Moody Blues News Archives - 2010



The War of the Worlds reviews, photos & videos
November/December 2010: Jeff Wayne's live concert version of The War of the Worlds opened on November 24 in Amsterdam. Once again, Justin has reprised his role as the Sung Thoughts of the Journalist, with Gordy Marshall handling the drumming duties as part of the Black Smoke Band. The show features some new scenes and improved special effects. Below are some articles and media links.

Flintshire Chronicle review
Manchester review
Evening Times article
Magnumlady's Dublin review
Magnumlady's Dublin photos
Dublin review
Amsterdam photos (scroll down to "foto album")
Daily Mail article
Gordy's tour blog......[1] [2] [3] [4] [5]
London dress rehearsal & Rhydian interview......[1] [2]
Official video blog......[1] [2] [3]

Cardiff clips......[1] [2] [3] [4]
Bournemouth clips......[1] [2] [3] [4] [5]
Nottingham clips......[1]
Dublin clips......[1]
Sheffield clips......[1] [2]
Manchester clips......[1]
Antwerp video clips......[1]
Amsterdam video clips......[1] [2] [3] [4] [5]

Important news for German WOTW customers
October 2010: It has been announced that the German tour dates for The War of the Worlds have been postponed until December 2011. Apparently, the German tour promoters feel that the show should be done in German, with a German cast. Preparations for this program have begun, and hopefully everything will be ready for a December 2011 debut. Current ticket holders may receive a refund or take advantage of special packages being offered for upcoming UK, Belgium and Holland shows. Visit this page for details.

Snark available November 1st
October 2010: Mike Batt's musical interpretation of Lewis Carroll's nonsense poem The Hunting of the Snark is scheduled for reissue on November 1st. The two-disc package includes the 1984 album (in which Art Garfunkel sang the role of the Butcher) and the DVD of the 1987 Royal Albert Hall concert in which Justin Hayward sang the role. It is available for pre-order on Amazon UK. If you are unfamiliar with the Snark, you can see some YouTube clips by clicking the links below. Many thanks to Marilyn for the heads up!

5-Minute Sampler
Children of the Sky
The Escapade
The Snooker Song
The Bellman's Speech

October newsletter on Justin's site
Justin shares his thoughts on touring and recording in his latest newsletter.

Message from Ray Thomas
September 2010: Ray's release party at Threshold Records was a great success. Approximately 150 fans braved the weather to visit with Ray and Lee and their special guests, and everyone had a wonderful time. You can see some photos from this event at Traveling Eternity Road and Sojourn.

Ray has also posted this message on Facebook:
"Thanks to all my 'friends' who stood in the rain to make the release of the new box set a success. Your smiles, the memories you shared, the red balloons made the day extra special for this old rocker. I hope you enjoy the music because it came from my heart to all of you. I think there just might be some more music in me yet. God Bless, Ray Thomas"

Ray Thomas box set ordering information
September 2010: Ray's four-disc box set is available for pre-order on Amazon.com. It will be released on September 27 in the UK and on October 5 in the USA. Copies purchased from Threshold Records will be personally autographed by Ray. Many thanks to Sue and Alan at TER for this information!

Justin no longer part of Excalibur III
September 2010: Justin's participation on Alan Simon's Excalibur III has been called off. According to Gloria's sources at TER, Justin wasn't able to find any of the songs submitted to him to be quite right for his style.

Ray Thomas interviews & signing party
September 2010: Ray has been conducting some radio interviews in conjunction with the release of his box set on September 24. He spoke with Roger Day at BBC Radio Kent and Trevor Fry at BBC Radio Bristol. The interviews will be available online for one week following the air date. Don't forget....if you're in the Cobham area, be sure to stop by Threshold Records this Friday for Ray's release/signing party!

News from Ray Thomas
August 2010: Ray's four-disc box set will be released on September 24 at Threshold Records in Cobham, Surrey. A release/signing party is scheduled for 1:30 p.m. on that day. The box set will be released in other UK and European locations on September 27, and will be released in the USA approximately ten days later. You can see a sample of the promotional poster and album art at TER. Also, watch for an official Ray Thomas website and an interview in the October issue of Record Collector magazine.

Gordy's new website is up
August 2010: Moody Blues backup drummer Gordy Marshall has redesigned his website. The online drum lessons and blog are still there, and now there's audio and video! Take a look at Play Drums With Gordy Marshall.

July newsletter on Justin's site
Click here to read a brief interview on his website.

John's new song on iTunes
June 2010: John recently recorded a song to benefit children's charities all over the world. It is now available on iTunes. Click here to watch a video of John talking about the song and for a link to download it.

Projects in the works
May 2010: Ray Thomas is planning to release a four-disc box set consisting of his solo albums, new music and bonus material. A release/signing party is being planned for September 24 at Threshold Records in Cobham, Surrey. This news is shared by Lee Thomas via Sue Cutlip. It has also been reported by Rainbow Glo at TER that Justin is slated to participate in Alan Simon's Excalibur III.

