The day Meat Loaf played for Newcastle United
Rock star Meat Loaf, whose death was announced this morning at the age of 74, proved he was a handy goalie as well as a singer on one trip to Newcastle.
The rocker, who was known for hits like Bat Out of Hell and I Would Do Anything for Love, was no stranger to the Toon, performing in the city many times over his career.
In October 2007, when he cut a Newcastle Arena gig short due to throat problems, he set out to make it up to fans and the city.
He agreed to take part in a penalty shoot-out at St James' Park, where highest bidders at a charity auction were allowed to try their luck from the spot with Meat Loaf between the posts in June 2008.
"It sounds fun for the people kicking the ball at me,” laughed Meat Loaf when he agreed to go in goal.
“I’m not so sure how much fun that is for me. I’ll just wing it."
Dressed in a Newcastle United shirt with his name on and goalie gloves, Meat Loaf played his part, saving several kicks, including attempts from Magpies legend Peter Beardsley.At first, he told bidders they would get free tickets to a Meat Loaf concert in Yorkshire if they managed to get the ball past him. He gave them all tickets anyway, whether they scored or not.
Meat Loaf also matched the £5,000 raised by the auction. The cash went to two cancer charities, Maggie's Cancer Care Centre and the Toma Fund, which was taking donations to fund a teenage cancer unit.He added: “My mother died when I was 17 years old from cancer, at the age of 54, which is very young, and my grandfather died from leukaemia, so cancers run in my family.”The singer revealed his fury that fans who went to his cut-short concert were not automatically refunded after he played for 70 minutes before walking off stage.A higher than required dose of steroids used to treat his throat problem meant he could not continue performing.
He said: “That was a really horrible moment. When they wouldn’t give the refunds to the people, that just compounded the situation beyond my wildest imagination."