If this is the End of the World: Bring it on!

On Thursday 6th of December, I went to see The War of the Worlds at London's Wembley Arena. I have always argued to lovers of music, that it is impossible to claim to be so, if you have not at least listened to Jeff Wayne's two disc epic of The War of the Worlds. It's huge orchestra and band collaboration is an example of Prog Rock storytelling at its ultimate best.

It was introduced to me just as I was reaching musical puberty; when I shrugged off the shackles of The Fast Food Rockers and Bob the Builder singles, and discovered how awesome music could be. Music has made me feel many emotions, and can have me cry, smile and make me nervous of my surroundings. Jeff Wayne's War of the Worlds is the only musical adventure that has me feeling all three in one song. It is great at telling the audience when people are being killed by heat rays, when the protagonist is looking for his darling wife, and also when the Martians have been defeated by bacteria. THAT is why it stands at the pinnacle of musical excellence.

So when it was announced last year that Jeff Wayne was to tour again with his adaptation of the H.G. Wells story (The 'H' stands for Herbert. Hehehe), I was very excited and talked about it constantly for nine months before, finally, someone buckled and gave me the money to buy the tickets. Don't feel too sorry for them though, because it was the same person who introduced me to the album all those years ago; they've only themselves to blame.

From then onwards I was ecstatic. I watched the calendar as months turned into weeks and weeks into days. Then, I watched the clock as days turned into hours, and hours into minutes, until Jeff Wayne finally walked on stage, playfully smiling and waving, before taking his place on the planet Jupiter to conduct his masterpiece from. Then the audience heard those opening notes - dun dun duuuuun - and the crowd cheered.

I have watched the previous live tour on DVD (brought for me last year as consolation for not being able to see this live show), and I saw how amazing it looked. Now, to say the new tour is massively different would be a lie, but it has been done better and on a greater scale. This time we precede the albums start with the astronomer amusingly discovering the green flares from Mars with his wife, as well as taking a trip to Mars to gain an understanding as to why they need to do this. It is important to note at this point just how brilliant the CGI is for this tour. We see Martian landscapes, as well as the aliens in their physical form, and it sends shivers down the spine as you feel genuinely scared.

The music was absolutely amazing live, and as I heard those few opening notes, I cried. Not just a little bit, I cried proper tears. The emotion of finally seeing something live that you feel so passionate about is just too much, especially when it is also the first time you have seen an orchestra performing live. I got myself together and spent the whole two hours with an open mouth as I sat in disbelief at just how good it was.

The performances by all were rather exceptional too. Marti Pellow takes on the sung thoughts of the Journalist, who had one of the smallest roles of the show. This was a shame, as having seen him live not long ago, I know how great he is in musical theatre, but what he done was great. Ricky Wilson played the role of Artillery Man wonderfully, with him looking great with a beard and acted a lot better than my expectations of him; the only downfall for me was that he failed to hit shrieking high notes we're used to. Jason Donovan wasn't bad either (even if seeing him looking rough state was pleasing to my eye). He took the role of Nathaniel, the Pastor, and done that role justice as he battled his mental torment. His wife, Beth, was played wonderfully by the wonderful Kerry Ellis, who looked and sounded amazing. Then the Voice of Humanity was taken on rather well by Will Stapleton, from Jet Black fame. However, his performance is still not one that will stay with me.

Then there was Liam Neeson (who yet again loses a member of his family in his role as the Journalist; just like every other role he's ever done). Due to him being more famous that the other cast members (Yes, even more famous than Jason Donovan), he was not ever expected to tour with everyone else. Instead, he is shown at his desk narrating the role which was originally done by Richard Burton. Of course, he will never overshadow that voice that is now synonymous with War of the Worlds, but it was done very well. His on stage interactions with cast members are beautifully done as he appears on a screen as a 3D hologram.

One needs to also commend Jeff Wayne on his performance. He conducted the show beautifully, and whenever you started watching him, you could not help but smile as he leaped around his little podium playfully as he swayed his arms about. His little dancing is one thing that will stay with me.

There are lots of little touches to look out for during the show, which make it an experience of a lifetime, such as millions of leaves falling throughout the arena during the famous Forever Autumn song. This creates the illusion of being deep a forest, especially with the CGI visuals.

The one stand-out thing from the entire show is the large three-legged Martian fighting machine, which is lowered from the ceiling and stands on the stand over the orchestra. Those who have seen the previous tour will know this is not a new idea, but it comes with an amazing new twist which was a surprise to every single person in audience, causing the entire audience to flinch and shriek. This is as well as the 'heat ray' moving across the audience, in line with the on screen visuals (the CGI heat ray gun ended up showing off however, and took to performing trick shots).

The fighting machine, and stage, had brilliant Pyrotechnics which had it shooting out flames with a loud bang which in turn set the stage alight. No-one expected it, not even the poor old woman I was sat next to who jumped every time an explosion happened. It was the single greatest part of the show. THAT is what stopped it being just an experience, to being an event which was one of the single greatest experiences in my twenty years on Earth.

As someone who knows the original inside-out, this was something I had to see, and now I have seen it live, I am even more convinced that this is something which is essential for every self-confessed lover of music to listen to. If you have the chance to see it at one of the remaining UK tour days, DO! Even if you have to throw your own grandmother in front of a fire-powered tripod, DO IT!  I mean, let’s be honest: We need to make the most of our life while we still have the chance. The invasion is imminent!

P.S. I have embedded a video on YouTube to show how amazing the Martian fighting machine is. I posted this all over my social networks, and I realised I should have shouted 'Spoiler Alert'. So - SPOILER ALERT!