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Amy Winehouse faces a bill for £500,000 and prohibitive insurance costs on future bookings after cancelling last night’s concert and all remaining tour dates on doctor’s orders.
Thousands of fans with tickets to see the 24-year-old diva at venues in England, Wales and Ireland were left disappointed by last night’s decision, but her mother spoke of her relief.
“Amy’s got to take the opportunity of getting herself fitter and stronger,” Janis Winehouse said. “She thinks she’s strong but she isn’t. I hope she uses the chance to fully recover. I hope she will take it easy for a while and then get back to writing new material. She has got to get herself clean. It is a matter of her personal survival.”
Fans on their way to last night’s gig at the Bournemouth International Centre were angry at the late-notice cancellation but not surprised.
Jill Thompson, a teacher from Poole, said: “I’m so disappointed. I’ve been looking forward to this concert for weeks. I’m worried about her because she is such a talent at such a young age. She’s a genius really. It’s not enough notice, though, to cancel a concert – only two hours, which wasn’t really adequate because I have already made arrangements.”
Another fan, from Dorchester, who did not wish to be named, said: “The tickets had all sold out really quickly so I bought ours on eBay for £70 each and I doubt I can get a refund. It’s not really a surprise that she has cancelled but I have driven an hour and a half to get here and I don’t think they gave us enough notice.”
Winehouse’s career has soared since her second album, Back to Black, won a Brit award this year. It has sold 3.3 million copies worldwide and is the biggest-selling album of the year in Britain. However, her behaviour has become increasingly erratic and dogged by rumours of drug misuse and marital strife.
She said yesterday that she was unable to perform without her husband, Blake Fielder-Civil, who is in police custody charged with attempting to pervert justice. “I can’t give it my all on stage without my Blake,” she said in a statement. “I’m so sorry but I don’t want to do the shows half-heartedly. I love singing. My husband is everything to me and without him it’s just not the same.”
The 17-date tour had sold out and was expected to gross £1,125,000, but the beehived diva has completed only half of it and was pilloried for a shambolic display at the opening night of the tour in Birmingham. She staggered about the stage, slurred her words and called the audience “mugs”. When sections of the crowd booed, she responded: “To all those booing, just wait till my husband gets out of incarceration. And I mean that.”
Island Records confirmed that gigs in Cardiff, Manchester, London, Belfast and Dublin had been called off.
A statement said: “Amy Winehouse has cancelled all remaining live and promotional appearances for the remainder of the year on the instruction of her doctor. The rigours involved in touring and the intense emotional strain that Amy has been under in recent weeks have taken their toll. Amy has been ordered to take complete rest and deal with her health issues. Refunds will be issued from the point of purchase.”
Winehouse cancelled the US leg of her tour in September and wrote off a string of dates in Europe after reports that she was being treated for drug addiction. Last month she was fined after being found with cannabis in a hotel in Bergen, Norway.
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I went to see Kanye West on Tuesday who's mother died 2 weeks ago, he managed to turn up and put on a great show. His mother died about the same time as Amy's husband was put in custody. He's only in prison, not dead. She should get a grip and grow up.
Cate Pearson, Hereford,
to edward from cheltenham - I don't agree with sean from austin, but for you to think that all that comes out of austin is crappy country music only demonstrates your extreme ignorance. don't make ill-informed comments about things you know nothing about. i guarantee the music coming out of texas these days is far better than a lot of the garbage being produced in the UK
ak, london ,
An amazing talent. An amazing person. God bless you Amy-Jade.
Andy, Amherst, USA/NH
About time! I saw Amy at Hammersmith on Saturday and she was shambolic, a complete waste of money and time. She is a fantastic singer and when I saw her earlier this year it was a great performance. I just wished they had cancelled on Saturday and I didn't have to waste £100 on travel and concert tickets!
Simone, UK,
I understand that she was under pressure but guess what!! SHE CHOSE TO BE IN THAT POSITION AS I CHOSE TO GO TO HER CONCERT TONIGHT IN CARDIFF AND GUESS WHAT? AFTER ARRIVING THERE I WAS TOLD THAT SHE CANCELLED THE CONCERT! I BET SHE WOULDNT LIKE IT IF HER FANS WOULD CANCEL THEIR ATTENDANCE IN HER NEXT CONCERT!
