good, I wouldn't mind having a poker table in more often to be honest," the company's managing director David Mynard told CBS News. Mynard said he's all in, if it will help his employees play their best hand at work. "I really love the idea of taking the game of poker and thinking about how that can translate, how we can learn about ourselves and hopefully develop our own skills of communication and reading other people," he told CBS News. More than a dozen employees sat around the poker tables, some new to the game, others with experience, as Living took them through exercises in decision making, risk taking and reevaluating decisions as they played. Head dealer Jimi Sotimehin, who's dealt the World Series of Poker, says he loves bringing the game to the workplace. "I have got the best seat in the house, I never lose!," he jokes. At Aces High events, there's no cash at stake. The chips are made of chocolate. Living says it's all about betting on yourself... no matter what kind of hand you're dealt.
