Hey, rude! While Sir Paul McCartney will play his first-ever concerts in Newcastle and Gold Coast later this year, the Beatles legend has left Perth off the Australian leg of his six-city Got Back tour.
The snubbing comes despite more than 22,000 fans turning out when arguably the planet’s greatest living songwriter kicked off his previous visit Down Under with an epic performance at nib Stadium, now HBF Park, on December 2, 2017.
While Australian promoters Frontier Touring would not comment, PerthNow understands that the decision to skip Perth is due to scheduling and the fact McCartney wants to play two cities he’s never performed in before.
The Got Back tour starts with a relatively intimate arena gig on October 18 at the Adelaide Entertainment Centre — a return to the city where more than 350,000 people lined the streets on the Beatles’ first visit to this country in 1964.
The 81-year-old Liverpudlian then plays stadium shows in Melbourne, Newcastle, Sydney, Brisbane and Gold Coast between October 21 and November 4. Tickets go on sale from August 11.
“I’ve got so many amazing memories of my time in Australia over the years,” McCartney said in the press release announcing the shows with his accomplished long-time band.
“Our last trip was so much fun.
“Each show was a party, so we know this is going to be incredibly special.”
McCartney’s first tour following the COVID-19 pandemic, Got Back saw the superstar perform 16 concerts in the US last year, before two gigs in the UK — the second being the headline slot at the 2022 Glastonbury Festival.
As with his previous visit on the One on One tour, the shows featured songs from the Beatles, Wings and his solo catalogue.
McCartney’s decision to forgo Perth follows American pop icon Taylor Swift restricting her upcoming Australian leg of The Eras Tour to dates in only Melbourne and Sydney.
Meanwhile Tourism WA backing means English titans Coldplay are due to play two exclusive concerts at Optus Stadium in November.