Two Australian Metallica fans have been hit with lifetime bans from Perth’s Optus Stadium after climbing a speaker tower during the band’s Nov. 1 show on the M72 World Tour.
According to local outlet PerthNow, 20-year-old Beau William Loch Rollings and 23-year-old Rory Hugh Culbert jumped a safety barrier and scaled the central tower inside the stadium bowl, clinging to the structure at heights reportedly between 10 and 50 meters for around 20 minutes while the concert continued.
The stunt triggered a major security response as venue staff and police moved in, with thousands of fans watching the incident unfold mid-show. Police later seized the pair’s phones, which contained footage of the climb, as part of the trespass investigation.
Magistrate Ruth Dineen was blunt in her assessment, describing the tower climb as “an incredibly stupid thing to do and a good way to ruin your night out,” noting that what “seemed funny at the time” had escalated into a serious safety issue.
Defence lawyer Rachael Gemmell characterized it as “just stupid behavior,” arguing the experience had been sobering for the young fans.
Both Rollings and Culbert entered guilty pleas to trespassing charges, acknowledging the gravity of the situation without offering a motive. Rollings was fined $1,000 and ordered to pay $308.80 in court costs. Culbert received a similar penalty.
Throughout their Aussie tour, Metallica have delighted fans with surprise covers of local hits, such as “Zebra” by John Butler Trio during their signature “doodle” segment.
Butler, who is currently touring across Europe and the U.K., shared his bluesy interpretation via Instagram, using a custom-made Indian slide guitar known as a Chaturangui. “@metallica ‘Enter Sandman,’ but make it John Butlery,” he captioned the clip.
“It’s taken me a minute to pull my sh*t together after Metallica covered my song ‘Zebra’ last weekend in Perth/Boorloo… I thought I’d tackle one of their lesser-known tracks. I hope you like it.”
In Adelaide on Nov. 5, Hammett and Trujillo mashed up INXS’ “Need You Tonight” with the Angels’ “Am I Ever Gonna See Your Face Again,” blending two Australian staples into a blistering live medley.
