Woman furious after finding out who was supposed to be Sam Smith's special guest for cancelled Manchester gig

There are some acts who are so famous that getting to see them live is probably going to be a once in a lifetime opportunity - if you even make it that far.

Elton John, Queen and the late Tina Turner are some of the examples that spring to mind; performers that fans would only have a chance at seeing in person through rare tours, expensive tickets or surprise festival appearances.

There is one other way you might get to see them, though, and that's if another act brings them out on stage for you.

Sam Smith teased they'd be doing exactly that with a very big star as they prepared for their show at Manchester Arena on Wednesday (24 May), with a post on Twitter announcing: "Manchester. We've got a surprise for you this evening. Unholy won't be the last song..."

The post came shortly after Smith hinted at a new collaboration with one of the world's biggest stars, so when posters around Manchester started to appear with hints of their own, fans were quick to make assumptions.

One fan who attended the gig was 22-year-old Charley Marlowe, a 'scouser livin in manc' who headed over to the AO Arena ready to watch Smith on Wednesday.

The singer urged fans to stick around until the very end of the show as they told the crowd they'd planned a 'little surprise', adding: "I want to play to you one of my new songs that's coming out.

"So after the show, at the very end of the show, after 'Unholy', please stay around. If you have to go it's fine it's fine."

Unfortunately, Smith never made it to the end of the show, as after just four songs the stage was plunged into darkness and an announcement over the tannoy confirmed the show was cancelled as Smith had 'issues with their voice'.

Marlowe made clear she was disappointed at the show being cancelled, but for her that 'wasn't the issue'.

In a video shared after the cancelled gig, she explained: "We all left, but at the start of the gig Sam went 'oh, I've got a new song out'... Go on Sam Smith's Instagram, because I did. Do you know who the new song's with? Madonna."

That's right, Smith's new track comes in collaboration with one of the most iconic pop stars out there, and posters around Manchester featured the letters 'S&M'.

"Why would you perform a new song with Madonna if Madonna's not gonna be there?," Marlow asked, before adding: "Oh but that's the thing. Madonna was there. Madonna was there and she was gonna perform but she didn't come out...

"I don't wanna speak to anyone. I'm going back to bed."

Smith hasn't explicitly stated that Madonna was going to join them on stage, but they certainly dropped enough hints to suggest it was going to happen, and that was plenty to leave Marlow - and probably hundreds of others - absolutely gutted.

Following the cancelled gig in Manchester, Smith has also announced the cancellations of gigs in Birmingham and Glasgow.

LADbible has reached out to Sam Smith's representatives for comment.