SYDNEY (AFP) - Legendary Irish rock group U2 arrived in Australia for its rescheduled Vertigo tour, which was interrupted by illness earlier this year.

"It is the best pleasure to be here," said the band’s frontman Bono.

"We have waited a long time for this," he told Network Ten News as the group began their first formal visit to Australia in eight years.

The band will play six dates in Australia starting with its opening concert in the northeastern city of Brisbane on Tuesday, followed by concerts in Sydney, Adelaide and Melbourne.

Bono, guitarist David "The Edge" Evans, bass player Adam Clayton and drummer Larry Mullen were in Australia in March at the tail end of the year-long world tour, but their concerts were cancelled when a band member fell ill.

After their Australian concert dates, U2 will also play two dates in Auckland in their first visit to New Zealand in 13 years.

Related posts:

• U2Tours.com: Rumors of an upcoming European Tour
• The Mirror: U2 Game For Touring After Bowl
• U2 reschedules Pacific dates for end of year
• U2 for 2008 O2 Arena residency?
• U2’s Vertigo Tour Hits The Road Again!