U2 star Bono makes surprise visit to Chorlton bookshop

Rock singer Bono made a surprise visit to a Chorlton bookshop - with the staff believing it was a hoax.

The U2 star went with an entourage and bought 30 books at Chorlton Bookshop on Saturday, 19 November, afternoon.

Staff received a call the day before the visit asking if Bono could come down, and initially thought it was a hoax. They say they were "sworn to secrecy" before his visit.

The 62-year-old chatted to staff and fans and had a cup of tea and a slice of parkin baked by bookseller Bev.

Bono was in town as part of his book tour, where he is promoting his new autobiography Surrender: 40 Songs One Story.

He spoke and performed to thousands of fans at Manchester Apollo hours after the visit to South Manchester.

Bookseller Jo Legerton, from Timperley, said: "We were sworn to secrecy about it all. My colleague Deb got a phone call on the Friday afternoon asking if Bono could come and we immediately assumed it was a hoax.

"But they then sent us follow up emails and told us you must not tell anybody.

"Security came in Saturday morning and checked out where they were going to go, they decided they would come in through the back, and it was very clandestine at first.

"We just thought he was going to stay in the office and sign books and if one or two people popped in we'd do that.

"But when he arrived they said 'oh no he's going to come in the shop'."He was there for around 45 minutes. Before long around 30-40 people got wind of it, and he was great he walked around and talked to everybody."

Jo said she even tried to recruit the Grammy Award-winning Irish singer.

"We did a picture behind the counter and I offered him a job but he didn't want one," she said.

As word got out about Bono's visit, fans flocked to the bookshop. Staff said the phone lines are now ringing non-stop, with fans desperate to get hold of a signed copy of his book.

But copies have quickly sold-out at the Greater Manchester store.

Staff were told by Bono's publicist that he has been choosing independent bookshops to visit in every city that he has been heading to on his book tour.

"He googled bookshops in Manchester and really liked the look of ours and said 'I'm going there'", Jo said.

"We feel really special. People had been waiting at Waterstones for an hour, as fans presumed it would be there he would go."

"He was just lovely, everyone who was with him as lovely as well, just the nicest people. It's absolutely amazing that he chose us, this just doesn't happen in Chorlton does it?"

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