The New South Wales (NSW) Government has announced Central Station will be specially illuminated in Technicolour for 9-time BRIT Awards-winning rock band, Coldplay‘s Music Of The Spheres tour between sunset (7:28pm-7:31pm) on the 6th of November & sunrise (5:46am-5:50am) on the 11th of November. Music Of The Spheres tour concerts, held at Stadium Australia, begin at 8:30pm (or 8:45pm according to Stadium Australia) except on the 8th of November when there is no concert nor Central Station illuminations currently scheduled.
The Grand Concourse will also be covered with Music Of The Spheres-themed decorations.
From 3:21pm each concert day, the Express Trains Full Of Stars will run from Central to Olympic Park, with stops at Redfern & Strathfield, until 10:08pm. It is free for concertgoers (on presentation of their concert ticket which is valid from 4am concert day until 4am the next day) otherwise a AUD$3.65 Opal Card fare applies.
With the band’s permission, each Express Train Full Of Stars will have 8 Coldplay tracks played over the train’s public address system. These will be played over the course of the 20–26-minute train trip:
- Adventure Of A Lifetime
- A Sky Full Of Stars
- Hymn For The Weekend (featuring Beyonce)
- Something Just Like This (featuring The Chainsmokers)
- Viva La Vida
- Higher Power
- Clocks
- Good Feelings (featuring support act, Arya Starr)
Singing & dancing is encouraged.
Remember, to take into account 15 minutes to walk from Sydney Olympic Park Railway Station to your entry gate at Stadium Australia. Using this, you can find an Express Trains Full Of Stars timetable for Sunday the 10th of November for all the trains from Central up until 7:50pm (as the concert is scheduled for 8:30pm (or 8:45pm according to Stadium Australia)) below:
| Central Platform | Central Departure Time | Sydney Olympic Park Arrival Time | Train Duration |
| 4 | 3:21pm | 3:43pm | 22 minutes |
| 7 | 3:31pm | 3:53pm | 22 minutes |
| 5 | 3:50pm | 4:13pm | 23 minutes |
| 6 | 4:12pm | 4:33pm | 21 minutes |
| 4 | 4:20pm | 4:43pm | 23 minutes |
| 7 | 4:27pm | 4:49pm | 22 minutes |
| 5 | 4:32pm | 4:54pm | 22 minutes |
| 6 | 4:37pm | 5:01pm | 24 minutes |
| 4 | 4:51pm | 5:12pm | 21 minutes |
| 7 | 4:58pm | 5:19pm | 21 minutes |
| 5 | 5:01pm | 5:24pm | 23 minutes |
| 6 | 5:07pm | 5:30pm | 23 minutes |
| 4 | 5:21pm | 5:42pm | 21 minutes |
| 7 | 5:29pm | 5:49pm | 20 minutes |
| 5 | 5:31pm | 5:55pm | 24 minutes |
| 6 | 5:38pm | 6pm | 22 minutes |
| 4 | 5:43pm | 6:07pm | 24 minutes |
| 7 | 5:56pm | 6:18pm | 22 minutes |
| 5 | 6:04pm | 6:25pm | 21 minutes |
| 6 | 6:13pm | 6:35pm | 22 minutes |
| 4 | 6:21pm | 6:41pm | 20 minutes |
| 7 | 6:31pm | 6:51pm | 20 minutes |
| 5 | 6:34pm | 6:55pm | 21 minutes |
| 6 | 6:40pm | 7:01pm | 21 minutes |
| 4 | 6:51pm | 7:12pm | 21 minutes |
| 7 | 6:58pm | 7:19pm | 21 minutes |
| 5 | 7:05pm | 7:25pm | 20 minutes |
| 6 | 7:10pm | 7:32pm | 22 minutes |
| 4 | 7:20pm | 7:41pm | 21 minutes |
| 7 | 7:28pm | 7:48pm | 20 minutes |
| 5 | 7:31pm | 7:54pm | 23 minutes |
| 6 | 7:38pm | 8:02pm | 24 minutes |
| 4 | 7:50pm | 8:11pm | 21 minutes |
The above platforms will also be playing hit Coldplay songs prior to boarding.
The Express Trains Full Of Stars also operates in the reverse direction from Sydney Olympic Park to Central from 3:45pm until 1:15am but does not stop at both Redfern & Strathfield before 10:30pm.
The Express Trains Full Of Stars is not operating on the regular Lidcombe-Olympic Park shuttle rail service, the North Shore line north of Central & on express rail services from/to Parramatta, Blacktown, Liverpool, Schofields, Campbelltown, Penrith, Macarthur & Emu Plains from/to Olympic Park.
These trains are a part of more than 142 extra trains being scheduled for each day of the Music Of The Spheres tour, along with more than 162 extra buses per concert day, combining to more than 310 extra public transport services on the network per concert day. Public transport is the best way to get to the Music Of The Spheres tour concert.
