NEWS – Fans refused entry to Vaccines gig for not knowing Album titles

(story by chris birchall – the hairy photographer)

Sometimes you read something on Facebook and think: “No, surely this is a joke…!”
That was my very response when I saw this today.  It would appear that the Publicity Department at Venue Cymru are experimenting with new ways to lose money.  I have never …ever …in my entire life heard of anything so ridiculous as asking people to take an I.Q. test before admitting them – even though they have a perfectly valid, paid-for, ticket!

And how, I wonder,  did they select the people in the queue to harass in this way?    Did Andy Bellis and the other five who were refused entry look like pick-pockets?  I would have thought that a major requirement of being a pick-pocket is that you strive not to look like one!

In fact, by their very action yesterday, the Venue Cymru Gestapo have just ensured that any future pick-pockets thinking of targeting the theatre will simply swot up on whichever band is performing before hand.  That way they will get in, whilst the poor concert-goer who cares more about the music than the names of the band members, will get ejected.

If they really want to ethnicly cleanse their audiences, perhaps they should also exclude anyone who is black, yellow, too tall, too short, ginger, or who looks as if they might be gay!

I’ve got a better idea:  They should exclude (from their payroll) anybody who has their head so far up their own arse to have come up with such a shitty idea!

This was Venue Cymru’s response on their Facebook page today:

Venue Cymru was made aware that pickpockets may attempt to operate in the arena during the Vaccines gig. In order to ensure the safety and security of our customers we carried out random checks of those in the queue. As a result 6 people were refused admission and a further two people were ejected from the building. Security were working closely with the police and licensing officers throughout the evening.

You can follow the drama on Andy Bellis’ Facebook page:

• Until such time Venue Cymru publicly apologise, sack the perpetrators of this lunacy and promise never to do such a thing again, I have pulled all the venue’s listings from the Hairy Photographer’s What’s On Guide.