Industry News

Live Nation set to offer refunds to UK fans following attack

Live Nation could offer refunds to UK ticket holders who no longer wish to attend concerts over terrorism fears.

The company is the promoter of the current Ariana Grande tour, which was suspended earlier this week after the attack at Manchester Arena in which 22 people were killed by a suicide bomber. Since then the UK government has raised the terror threat to critical, which means another attack could be imminent.

Entertainment news site TMZ reports that Live Nation is ready to offer refunds to those in the UK who fear attending events. The company, which owns Ticketmaster, has not made a decision on refunds for other countries, according to TMZ, but executives are having discussions at offices worldwide.

Ariana Grande’s Dangerous Woman tour has been suspended until at least June 5, with shows cancelled for now in London, Belgium, Poland, Germany and Switzerland.

A statement from the singer’s management team read: “Due to the tragic events in Manchester the Dangerous Woman tour with Ariana Grande has been suspended until we can further assess the situation and pay our proper respects to those lost.”

Reviewing security

Several high-profile shows, including Take That at the Manchrester Arena and the debut Amazon Prime Event with Blondie in London, have been called off in the aftermath of the bombing. Venues and promoters are reviewing their security and bracing for a spike in the cost of insurance coverage.

This weekend’s BBC Radio 1 Big Weekend festival in Hull is to go ahead, but organisers warned that attendees will face two rounds of “thorough” searches.

“The health and safety of everyone involved in Big Weekend is now our primary focus,” said a BBC spokesperson.

“Radio 1’s Big Weekend will be continuing as planned this weekend in Hull. After conducting a full review of the festival, in conjunction with the police and partners, various extra security measures have been put in place to ensure the safety of those attending.

“As part of this, everyone that enters the site will go through two rounds of thorough searches – one round conducted at transport hubs where police will be present, and a second round of security procedures at the entrance gates. We ask for the patience and cooperation of anyone coming to the event on the weekend and that they allow extra time to pass through security.”