Stewart: I almost missed world's biggest gig because of food bug
Rod Stewart has confessed he almost missed the biggest gig in the world – after he was struck with a dose of the runs.
The singer was struck by a dose of uncontrollable diarrhoea just hours before playing to 3.5 million people.
The star said he had eaten a dodgy meal hours earlier but was given a jab by a doctor which he said managed to “clear” him out before he performed the show.
He had been in danger of pulling the show – which holds the world record as the largest ever gig.
But writing about the incident for the first time in 'Rod: The Autobiography', he says he remembers barely anything of the enormous concert on Copacabana beach in Rio de Janeiro in Brazil due to the treatment.
Stewart, 67, said: “And before the show? I had the s**ts. Not out of fear though, I had the s**ts because of something I had eaten.
“We were supposed to go on at midnight, and at 10.30pm I still couldn’t get out of bed.
“A doctor gave me a shot – and then I really did have the s**ts. But it seemed to clear everything out and it gave me enough energy to do the show.”
Stewart said he remembers “very little” about performing to so many people at the 1994 concert because he felt “so groggy”.
“But at least I didn’t cancel” he added.
The book was published earlier this month by Century.
