U2 tickets for second Slane gig a sell-out after just 94 minutes

Tickets for the second U2 concert at Slane sold out yesterday within 94 minutes of the extra date being announced, despite the low-key launch.

The band arranged the September 1st concert after tickets for the August 25th event were snapped up in just 45 minutes earlier this year. The new date was confirmed at lunchtime yesterday, with the 80,000 tickets going on sale immediately.

The promoters, MCD, said the decision not to give advance warning was taken after consultations with the Garda, and in the interests of public safety. Nonetheless, Ticketmaster phone lines were quickly jammed and Internet outlets saturated.

Ticket sales, at £36.50 plus booking fees of up to £4.50 each, began at 1 p.m. They were limited to four per person, compared with six on the last occasion.

In March there was public anger when hundreds of fans, some having queued overnight, learned there were no tickets left. One man was arrested amid scuffles in Dublin's Grafton Street.

Techno-blues star Moby, along with the Foo Fighters, Nelly Furtado and Dara will support U2 for the September date, the first time Slane will have hosted two concerts in one year.

Meath County Council gave the go-ahead for the second event, despite objections from residents, when the Department of the Environment fast-tracked part of the Planning and Development Act, 2000, following a personal intervention by the Taoiseach.

The changes removed the need for the organisers to apply for planning permission, although the event was still subject to local consent and the approval of the council.

The Fine Gael TD, Mr Denis Naughten, criticised the booking fees charged for tickets, saying they discriminated against fans outside Dublin. In fact, only those in Slane itself could avoid booking fees altogether, paying the basic £36.50 per ticket.

At Ticketmaster in Dublin the cost was £39.50, while at provincial outlets and for all telephone or Internet bookings, the combined ticket cost was £41.