Fans sing for joy after snaring U2 tickets

Irishman Hugh McEnaney belts out the U2 song Pride as he celebrates getting tickets to the band's NZ show. Picture / Dean Purcell

Hugh McEnaney was so happy to score tickets to U2's second concert, he launched into song.

The Irishman's impromptu rendition of Pride (In The Name of Love) outside Auckland record store Real Groovy yesterday morning drew only half-mumbled sing-alongs, but the display highlighted the joy felt by the lucky hundreds who got tickets.

A thousand people had queued outside the Queen St store; the line curling around the block and spilling out onto the footpath of a neighbouring building. Some had been waiting - tent in tow - since Saturday afternoon for ticket sales to begin at 9am.

Many were anxious to avoid a repeat of last Monday, when the first concert sold out in just 90 minutes.

But despite a halved quota of four per person, the 38,000 tickets only lasted 10 minutes more.

By 10.40am, it was all over. Any lingering hope of a third concert was quickly dashed by promoters, who said the band's scheduling prevented this.

The tickets were well worth the wait for Mr McEnaney, who'd only been in the country three days, and his friend of 24 hours, Maran Greenwood. They had met in Whangarei through mutual friends on Sunday, and he had decided to accompany her to Auckland.

When they joined the line on Sunday at 11.30pm, the queue had wrapped around the building.

"We took the seat from the back of the car to sit on."

The fabled luck of the Irish may have been at play for another visitor.

Noreen O'Brien shared her joy with other lucky punters, jumping, screaming and laughing on the footpath.

Here on holiday, she will return to Ireland and bring three other friends to the March concert.

"We didn't get the St Patrick's Day one but maybe someone would like to swap. Because I am Irish they might swap with me for the day before. I'll plead my case."

Rebecca Kruse missed out, but her despair lasted only moments when a good samaritan gave her a ticket.

"I'm overwhelmed, that's so lovely - he could have gone on Trade Me and sold it for hundreds and hundreds of dollars and made a massive profit but he just decided to give it away."

She was ecstatic - "even if I'm going by myself".

There was no good samaritan for twice denied Terry Kidston, but the IT technician planned to try for U2's Australian venues.

Meanwhile, ex-Takapuna Grammar seventh formers Louis Helliker-Hales, 17, Joss Piper-Jarrett, 17, and Steven Clouston, 18, still nattily dressed after joining the line straight from their farewell dinner the night before, were happy to settle for seven tickets, despite setting out for 12.

But the sweetest thing is obtaining the last two tickets, as Josh Leys discovered. He'd only joined the queue at 7am yesterday, and was lucky enough to get tickets for himself and girlfriend Karina.

Five minutes later, he was approached by Bo Bo Buchanan, offering to buy his two tickets for $500. Turned down, Buchanan raised his offer in increments to $700, but Leys held firm.

A despondent Buchanan - in hoping he'd change his mind - asked him, "do you want my number?" then addressed the gathered crowd: "Does anyone want my number?"

There were no takers, but activity was brisk on auction website Trade Me yesterday.