Fans getting dropped off & picked up by car are urged to factor in extra travel time & choose a location away from the immediate vicinity of Stadium Australia as delays are expected while road closures are in place within Olympic Park.
Pass-outs for the concert are also not being issued. There are no live concert broadcasts immediately outside Stadium Australia & to ensure safety and security, people are strongly discouraged from congregating in Sydney Olympic Park until 11pm, November the 10th.
Official stadium-external merchandise stands open at 12pm each concert day while stocks last along with Stadium Australia’s box office, the latter of which will be open to assist existing Ticketek-purchased ticket holders only at 1:30pm. There are stadium-internal merchandise stalls too from 5pm whilst stocks last. All products are sold on a first-come, first-served basis. These shops do not accept cash.
Coldplay’s Music Of The Spheres tour is at Stadium Australia, Sydney Olympic Park from 6-10 November 2024 at 6pm with support acts, Shone (6pm), Emmanuel Kelly (6:30pm) & Ayra Starr (7:15pm), building up the atmosphere until 8:30pm (or 8:45pm according to Stadium Australia). Gates open at 5pm. Tickets are sold out.
Don’t forget to download the tour’s official smartphone application!
This is the 3rd illumination of a Sydney building for a musical artist but the 1st for a band. The Sydney Opera House was illuminated purple in 2016 for Prince, who was, at the time, performing in the venue’s concert hall for 1 night only, just weeks before his tragic passing. Earlier this year, in February, Central Station & Sydney’s stadiums were illuminated in a Lavender Haze for Taylor Swift.
Did you know Coldplay has never performed at the Sydney Opera House? Due to their popularity, they would have to do a 16-day residency at the Opera House for 1 Stadium Australia concert’s worth to happen so for 4 Stadium Australia concerts that would be a residency of just over 2 months! Michael Bublé performed at the Opera House for the season finale of Australian Idol in 2009 & managed to appear in what turned out to be one of the best pyrotechnic displays ever staged on Sydney Harbour (to give an idea of what Coldplay could bring to the House… or Harbour for that matter!):
As the illumination is not on the Sydney Opera House or Harbour Bridge & the fact musical concerts have no existing special flagship Sydney Spectacular status yet (unlike fireworks displays, light shows, projection mapping shows, air shows, military salutes, rugby league matches & sailing races), Coldplay‘s Music Of The Spheres tour will not be considered as an Extraordinary Sydney Spectacular. In any case, the Stadium Australia concert record attendance is currently held by Adele’s LIVE 2016 tour at 98,364 people per concert. That record would need to be equalled or broken first.
Coldplay‘s songs, Paradise & Hymn For The Weekend (featuring Beyonce) have featured in the Midnight Fireworks of Sydney New Year’s Eve 2012 & 2016 respectively, the latter featuring in the iconic golden waterfall sequence.
Sydney Spectaculars will keep an eye on future concert tours from any artist at Stadium Australia to see if they meet the requirement for a Central Railway Station illumination & if Coldplay returns for another tour, whether the Technicolour illumination will be upgraded to include Sydney’s stadiums and possibly, the Sydney Opera House!
Coldplay truly brings a crowd & we’re expecting a big turn-out at Sydney Olympic Park with massive crowd levels expected in the stadium.
We’ll have hundreds of extra bus & rail services working to get you to Coldplay with the cost of transport already included in your ticket.
Coldplay‘s given Sydney Trains permission to play some of our favourites including Clocks.
It will be busy so make the most of Olympic Park’s bars, food trucks, restaurants & a sky full of stars before & after the gig to avoid those big initial queues.
Jo Haylen, NSW Transport Minister
Tickets for an event like Coldplay go on sale more than a year in advance & similarly our planning for it has been a long time in the making, to ensure we provide the best possible service.
We’ve done the work so you can leave the car at home & catch 1 of the myriad public transport options to Accor Stadium – even better if you do so nice and early & enjoy the bars, food trucks and restaurants in the stadium precinct.
Hundreds of extra trains and buses will run to Olympic Park & the cost of travel is already included in your concert ticket. All you need to do is show your Coldplay concert ticket to transport staff when boarding services.
Likewise, our fleet of Sydney Olympic Park Major Event Buses will run on all 9 routes frequently from mid-afternoon each concert day & also after the show to get you home.
We expect there will be some heavy peak hour traffic across the network on the Wednesday & Thursday evenings for the 2 mid-week shows, if you do choose to drive, please plan your trip & leave home early.
Parking usually sells out in advance, so it is essential that you pre-book online to secure a space & think about car-pooling.
Allow plenty of extra travel time as there will be heavy traffic & local road closures in the precinct, especially after the gig.
It may well be more convenient to park at 1 of our train station commuter car parks & head to Olympic Park from there by train, at no extra cost.
Howard Collins, Transport For NSW Coordinator-General
Sydney Spectaculars 
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