All the world’s a stage as stars turn up heat

AS the curtain fell on a seven-hour Live 8 extravaganza in Philadelphia, soul legend Stevie Wonder issued the same simple message to the world - unite and end poverty now.

A stellar cast from Destiny’s Child to Bon Jovi took to the stage in blistering heat, kicking off the last of 10 shows masterminded by Bob Geldof.

More than a million people crowded on to a mile-long stretch before the city’s Museum of Art, going wild as Geldof appeared on screens live from London to welcome America to the party.

Leeds band the Kaiser Chiefs opened the show, beamed straight into Hyde Park. Seven hours later, Stevie Wonder brought the house down with a rousing rendition of Superstition.

While London and Philadelphia provided the focus for the global Live 8 spectacular, eight other concerts took place around the world with the aim of making poverty history.

The first of the day’s concerts kicked off in Japan, where Bjork joined local bands, playing to a crowd of about 10,000.

Faith Hill, Duran Duran and a host of Italian stars took to the stage in Rome’s Circus Maximus. By the evening, some 200,000 had gathered in the arena, according to Rome police.

Thousands of Russian fans attended a concert at a venue just off Red Square and watched a show that included the Pet Shop Boys and Russian rock bands.

In Paris, a line-up including Italian tenor Andrea Bocelli and British group The Cure performed to a crowd of 100,000 at the Chateau of Versailles.

In Johannesburg, Nelson Mandela drew bigger cheers from the 8,000-strong crowd than any of the acts at Mary Fitzgerald Square.

Beach Boys co-founder Brian Wilson and American rockers Green Day fired up a crowd of 150,000 in Berlin’s Tiergarten park.

Neil Young brought an end to the global Live 8 concerts with a rousing rendition of Keep on Rockin’ In The Free World before 35,000 fans in Canada.