Technician was called in on day off to tune Prince’s guitar

A guitar technician ended up touring with Prince because his predecessor was fired hours before the music icon’s only Irish concert.

Scott Halliday was called to Malahide Castle on his day off, unaware it would be the beginning of weeks of sharing the stage with the superstar. A new RTÉ radio documentary, Prince at the Castle, tracks how the rock star fired nearly all of his production staff hours before the Dublin concert, before hiring a bemused new local crew on July 30, 2011. They had to familiarise themselves with the set-up in a matter of hours.

Part of RTÉ’s ‘Documentary On One’ series, the broadcast will chronicle the strange goings-on behind the scenes. Crowds were hidden from the musician during his very late rehearsal and even a truck was covered in a black sheet, because he didn’t like its colour.