Gary Numan extended The Touring Principle into an international tour in 1980, beginning at Toronto's Danforth Music Hall on 18 February and concluding at Sydney's Capitol Theatre on 31 May. The tour covered 36 venues across eight countries and approximately 11,000 miles, taking in North America, Europe, Japan, New Zealand and Australia. It continued the futuristic staging and lighting that had characterised the original 1979 UK tour.
The performances retained established favourites including “Cars”, “Are 'Friends' Electric?”, “Down in the Park” and “M.E.”, while introducing newer material such as “I Die: You Die”, “We Are Glass” and songs that would later appear on Telekon. Denis Haines joined the touring band on keyboards, replacing Billy Currie, while Nash the Slash provided support during the North American dates.
