What to expect from Paul McCartney at the O2 Arena tonight - setlist, run time and Linda McCartney sausages

International superstar Paul McCartney will be taking over the O2 Arena this week (December 18th and 19th) for two spectacular shows.

Earlier this week The Beatles singer performed at Co-Op Live in Manchester. London World’s music reviewer Christian Evans saw the star and is giving you an inside look at what to expect from his London gigs this week.

As well as the music, we’ve heard the star is set to give The O2 Arena a veggie makeover for his final shows of 2024 with none other than Linda McCartney Foods.

On the 18th and 19th December, the arena is teaming up with Linda McCartney Foods for a 4:2 veggie-to-meat ratio across all food stands.

Here’s what to expect...

Paul McCartney review

Throughout the years, it has been said that “Father Time is undefeated”, but McCartney is certainly proving that theory wrong. At Manchester’s Co-Op Live, Paul performed 36 songs in a set that was close to three-hours long.

Despite being 82-years-old, McCartney continues to operate on a level that is unheard of and remains the cream of the crop in the music scene.

What McCartney has achieved throughout his career is nothing short of sensational, and will never be seen again. He’s a one-in-a-billion talent and the most remarkable thing about him is his longevity and timeless appeal. At 15-years-old, Paul joined John Lennon in The Quarrymen and since then he has been at the top of his game for close to seven decades.

The other major detail that stood out is the quality of McCartney’s voice. The singer’s vocals remain in pristine condition, and on tracks such as the piano-led ‘Maybe I’m Amazed’, McCartney sang a mix of chest voice and falsetto to effortlessly hit the high notes - a testament to McCartney’s vocal maintenance throughout the decades.

Paul McCartney O2 Arena predicted setlist

Throughout the evening, Paul was in a reflective mood as he reminisced about his career and the memories he’d made along the way. During an extended outro of ‘Let Me Roll It’, Paul and his backing band performed an extended outro to pay tribute to Jimi Hendrix and spoke about how humble the legendary guitarist was when he met him.

McCartney’s tribute to fellow bandmate George Harrison also proved to be a particularly poignant moment in the set. Paul reflected on the brilliance of Harrison before a rendition of the ukelele-led ‘Something’ that takes time to build and layer before it erupts with a solo in the middle accompanied by pictures of Harrison appearing on the screen behind.

Later in the set, McCartney touched on his relationship with John Lennon and explained how in the past, he couldn’t say “Hey I love you man” to his bandmates before performing a heartfelt rendition of ‘Here Today’ about an imaginary conversation between him and John. Lennon later reappeared during the encore to harmonise with Paul during an electric performance of ‘I’ve Got A Feeling’. The full band also appeared together on the screen during a sentimental performance of the ballad ‘Now and Then’ that left Paul teary-eyed, symbolising the brotherhood that was forged between the four members.

Tracks such as the acoustic-fuelled ‘I’ve Just Seen A Face’, the catchy James Bond theme ‘Live and Let Die, the lyrically wonderful ‘Junior’s Farm; the piano-led ‘Let It Be’ and the Otis Redding-inspired ‘Drive My Car’ all provide a wave of nostalgia that takes you on a trip down memory lane.

Whilst the riff-heavy ‘Helter Skelter’ and ‘Love Me Do’, the rock and roll classic ‘Lady Madonna’ accompanied perfectly by a brass section and the catchy ‘Get Back’ and ‘Ob-La-Di, Ob-La-Da’ proved popular with the crowd and the latter got the audience singing and bouncing. Lastly, ‘Hey Jude’ provides the biggest feelgood moment of the evening as the audience belted their hearts out, and allowed McCartney to sit back and play conductor.

Despite performing in front of tens of thousands of people for decades, Paul retains a fondness for small sets and the intimate venues he honed his sound in as he performed the aforementioned ‘Love Me Do’, ‘The Quarrymen’s ‘In Spite of All the Danger’ and the mandolin-powered ‘Dance Tonight’ with scaled back arrangements.

And lastly, would it be Christmas without the help of a ‘Wonderful Christmastime’? The festive favourite elicited a euphoric response from the audience as Paul belted out the hit flanked by a brass section dressed as elves, a children’s orchestra, and fake snow falling from the sky.

In comparison to the major stadiums he has been performing in, Manchester’s Co-Op Live made for a more intimate setting than Paul McCartney has typically performed in as of late.

However, no matter where he is performing one thing is guaranteed: he will deliver an unforgettable performance that will no doubt be the greatest spectacle you’ll have ever witnessed.