On This Day: Billy Idol Plays a Scarily Disgusting Prank on Tour Opener

On Halloween night, 1990, Billy Idol fans got to witness a particularly funky sendoff to the “White Wedding” singer’s “Charmed Life” tour, featuring support from West Coast rock band Faith No More, that included wild pranks, dancing gorillas, and several calls to the Seattle Police Department. And that “funky” set? Well, it likely wasn’t the kind of funk the fans would have asked for if they had been given the option.

But hey, what’s a Halloween rock show without a few tricks?

Billy Idol’s Disgusting Prank On Tour Opener

Touring musicians pranking one another on stage is common across all genres, but rock ‘n’ rollers certainly have a way of getting especially weird and gross. Such was the case for the final show on Billy Idol’s “Charmed Life” tour at the Seattle Coliseum. The opening band was San Francisco rockers Faith No More, who was still riding the high of their 1989 hit, “Epic.”

The music video for “Epic” featured a fish flopping on the ground, which was an unfortunate artistic choice in hindsight. Inspired by the fishy feature, Idol had his road crew dump 600 dead fish on the band while they performed their opening set. We think it’s safe to assume they might have preferred rotten tomatoes at that point. Nevertheless, Faith No More were good sports, and continued their set after throwing a few rogue fish to their fans.

As they finished their opening set, three people in dressing gowns and hair rollers took the stage, to the delight of the crowd. The “housewives” then opened their gowns, flashing the audience with “mammoth false breasts,” per reporting from Seattle’s City Heat magazine. But if Idol thought he would be enjoying a one-sided prank that night, he was very, very wrong.

Faith No More Returns Fire

Once Faith No More (and, presumably, all those dead fish) cleared the stage, it was Billy Idol’s turn to perform. The British rocker told the 14,000-person crowd that he knew he ought to expect a prank in return but that he wasn’t sure what it would be. The first gaff was relatively subtle. Someone clad in a gorilla suit joined Idol’s backup singers and started dancing along to the music, although the “Rebel Yell” performer didn’t seem to notice. 

The second prank, however, was much harder to miss. Toward the end of the set, five men joined Idol on stage, wearing t-shirts, paper bags, and towels over their heads to hide their identities. It’s a good thing, too—all five were naked as a jaybird from the neck down. The nude party crashers danced in a conga line across the stage as Idol laughed and blushed through his song. Several people reported the incident to the Seattle Police Department, but with no way of identifying the flashers and the artists gone by the time the cops got there, nothing happened.

And just so Faith No More didn’t get too comfortable thinking that the prank wars were over, Idol placed five miniature pigs and a goat in his opening band’s dressing room. At least they weren’t dead, though.

Photo by Lester Cohen/Getty Images