Extracurricular activities
May 2010: Justin recently teamed up with Moody Blues keyboardist Alan Hewitt to perform for some lucky wedding guests. It is believed that this event took place in California, as Alan's home base is there, and Justin's latest newsletter mentioned going to California to play. There were some videos at this YouTube channel, but unfortunately they've been removed.

News from the backups
May 2010: Gordy Marshall has been busy filling in for musicians in West End shows. Norda Mullen was recently profiled in an article at Northwestern University and was featured in an interview for BBC radio. In April, Blog Talk Radio did an interview with new keyboardist Alan Hewitt. Julie Ragins performed with Alan during his recent Los Angeles concert.

May newsletter on Justin's site
Click here to read Justin's latest letter!

Jeff Wayne answers fan questions
April 2010: The musical genius behind The War of the Worlds recently took some time to answer questions asked by Moody Blues fans (including yours truly) on the Traveling Eternity Road message board. Click here to read them all!

War of the Worlds news
March 2010: For the 2010-2011 tour, the role of Parson Nathaniel will be played by former X-Factor star Rhydian Roberts. He will be joined onstage by WOTW veterans Justin Hayward and Chris Thompson, and newcomers Jason Donovan and Liz McClarnon. A second Cardiff date and the first German dates have been added to the tour. See the tour schedule on this page, or visit The War of the Worlds for more information.

Legends & Lyrics update
Spring 2010: It has been reported that PBS will not begin airing the second season of Legends & Lyrics until Fall 2010, although DVDs of the episodes will hopefully be available for purchase in Spring 2010. Justin's episode (Episode 114 Season 2) was taped in Nashville in February 2009. Check with your local PBS station or visit Legends & Lyrics for more information. You can also visit the Legends & Lyrics Facebook page.

Retrieving Hard Rock Park memorabilia not easy
March 2010: The Moody Blues loaned many items to the former Hard Rock Park, including an original Mellotron. The memorabilia was in danger of being lost in the shuffle until the band's tour manager and a Myrtle Beach businessman intervened. You can read more, including some interesting Mellotron facts, here.

Amsterdam date added
January 2010: European dates are slowly being added to the Moodies' Fall 2010 tour schedule. Just in: September 28 at the Heineken Music Hall in Amsterdam. Click here for more information.

War of the Worlds news
January 2010: According to the official War of the Worlds site, the 2010-2011 tour will include several performances in Germany, in addition to those already announced in the UK, Belgium and Holland. These dates are still pending. Liz McClarnon has joined the cast as Beth, with Australian singer Jason Donovan taking over as the Artilleryman and Justin Hayward reprising his role as the Sung Thoughts of the Journalist.

Moody producer Tony Clarke passes away
January 4, 2010: Producer Tony Clarke, often referred to as the "sixth Moody" due to his work on the classic Core Seven albums, has passed away. Visit TER for the latest news.

War of the Worlds tickets on sale
Tickets for the UK shows are on sale at See Tickets. Tickets for Amsterdam are on sale at Live Nation. Tickets for the Antwerp performance can be purchased here. Tickets for the Belfast and Dublin performances are on sale at the Odyssey's website and Ticketmaster. Check the official War of the Worlds site for member presales.

2010-2011 War of the Worlds tour
November 24 - Amsterdam, NL (Heineken Music Hall)
November 25 - Amsterdam, NL (Heineken Music Hall)
November 26 - Antwerp, BE (Lotto Arena)
November 29 - Dublin (O2 Arena at Dublin)
November 30 - Belfast (Odyssey Arena)
December 2 - Newcastle (Metro Radio Arena)
December 3 - Glasgow (SECC)
December 4 - Sheffield (Sheffield Arena)
December 5 - Manchester (MEN Arena)
December 7 - Liverpool (Echo Arena)
December 8 - Nottingham (Trent FM Arena)
December 9 - Birmingham (NIA)
December 10 - Bournemouth (BIC)
December 11 - Bournemouth (BIC)
December 12 - London (O2 Arena)
December 14 - Cardiff (CIA)
December 15 - Cardiff (CIA)
December 16 - Brighton (Brighton Centre)
December 17 - Brighton (Brighton Centre)
December 18 - London (Wembley Arena)
January 1 - Frankfurt, DE (Festhalle) - POSTPONED
January 2 - Munich, DE (Olympic Hall) - POSTPONED
January 4 - Berlin, DE (O2 World) - POSTPONED
January 5 - Hamburg, DE (Color Line Arena) - POSTPONED
January 6 - Leipzig, DE (Leipzig Arena) - POSTPONED
January 7 - Oberhausen, DE (Koenig-Pilsener Arena) - POSTPONED