Drunk star attacked air crew with yoghurt

Independent.co.uk ^ | 13 Nov 2001 | Anna Whitney

[maxwell]

The guitarist of rock band REM, Peter Buck, drank 15 glasses of wine before assaulting members of British Airways staff with yoghurt in a drunken air-rage incident while travelling from the US to London, a court has heard.

Mr Buck, 44, allegedly concealed a knife up his sleeve during a bout of "childish" drunken- ness and is accused of attacking a cabin services manager, Mario Agius, and an air stewardess, Holly Ward, on a flight from Seattle to Heathrow on 21 April. The rock star's behaviour saw him staggering along the aisles repeatedly, a jury at Isleworth Crown Court heard. He was flying to London for an REM concert in Trafalgar Square to celebrate the role of British-based anti-apartheid protesters in bringing democracy to South Africa, before the group began a world tour.

At one stage, it was claimed, after drinking wine for three hours with his tour manager, Robert Whittaker, and two others, he got stuck between two seats before he was pulled free. He also managed, the prosecution alleged, to cover himself and the cabin services manager with a tub full of yoghurt.

Edward Lewis, for the prosecution, said that, at another point on the eight and a half hour flight, the millionaire, who is a father of two, mistook the hostess trolley for a CD player and tried to insert a disc into it.

Although Mr Buck seemed to be drinking too much he was not behaving aggressively so the air cabin staff complied with his requests for more wine, the court heard. However, his further demands for refills were eventually "diplomatically ignored".

Soon afterwards, he was seen "stumbling up the aisles, bumping into passengers' seats and sometimes landing on them", claiming that one of them was his wife. Mr Lewis told the jury that Mr Buck and his tour manager, who was also said to have drunk several wine refills, were acting like "naughty children".

But Mr Buck was a "pain in the neck with many staff diverted from their duties to calm things down", said Mr Lewis, who added: "It was getting beyond a joke."

He said Mr Buck was so determined to get more drink that he tried "every ruse he could think of", even offering the crew money.

It was then that he got stuck between seats and had to be pulled free, a situation which would have been "hilarious" but for the "tragic nature" of what was happening. Then, said the barrister, he was allegedly spotted trying to slip a knife up his sleeve as he was tidying up.

After the knife was taken from him and he was asked to sit down again, the musician announced: "I am REM and I can make up a story that I was assaulted," Mr Lewis said.

Mr Buck, who appeared in court in a pin-striped navy suit, white shirt and dark blue tie, denies being drunk on an aircraft, two counts of common assault and one charge of damaging British Airways crockery.

The trial continues.

[All_The_Info]

...This one goes out to the wine i drank...

[wardaddy]

Stonyfield farms.....the best yogurt!!!

Cute baby too!!

[CheneyChick]

drank 15 glasses of wine

I'm surprised he was even conscious.

[maxwell]

Gee thanks.

Actually I'm on Zantac and it kicketh much a$$. I know, I'm too young to be on that sh!t but I smoke and I drink and I run, and when I do the latter, it all catches up with me and I hurt...

[mlocher]

...this one goes...

LOL!

[American Preservative]

I just found the image on images.google.com.
Yes, cute baby. I thought the picture was apropos with the topic. : )

[wardaddy]

I must be a geezer here but I sort of lost interest in them once Stipe cut off his hair and stopped hiding behind the microphone....he's like a gay Bono..preachy preachy..Murmur and "Radio Free Europe"....I was living in Manhattan at the time and saw them at either the Ritz or China Club.....nice act. Probably around 1983 or 1984????.....

[mlocher]

...and i hurt...

and the last thing you need is some dumb a$$ making rude comments. give me your fax number and i will send you a cuban cigar and some DOW port -- 1970, as amends.

[Leesylvanian]

Actually, music hasn't been relevant since about 1990. REM and a few others have had some good albums, but over all music has been dead. The "alternative" garbage is just garbage. Up and Reveal, REM's latest two albums, are actually very good albums if you like REM music, but they don't fit into the pre-packaged pablum crap that passes for popular music on the radio.

