As Roger Waters' 2006 summer tour of Europe looms, with the first full show taking place in less than three weeks, we have a cluster of important updates for you, including news of a broadcast and possible DVD!

Roger Waters at Live 8 (exclusive to Brain Damage)

Nick Mason is guesting on drums at the Magny-Cours concert in France on July 14th, and has now been confirmed as also taking these duties at the Hyde Park concert in London, on July 1st. We understand that he might be playing other selected dates too, and as we get details of these, we will let you know.

Having mentioned the Magny-Cours concert, we've got more on that show for you. Sounds like it is going to be an incredible show... It has been revealed that Roger has chosen Groupe F for the special effects. Groupe F, world leader in fireworks, provided the firework display at the Eiffel Tower for Millennium Eve, as well as orchestrating all the special effects for French icon Johnny Hallyday’s concert at the Stade de France in 1998, during which the singer notoriously set the stadium on fire! Who knows what will happen at Magny-Cours, especially as there’s a 35-metre crane in the list of props...

Eurovision is partnering the concert for a high-definition recording, which rather smacks of a DVD in the pipeline. Negotiations are under way with French mobile operator SFR to broadcast the show using 3G technology, to experience the preparation and the concert in the inner circles.

Roger also is said to have phoned David Gilmour a few weeks ago to invite him to join him on stage... whilst Richard Wright has declined attending the show, David has yet (to our knowledge) to declare a decision on this.

Nick Mason will in fact be in Paris for the first weekend in June, giving a press conference and taking part in the Grand Prix de France centenary parade. This involves a procession of vintage cars through the French capital, on a round trip starting from Trocadero, over to the Place de la Concorde, up the Champs Elysées to the Arc de Triomphe then back to Trocadero. Nick will be driving a car from his personal collection... could it be his Gilles Villeneuve F1 Ferrari?

Finally, an addition and a change to the current schedule of his tour. The additional date is September 9th at the Tweeter Centre in Boston/Mansfield, where Roger is also playing September 8th. Good news for people there.

The Moscow concert was due to be held in Red Square, but was moved due to an official Kremlin ceremony being held on the same day at the location. It has moved to Vasilyevsky Spusk, which is very close to Red Square. Tickets are now on sale for this venue. They went on sale on May 12th, through www.parter.ru, and other normal agents. Our thanks to Bob Close for the updated info on this show.

Don't forget to check out our Roger Waters 2006 Tour Room for full details of all his shows - including relevent websites, maps to the venues, and more.

Our thanks (as ever) to Roger's manager for his help...