Strong winds force Sir Elton John to halt his concert in Blackpool

The inaugural concert by Sir Elton John at a new venue in Blackpool was cut short by strong winds.

Nearly two hours into his set on Saturday night, Sir Elton told a disappointed crowd of almost 11,000 that on police advice he had been told to stop playing.

The Blackpool Tower Headland outdoor arena lies in the shadow of the Lancashire resort’s tower. Rain poured for most of the day at the resort, but relented as the concert began.

The temporary stage, though, was buffeted with high winds shortly before Sir Elton called time. “I have been told there is some really bad weather on the way,” he said. The police say you need to leave right now in an orderly fashion. I’m sorry, but I don’t want anyone to be hurt. I’ll make it up to you.”

The largely middle-aged crowd filed away from their seats without much fuss and some were happy to buy programmes and T-shirts on their way out.

Earlier he played a rousing set of all his hits and opened appropriately with Saturday Night’s Alright (For Fighting).

The concert was the first in a series of summer events at the venue, but conditions were breezy throughout on The Promenade.