Elena, Cardiff,
I Was meant to be at the bournemouth gig last night i travelled 1hr 30mins to get there and i was sooo excited when i got there and saw the sign saying it was cancelled i was soooooo dissapointed and upset but now i realise it is better taht she cancelled because nopw she can get better and hopefully get off the drugs shes such an amazing singer it would be a waste of talent if she ended up dying!
Stacey, Somerset, England
The pressure she is under.....now that is a cop out.
Pressure is having to feed your kids, put a roof over there head and give them a chance of a better future on a painfully low salary.
Amy has a gift and she is absuing it. She is a drug addict in denial and the future will not go very far if she carries on.
Get a grip of yourself girl and stop letting yourself and others down all the time.
James, London,
Just got home after a three hundred mile round trip, wasted time petrol, hotel costs etc.....
Thats another 2 fans that now couldn't give a rats bum what she does now..
£150 reimbursment please?
Chris Lye, Paignton, England
Sean Johnson, Austin, Tx - compared to the formulaic cowboy tripe that is the main staple of your town, Amy Winehouse is Mozart and Puccini rolled into one.
Edward, CHELTENHAM,
So what does this person actually do again apart from take drugs???
Mike Jones, Farnborough, Hampshire
Frankly, the arrogance of this woman's self-destruction is incredibly boring. It's getting to the point where people are going to start to hope she just finish herself off and spare us the ridiculous show any longer. That's more tragic than one can imagine -- and it's all her own doing. Enough already.
Kevin Ivers, Sao Paulo, Brazil
I feel sorry for Amy.she has a great talent.but leads a very sad life.she obviously has major problems.and she needs to address.im sure she knows she has let down ALL her fans but most of all HERSELF.eating disorder,drink drugs all show that she isnt a happy chap!most of her songs put her self down.but the one thing shes got going for her is this AMAZING voice.she needs to get rid of all her demonds.and get back on track.im sure true fans will aventually forgive and forget.but this can happen again for her own sake!the only other issue is how will fans get money back ?as most of the tickets are snapped up by people wanting to sell them on.and alot of people like myself had to buy them through these greedy people getting rich off unforunate people like me and many others!
red, cumbria, uk
Is there any mother out there who would be happy for her daughter to be going out with Amy's husband? He is a mothers worst nightmare and beyond.
I feel for her family, who seem to be distraught at what is happening to her and are trying to help her. Now her husband is in jail until January (and hopefully beyond) and is out of Amy's way, i pray that her family can reach her.
She is a talented person who obviously has an addictive personality and it brings shame on her record/management company who are allowing her to continue to spiral downwards into depravity and depression, while only thinking of the money. She needs help!
kim, london,
To all those upset by the cancellations- count your blessings. I went to the Hammersmith Apollo on Saturday night and it was the most uncomfortable time I've ever had at a gig - 90 minutes late, staggering, singing like a drunk in a pub who only knows the words of the chorus, constantly leaving stage - her band clearly didn't have a clue what she was planning next. She needs to sort herself out one way or the other - her physical and emotional decline needs to stop being a public spectacle.
Jonathan, London,
Like Doherty I hadn't heard of them until they started taking smack. I wonder who and why they are being promoted like this. What an advertising Coo.
MarK , Gateshead,
She has more important issues to deal with than a career right now. I fear she may well lose the battle as well because to top it all she has money, at least for some time.
john, london, uk
Has anybody considered the remote possibility that being caned out of her head helps her to so gracefully combine various elements that make her music so unique?
And that maybe the constant attention and the need to deliver may make her more vulnerable to drug abuse - trying to get away, making more of that fine music.
Maybe a break will help her - although the main problem is the lack of support needed to improve her self-esteem.With her hubby in jail, her parents more interested in lamenting in the media - not to mention her in-laws.
Maybe we shouldn't judge her that hard - yes, she is a drug addict; yes, she is unreliable - but is it really the right thing to pile more pressure on her?
Just look other 'celebrities', who just wanted out - Kate Middleton as a recent example, even though she doesn't have any distinguishing qualities herself - she is only famous cause she has a prominent boyfriend.
Let's relax and hope Amy gets better and continues to spoil us with her music
BingoBongo, London,
This woman is grossly over rated and stardom and everything else has gone straight to her head. Get a life Amy.
Ronald Tarquin, London, England
Typical................. another notorious nobody - I just hope all those people who have purchased tickets for the concerts will be refunded.
Too many "celebrities" (notorious nobodies) treat their fans and supporters with total disregard.