[ibbryn]

Remember when Stipe was at some music awards show many years ago? They won a bunch of awards. Every time he went up on stage he would take off a tee shirt that had a phrase on it, displaying another tee shirt with a new phrase. Stuff like, "Ban Handguns", "End Aparthite", etc.

Now these guys can't even act like men and admit they got drunk and stupid.

[Alabama_Wild_Man]

Lucky I'm sane after all I've been through
Everybody say I'm cool (he's cool)
I can't complain but sometimes I still do
Life's been good to me so far

I go to parties, sometimes until four
It's hard to leave when you can't find the door
It's tough to handle this fortune and fame
Everybody's so different, I haven't changed

[Mr. Bird]

That's great: it starts with an earthquake, birds and snakes and airplanes....Mr. Bird is not afraid.

[maxwell]

Haha, you think I haven't had my share of rude comments, being the only smoker in the running club!

That, and when I do my goddess-based nude Buddhist guerilla poetry, maaaaaannnnn... Hmmmmm...

(Actually that's a hilarious link...)

[maxwell]

I've been sittin here
Tryin to find myself
I get behind myself
I need to rewind myself
Lookin for the payback
Listen for the playback
They say that every man bleeds just like me
And I feel like number one
Yet I'm last in line
I watch my youngest son
And it helps to pass the time
I take too many pills it helps to ease the pain
I make a couple dollar bills, but still I feel the same
Everybody knows my name
They say it way out loud
A lot of folks f*ck with me
It's hard to hang out in crowds
I guess that's the price you pay
To be some big shot like I am
Out stretched hands and one night stands
Still I can't find love

People don't know about the things I say and do
They don't understand about the sh!t that I've been through
It's been so long since I've been home
I've been gone, I've been gone for way too long
Maybe I forgot all the things I miss
Oh somehow I know there's more to life than this
I said it too many times
And I still stand firm
You get what you put in
And people get what they deserve
Still I ain't seen mine
No I ain't seen mine
I've been giving just ain't been gettin
I've been walking that there line
So I think I'll keep a walking
With my head held high
I'll keep moving on and only God knows why

[Myrnick]

They don't call it yog-'HURT' for nothing.

[wardaddy]

Yep....just add Stipe to a long list of pop stars who think they are truly relevant to mankind....I think it sort of started with Lennon....actually maybe it was the folkies like Peter Paul and Mary or Joan Baez. I like Rock stars who act decadent (as they should:>) ...and keep their political ideas to themselves....I will give a nod to Vegan McCartney....at least he has been true to his family and seems to have a good heart....and he recently stated on national TV ...that America is a blessed exapmle of freedom that should be defended...pretty gutsy stuff from a pop star.

[mlocher]

goddess based nude Buddhist guerilla...

the the mental image i have created in my mind is scaring me. see if i ever insult you again! i will check the link

[Thumper1960]

"The loo, Mr. Buck? Certainly! It is the first door, left, before the pilot cabin."

(Garbled syntax and expletives)

"You are quite welcome, Mr. Buck."

[Alabama_Wild_Man]

Got me on that one.....I'm not a Kid Rock fan.
He's too young - or I'm too old.
His language leaves a bit to be desired, too.

I'll just stay with these 'Old Guys':

================================================

There was beer all over the dance floor
and the band was playin' rhythm and blues
You got down and did the gator, and half
an hour later, you were barfin' all over your
Girlfriend's shoes.

But the Greeks don't want no freaks.
The Greeks don't want no freaks
Just put a little smile on them rosy cheeks,
'Cause the Greeks don't want no freaks.

She was the pride and the passion of Dixie
She did exactly what her daddy had planned.
She was perfect little sister until somebody missed
her and they found her in the bushes with
the boys in the band