July 6, 2008 0:05

Iron Maiden scrum down at Twickenham

Godfathers of British heavy metal bring out enormous 'Eddie' mascot

Photo Gallery: Iron Maiden

Iron Maiden's 'Somewhere Back In Time' tour arrived at London's Twickenham Stadium last night (July 5).

In a nod to the venue - the home of British rugby - lead singer Bruce Dickinson kicked a rugby ball across the stadium as the band launched into set-opener 'Aces High'.

"We're gonna play songs from over the past 25 years tonight," Dickinson yelled to the crowd, adding, "From the looks of it, some of you weren't even born then."

Showcasing a regard for crowd safety in the huge venue, Dickinson changed a line of the first verse of 'Revelations' to, "Can everyone take two steps back please, people at the front are getting crushed."

Later in the set regular crowd-pleaser 'The Number Of The Beast' was accompanied by ten-foot pyro flames released in time with each refrain of, "Six, Six, Six".

The band pulled out all the stops for their encore, with a giant Eddie mascot taking the stage during 'The Clairvoyant' to help provide a climactic finish to the show.

Iron Maiden played:

'Aces High'
'2 Minutes To Midnight'
'Revelations'
'The Trooper'
'Wasted Years'
'The Number Of The Beast'
'Rime Of The Ancient Mariner'
'Powerslave'
'Heaven Can Wait'
'Run To The Hills'
'Fear Of The Dark'
'Iron Maiden'
'Moonchild'
'The Clairvoyant'
'Hallowed Be Thy Name'