George wows fans as he kicks off Euro tour

George Michael wowed thousands of fans at the start of his first UK tour for 15 years.

The 42-year-old singer began the UK leg of his 25 Live European tour in front of 16,500 ecstatic fans at the MEN Arena in Manchester last night.

The multi-million selling artist walked on stage to rapturous applause at the end of a reprised version of Waiting, before opening with hit Flawless (Go To The City).

And fans sang and danced along as he ran through their favourite hits including songs from his chart-topping Wham! days.

Speaking before the concert, Michael, who last year swore that his career was over, said he had decided to tour again “just because I have the courage to do it”.

“To be perfectly honest, I’ve enjoyed it so much I wish I started again years ago,” he said.

He said he was looking forward to a long-planned free concert for nurses to be held in London, saying it was something he had always wanted to do.

“I had said to my friends and family that if I toured again I would do a special concert for nurses.

“We wanted to do it at Wembley Arena until they kindly pointed out to Mr Showbiz here that 12,000 nurses might be a lot to take out of the system – we had to do it somewhere else. But it’s still a in 3,000-seater venue and it will probably be the best night of the tour,” he said.

The star said the tour was an opportunity to put his troubles behind him: “Most of the stuff that happens to me is partially my fault but some of it is definitely not. All that stuff is relevant to people who read ’red tops’ (tabloid newspapers), as we call them.

“I’m just very, very happy that I have a No 1 album out this week and that, along with coming back and playing to an English crowd for the first time in 15 years, is fantastic”.

Asked how long he would go on touring, he said: “There’s no restriction to how long I can do the live thing, now that I have decided I can do it.

“But in terms of releasing CDs and trying to get on the radio, I think that is all finished for now”.

Fans travelled from as far as Holland to watch the singer in action. One Dutch fan said: “I am here to see George coming home. This is my sixth gig out of 15 and I am very excited he is back in the UK.”

A fan from Newcastle said: “I’ve always loved George and this is the first opportunity I have had to see him. His songs are fantastic and he has amazing stage presence. It should be a fun night.”

The troubled singer has been dogged by controversy since his days when Wham! stormed the charts in the 80s.

At the height of his fame, in 1998, the singer exposed himself to an undercover policeman in a Beverley Hills toilet.

He avoided a six-month jail term but was arrested for “lewd behaviour” and sentenced to community service.

Michael confirmed long-standing rumours that he was gay and bounced back with the single Outside, which made light of the incident.

The accompanying video depicted mock scenes from the arrest with Michael dressed as an LA policeman.

Earlier this year, he was photographed slumped at the wheel of his car and cautioned by police for possessing cannabis.

But his enduring popularity was confirmed after announcing he would tour again - which immediately became a sell-out.

All tickets for his UK tour were snapped up within two hours, and three extra dates were added.

The artist will play two more dates in Manchester before further concerts in Glasgow, London and Birmingham.

His new album, Twenty Five, was released on Monday.