Every now and again, we put excerpts from the VIP Fan Community Member Only Q&As on duranduran.com for everyone to enjoy. This month, we featured DD fan extraordinaire Ursula Vogel, who has been to 100 Duran Duran shows!! She details her journey in her Q&A, below:
What was the 1st Duran Duran show you ever saw, and where?
The first show I ever saw was on March 29th 1987 at the Palladium in London. It was a charity concert for Amnesty International called The Secret Policeman's Third Ball. Duran played a short acoustic set including Skin Trade, Hungry Like The Wolf and Save A Prayer. The first whole live show I went to was at the Queens Hall in Leeds on April 25th 1987 which was part of the Strange Behaviour Tour.
What was the highest point for you as a Duranie?
There were many high points over the years, like meeting Duran on various occasions or seeing them live in Austria. I will always remember interviewing John in LA in 2000 as a highlight. My 100th show certainly was another great moment!
What made you decide to see 100 Duran Duran shows? Was it a goal or just something that gradually happened over time?
I didn't decide to see 100 shows from the start, but as I like making lists I wrote down all the concerts I went to right from the beginning. I could not have known how long Duran Duran would go on and that I would have the chance to see that many shows. When I got to about 70 shows I thought it would be cool if I could make it to a 100.
Where is the furthest you've ever traveled to see a show?
To Los Angeles and Las Vegas.
We need to know - what was it like when you first met them? How did it come about?
I first met Simon and Nick in August of 1985. Growing up and living in Austria I never really considered that it was actually possible to meet them. When I met some Duran Fans on a holiday to London who told me about having met Simon, I did realize that it could be done. They knew where Nick was doing interviews that day and when we got there we were lucky enough to see him leave. It was quite crazy as there were quite a lot of fans there, but Nick was very nice as usual and signed stuff for everybody. I got my very first autograph on the 7" single of Is There Something I Should Know? that day. We then went on to Heathrow as Simon was flying out to New York. After some time of waiting we did spot him in the crowd and went to ask for an autograph. Simon was late and in a hurry but he did stop to sign my Reflex single and waved to us as he disappeared through the gate. Although those first meetings were really short, I remember them very clearly as they were quite special to me.
How does it feel to know that they're aware that you've seen 100 shows and that Nick sent you a photo to commemorate the event?
I think it's really cool and I'm very happy that Duran know that I have been a fan for such a long time and that I've seen so many shows! I really appreciate that they made it such an unforgettable event for me! I especially would like to thank John for making it all happen and Nick for sending me the photo!
You can see many of Ursula's live photographs on her PlanetDuran Facebook page
