People who were told that they’d secured tickets in a ballot for a special coronation concert being organised by the BBC are furious after they found the tickets had all sold out. Many have missed out thinking that the tickets were to be allocated on a geographical basis.
But on then trying to secure their tickets yesterday, hundreds found that they’d all already gone, and that it was a final wave of previously unclaimed tickets that were in fact being distributed on a first-come first served basis instead. Those who’d been selected in the ballot were told in an email yesterday that they would have until April 27 to claim the tickets, which is what appears to have caused the confusion.
The ticketing for the event is being managed by concert giant Ticketmaster. In a statement, it said: “Everyone who was successful in the two main ballot rounds for the Coronation Concert was offered a guaranteed pair of tickets, provided they claimed them within three weeks.
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"Today, any unclaimed tickets were released on a first-come, first-served basis to those who had previously applied to the ballot (and were unsuccessful). These inevitably went very quickly."
10,000 tickets for the event were released, with wording on the Royal Family’s website saying that they ‘will be allocated based on the geographical spread of the UK population and not on a first-come, first-served basis’.
Similarly, information on the BBC website said that ballot winners would have 'two weeks in which to claim your ticket and will be sent reminders by email during this period’.
However, information from Ticketmaster emailed to ballot winners yesterday then contained the conflicting information that ‘tickets in this supplementary round are being offered to a randomly selected group of ballot winners on a first-come, first-served basis, so you will need to act quickly in claiming your tickets to ensure you secure them’.
The tranche of tickets released yesterday was the final wave of tickets that had not been previously claimed by ballot winners, and were made available to those who had applied but not been successful in the previous ballots.
One disappointed ballot winner said in a post to Twitter: “So I've won 2 tickets to the Coronation Concert but when I tried to claim them, no tickets were actually available. The ballot was a fraud.”
Another pointed out the confusing messaging in the Ticketmaster information they received, which states that the tickets ‘are not being allocated on a first-come first-served basis’.
“@Ticketmaster you clearly stated that the tickets Are NOT being allocated on a first come first serve basis. Yet when sent a congratulations email saying I’ve got 2 tickets, it says they’re now SOLD OUT. How is that?,” they said, tagging in Trading Standards.
Others have said that they had already secured accommodation in nearby hotels, only to find that they'd not got tickets after all.
The show happens on May 7 in the grounds of Windsor Castle. Playing will be Take That members Gary Barlow, Howard Donald and Mark Owen, alongside Lionel Richie, Katy Perry, Andrea Bocelli and Welsh singer Sir Bryn Terfel, with actor Hugh Bonneville hosting.
The BBC is yet to comment on the matter.
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