Fans of the rock band Oasis complained bitterly yesterday about the ticket sale arrangements for the band's forthcoming Irish concerts which led to chaotic scenes in Dublin city centre early on Saturday.
Many teenage fans who had queued from Friday morning outside the HMV record stores in Grafton Street and Henry Street left after being told late on Friday night that over-the-counter sales for the two shows, at the Point Theatre in Dublin next month, had been cancelled.
Others left or were removed by parents out of concern for their safety as the crowds swelled to 2,000 in Henry Street and 1,500 in Grafton Street by 3 a.m. At one stage gardai decided to clear the streets, but this became unnecessary when the decision to cancel sales was reversed early on Saturday morning.
When doors finally opened at 7 a.m., fans who had waited in spite of the conflicting messages were allowed to buy just one tic ket each. A spokeswoman for HMV said yesterday it was not responsible for the sales or for thesecurity arrangements which she said were "inadequate".
HMV's marketing manager Ms Mella Moore said the sign in the shop advertising sales from 8 a.m. and two tickets each was up to date at close of business on Friday. She said HMV was an agent only with regard to ticket sales for the Ticketshop, which is located at Grafton House in Grafton Street.
"Allocation of tickets and provision of security to manage crowd control is therefore the full responsibility of Ticketshop." She said HMV had received assurances from Ticketshop on Friday that adequate security ar rangements were in place. HMV would be making inquiries today to find out what had gone wrong. "It is a serious situation and we're very angry about it," she said.
Ticketshop could not be contacted yesterday for comment.
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