Justin Bieber has apologised to fans for keeping them waiting with a late-running gig that left some young devotees in tears, while many had to leave just minutes into his performance.
The Canadian pop star said there was “no excuse” for his late arrival and added that he was sorry about those he had upset.
The teenage singer had been playing the first of a run of nights at London’s O2 Arena on Monday night but many of his school-age fans were forced to leaveearly to meet parents or catch trains home.
Some fans said he had not taken to the stage until 10.30pm, but Justin posted a string of messages on Twitter yesterday afternoon saying this had been “exaggerated”. The 19-year-old claimed he was only 40 minutes late.
Fans were left angry and disappointed, with some booing as they awaited his arrival. Many of his young admirers had been expecting to be getting ready to head home by the time he actually took to the stage, with some parents waiting to pick them up confused by what was happening inside the venue. (PA)
Stolen yacht spotted on TV
A 25-metre Californian luxury sailboat owner was shocked on Monday to glimpse his vessel on a television newscast beached and bobbing in the surf 32 kilometres down the Pacific Coast from its Sausalito berth.
Two men and a woman found aboard the yacht and first thought by authorities to be in need of rescue were arrested on suspicion of stealing the vessel after its owner called authorities to report that the yacht he was seeing on TV was his.
Police said the accused thieves took the boat from its Sausalito anchorage north of the Golden Gate Bridge before dawn and sailed the vessel to the seaside town of Pacifica, south of San Francisco, where it washed up on a popular surfing beach. (Reuters)
Close-up view of rare comets
A German travel agency is selling tickets for a flight to give 88 astronomy buffs a close-up view of one of two rare comets expected to pass Earth this year.
Eclipse Travel, based in Bonn, has joined charter agency Air Partner and airline Air Berlin to organise flight AB1000 on March 16 as comet Pan-STARRS passes through the solar system, 100 million miles from Earth.
The last comet to dazzle Earth’s night-time skies was Comet Hale-Bopp, which visited in 1997.
Comet 17P/Holmes made a brief appearance in 2007.
The Boeing 737-700 flight will zig-zag at 11,000 metres altitude for the viewing,with an Air Berlin spokesman saying only 88 of 144 seats on board will be filled to ensure all travellers are close to a window. (Reuters)
British ‘Batman’ identified
It wasn’t Batman, it was a joker. A day after making headlines around the world for handing over a suspect to police dressed as Batman, the identity of Britain’s mysterious caped crusader has been revealed as Stan, a takeaway food delivery man.
Police in Bradford, northern England, were baffled when a portly figure in an ill-fitting Batman costume brought them a 27-year-old man wanted for burglary in the early hours of February 25 before disappearing into the night.
They released closed-circuit television footage of the incident on Monday and after much speculation, the masked hero disclosed his true identity to media yesterday.
He was not Batman’s alter-ego Bruce Wayne, but driver Stan Worby, 39.
Mr Worby said he had not brought the man in as part of any crime-fighting crusade. He had simply agreed to accompany a friend to the police station to offer him moral support, and had decided to wear the Batman suit as a practical joke. (Reuters)