Stone Roses frontman, Ian Brown, issued a ticket treat as fans flocked to the bands shock Carlisle gig.

The singer stunned fans as they excitedly queued outside the Sands Centre as he gave away hotly sought tickets to some of those who hadn't been able to bag their own.

It as a surprise gesture by Brown at one of Cumbria's biggest gigs in years.

Although the tickets had sold out and 1,800 people were expected to fill the Carlisle venue for the gig, a few lucky die hard fans managed to bag tickets at the last minute.

Rhiannon Connors, 15, of Cleator Moor, said she had been a fan since she was born and was chuffed to get a ticket. She waited outside the Sands Centre for hours with her boyfriend Paul Shepherd, 16, of Egremont, hoping they would be able to go in.

She said: "Even to sit outside would be a privilege - it's the Stone Roses!"

The teen even managed to meet all members of the band and get pictures with them.

"They were very, very lovely and more caring towards the fans than I expected them to be for such a big band," she said.

People had travelled from as far away as London for the intimate gig. Fan Ian Pomfrett had travelled 260 miles from his home in Northampton to Carlisle in the hope of getting a ticket for the surprise warm-up gig.

He was one of the first in the queue and managed to get a ticket just before the doors opened.

He said: "I am too old to be doing this. I couldn't go to Halifax because I had a job interview so I travelled to Carlisle instead."

After bagging a surprise ticket, Paul Hatton, 44, of Morecambe, who has been a fan since the band started in the 1980s, could not have been happier.

He said: "It's elation, it's complete elation but just meeting Ian Brown topped everything and Reni as well."

Members of the band had been popping out from about 4pm in the afternoon to spend time chatting to fans. Brown was smiling and relaxed as fans crowded round him. He signed everything from vinyl sleeves to shoes, posed for pictures and even paused to ask people where they were from and what they did for a living.

For some fans, last night was the first time they had ever seen their favourite band. Penrith ladies Kirstie Kidd, 37, and Debbie Choudhury, also 37, were over the moon that Brown had signed their tickets. They had queued on Saturday for tickets, bringing one of the band's CDs to prove they were real fans as those who wanted tickets had to.

Kirstie said: "This never happens. We feel like two of the luckiest people in the world."

In front of their dedicated fans, the band performed a set list including their new song All For One - the first song in 21 years. They kicked off with I Wanna Be Adored before moving onto old favourites like Begging You , Waterfall , Fools Gold and I Am The Resurrection .

The band played in Halifax on Tuesday and Carlisle last night ahead of four nights at Manchester's Etihad stadium next week.