Rock legends Bruce Springsteen and Paul McCartney were left quietly seething last weekend, after killjoy officials at a concert in Hyde Park pulled the plug on the encore because the show ran over its approved time-slot.

But after a deluge of complaints from furious concert go-ers, Westminster City Council revealed it was not responsible for pulling the plug on the gig. Council officials said the decision was taken by the event organisers, who are subject to strict license arrangements.