"At the time it's just a question of trying to get home as quickly as possible – not standing around on cold platforms for trains not to arrive."

Mr Smith said the thieves were "obviously professionals" as the band had not realised the van had been broken into until they arrived at their destination.

Emerald Airlines said it "experienced a hard landing upon arriving into Belfast City Airport due to adverse weather conditions".

When he arrived, life in whatever town he had stopped, also stopped.

That raises the question of whether certain players in the Syrian drama concluded that the time to roll the dice on “sudden political change” had arrived, and who might benefit most from this disruption.