Like Jacob of Manchester, I am sick and tired of seeing these parasites splashed across the media. The sooner they crawl back under the rock that he mentions the better.
Greg, Queensland, Australia
Hearing about Amy Winehouses drugs/marriage/life problems is almost as boring as hearing about islam/terror alerts/Gordon Brown
Sort it out woman
Andrew Kinghan, London, London
i would say she has a great voice and i myself think she is agreat singer.keep knocking um out.AMY
GARY, SHEFFIELD, UK
I think Amy Winehouse has an amazing voice and great artistic skills. Nevertheless I don't think she can be considered a "genius": she is a 24Yrs old singer and an interesting songwriter, but she has still to prove she can write and sing at the same level in the future, furthermore her songs are a bit too "old fashioned" to be considered as a great innovation in pop music.
Music history is plenty of artists (and expecially from the british pop scene, to be honest) which are reputated as"genius" for a couple years long and then completely disappear; only lasting in that position for years can prove they really are.
ric, cremona, italy
This woman is a waste of space, and in spite of what all those allegedly "in the know" claim, she's also hugely overrated and hyped. The fact that she can be so dependent on such a loser of a husband is pathetic, and the sooner she's not in our press or on our airwaves, the better.
Alex, London, UK
Wake up woman, you've got a lot of talent. If you insist on throwing your potentially fantastic career and life away, you'll look back in 10 years time (probably on the dole in a council flat) and tell yourself what a fool you were.
Steve, Warwick,
She knew she was going on tour, she knew she had a problem, she thought she knew best.
So now so many people have been let down by her irresposibility, brought on by being a drug addled waste of space.
No doubt all the press will be going "poor amy", but at the end of the day, there is no difference between her and someone who burgles your house to pay for their next fix.
Oi! The Spotters, St Albans, England
An absolute disgrace.
there are plenty of Jazz musicians out there that would welcome income. What does she do ? Throw it up her nose.
Hope she never gets the chance to come back
And " she cant do it onstage without her blake "???
Doesnt she mean her pusher ?
If she cant do it onstage without her coke fix. then she shouldnt be onstage at all.
Give your money to Jazz musicians that deserve it.
Andy P, hereford,
Amy Winehouse might think she's in the pits right now but she is very very lucky to be able to "cancel" what is in effect her job, still have money to live on, and win awards for an album written out of rebellion. Most of us don't have that luxury, and some people could easily have bigger problems than she does. I personally doubt it, but maybe this experience will make her stronger. Certainly her paying fans should hope so.
Jenby , Manchester, UK ,
I have to concur with Phil in Texas. This all smacks of yet another publicity stunt, albeit a very expensive one, to 'create the legend' that will, heopefully, generate more profits. The 'artist' is secondary to the public's perception, and there's little of interest in a middle-class girl with pretensions to rock superstardom. I have little time for her antics, wayward behaviour, lifestyle choices and endless dialogues of rehab and abuse. Most addicts in the real world don't have the back up systems and care systems to which she is priveleged and I find the whole performance rather tired and tiring. Not only that, but with cd sales in free fall, live performances are becoming the bread and butter income for artists and she should be very careful not to alienate that very lucrative income stream. Better yet, put down the mike and settle into the life of obscurity to which she might be better suited!
Kos, Bilbao,
Brilliant voice,but it's that classic rock and roll life style that will be her downfall,drugs booze and uncaring people around her,
Amy do yourself a favour,drop the drugs and get some help from decent people who care!
Craig Castledine, derby, United Kingdom
What a disgusting looking creature! The mainstream media should hang their heads in shame, promoting and publishing stories about the likes of her and Pete Docherty. They are hardly good role models for anyone. Let them both crawl back under the rock from where they came...
Jacob Miller, Manchester, England
She's an example of talentless corporate garbage and if the people are stupid enough to buy into it, they deserve to be disappointed in droves and lose all their cash in the meantime. Who cares who Amy Whinehouse was, she never really was. She canceled her part of a show here and we didn't bat an eye. There is a lot of other talent that does want the job.
Sean Johnson, Austin, Texas
This woman is a mess, and needs to sort herself out. Fans are happy to lose out once or twice, but there's a limit to forbearance, and one day she may wake up to find that the world has moved on.
Doug, Basel, Switzerland
I don't think that Amy made any decision, I think the promoters and her label made a decision.
Phil, Austin, TX