U2 surprised fans in LONDON last night (October 15) when they played a short set after making a brief television appearance for TOP OF THE POPS.

The band performed their new single‘Vertigo' and the Roy Orbison classic 'She’s A Mystery To Me' live in the pouring rain at BBC’s Television Centre before treating the crowd to a series of new tracks and old classics, off air.

Around 400 fans queued outside the gates for several hours before they finally had a chance to see the band play on a stripped down stage in the car park.

At the start of the show Bono, who was dressed in a leather jacket and a cowboy hat, spotted Doctor Who’s Tardis by the stage and shouted to the crowd: “Wow it’s the Tardis. Exterminate, exterminate, pop music,” before he launched into their new single.

When they finished their TV appearance, the group carried on playing and treated fans to the U2 classic ‘Desire’ and gave an exclusive preview of two new tracks from their forthcoming album ‘How To Dismantle An Atomic Bomb’.

They performed new track ‘All Because of You’ before Bono addressed the crowd and said: “This next song is about how we used to come to cities like London and New York when we were younger and naïve and how over time our innocence has disappeared and how experience has kind of kicked in especially when you’re smoking 40 cigarettes."

He added: “We played this amazing show after September 11 and we remember all these blinding lights after playing ‘Where The Streets Have No Name’. People were crying and it was an amazing thing to see.”

The band then ended the show with new song ‘City Of Blinding Lights’ and Bono said: “We’ll see you next summer. It’ll still be raining,” before he left the stage.

U2 fan Rob Cole, 33, from Shepherd’s Bush said he was surprised the band carried on playing after their TV appearance.

He said: “It was amazing. I really didn’t expect that. You don’t get to see the biggest band in the world play at the bottom of your street for free very often. It is good to see they are just as good as they always have been and I’m looking forward to seeing them tour next year.”

U2 played:

* ‘Vertigo’
* ‘All Because Of You’
* ‘Desire’
* ‘She’s A Mystery’
* ‘City Of Blinding Lights’