Led Zeppelin fans resorted to desperate measures on Friday to win a pair of tickets to see the legendary band’s one-off reunion concert in London next month.
The three surviving members of the hard-rocking British group, which disbanded in 1980, are to play together for the first time in 19 years at the O2 Arena on November 26.
More than one million people applied for the 20 000 tickets, which were allocated by ballot, but fans went to bizarre lengths to bag a pair on offer from a British radio station.
Fans had to prove how much they wanted the tickets in order to win.
Ray Daniel, a fireman, turned up at the station studios in London before stripping naked and streaking around the city centre.
Mark Barnham left home at 3am on his wedding anniversary and shaved off his hair in the studio — the first time it had been cut in 21 years.
Another man walked 32km to the studio with Led Zeppelin on his bare chest in permanent marker.
Another listener offered a signed 2006 World Cup England football shirt signed by stars David Beckham and Wayne Rooney, while another volunteered to drive his car off the landmark white cliffs of Dover.
However, Grant Marzell (37) from Hainault in east London beat them all.
He waxed his chest live on air in the studio, a painful experience even when done in private. Worried that it was not enough to win, he promptly got the radio station’s logo tattooed on his arm.
He burst into tears upon winning.
“You don’t know how much this means,” he sobbed.
“I spent over 10 hours trying to register to buy tickets and tried over 1 000 times. I had over 20 mates also trying for me.
“I’ve never seen Led Zeppelin — this is my dream come true.”
Virgin Radio presenter Christian O’Connell said: “It was unbelievable — these people would quite literally sell their own grannies to get their hands on these tickets.”
The concert is a tribute to Ahmet Ertegun, the late founder of the Atlantic Records label, who signed the group in 1968.
Led Zeppelin split following the death of drummer John Bonham, who choked on his own vomit following a drinking binge.
Singer Robert Plant, guitarist Jimmy Page and bassist John Paul Jones, with Bonham’s son Jason on drums, will headline the gig.
Led Zeppelin have sold more than 300-million albums worldwide and in 1995 the group was inducted into the Rock’n’Roll Hall of Fame. — AFP