June 24^th- Wake up pretty early get some breakfast. Recently I reconnected through Facebook with an old old workmate from my days as a sales rep for Cadbury when I lived in England. It had been over 13 years since I saw Lee last when I left the company to emigrate. He saw on Facebook that I was on tour in the UK and was in Sheffield today. I got a call to the room that he stopped by the hotel to see me so I headed down to the lobby to meet him. I was great to see Lee again and we caught up over coffee and tea on what had been happening in our lives. He'd been promoted and had a family, I moved away and became a rock photographer...... a huge contrast in lifestyles yet we both still gelled and reminisced about old times. It made me feel great that he took the time to come by and say hi. It's the little things in life like this that really matter more than the material. I intend to stay in touch with Lee, he's a great genuine guy that doesn't change. The hour that we caught up has been a highlight to this trip.

2pm and we're on our way on the bus up the road to sunny Newcastle. As we get further up the A1 it gets darker and more grim. By the time we arrive in Newcastle it's characteristically raining and overcast. Newcastle was one of those places that just made me feel depressed at the mere mention of it's name and time away seems not to have changed that. The venue is kind of dreary and out of date. I'm supposed to do a shoot with Joe and David Coverdale but there's nowhere decent to set up a shoot. Pop in to the Cov's dressing room and we decide to shoot him and Joe in there later on.

Set up a light in DC's dressing room and am offered a nice vintage whisky whilst setting up and as Lord Coverdale gets ready. Joe comes on in and the banter and innuendo between the two starts as I begin shooting. It's hilarious and reminds me of a cross between Blackadder and Monty Python, Classic!! The two of them together are like a couple of rude school boys. After I get done with the comic duo Viv Campbell and I find a spot in the stairwells of the building and do a quick shoot with his silver sparkle Gibson guitar. The walls and flooring in the stairwells is a nice vivid blue which makes the pics pop with the ringlight. It's like a bloody rabbit warren backstage and the Def Lep Dressing room, Hospitality and Production are each on a different floor! Ray Charles designed this layout I'm sure, not a whole lot of fun with a bunch of heavy photo gear up and down the stairs.

Each show we've done the Black Stone Cherry boys have gained momentum and added hundreds of new fans. They're on fire! Whitesnake go on after and hit it hard and nail it spot on! By the time they're off the stage the venue is a blistering steam bath of humidity and frothy fans. They're wound up and primed for the Lepps and as the intro music and video rolls they start going wild. Start off the first couple of songs down in the pit and it's so hot that it feels like I'm back in Texas. Run around the back of the stage and up on to the drum riser next to Rick where he plays up to the camera for me. Stand right behind him and get some great wide angle shots looking out into the audience. It's a full house and looks great but the place is so hot. Joe says later that it was the hottest gig he's played ever which is something considering they've played just about everywhere. Great crowd tonight and the loyal superfans are on the front row again showing their support. They keep stopping me to talk about my work. Great to be appreciated and told good things about what I do. Seems that the fold out Def Leppard tour book/poster is going down well with the fans as I am asked to sign several of them tonight. Nice to have fans too I guess.

After the show the band splits up between the two tour buses. I'm on board with Phil and his girlfriend and Joe and his wife Kristine. Poor Kristine is having trouble getting in and out of the bunk and I get some pics of her comical struggles whilst Joe is in the one above me. I tell him "No Spooning" tonight and he just smiles and winks. I'm actually ready to get my head down and rest as the last several days have caught up with me and I'm drained. A long drive down the road to London from Newcastle........ About seven hours.. I think our bus driver bought a sack of coal in Newcastle and decided to store in it my mattress, wonderful!