Chaos as free rave cancelled after followers ‘bounce fences’ to get in to pop-up gig
Ravers were left disappointed when a “pop-up” event in Manchester for the popular Dutch DJ duo, ANOTR, was abruptly halted – with disappointed attendees urged to leave the venue.
ANOTR, who have enjoyed UK chart success this spring with their track Talk To You, were scheduled to perform at an undisclosed location in the city on Friday May 29.
Enthusiasts quickly snapped up complimentary tickets for the event online, before the venue was unveiled as the Projekts MCR Skatepark, beneath the Mancunian Way, on London Road. However what should have been a festive occasion came to a jarring halt midway through ANOTR’s set, after fans who couldn’t gain entry to the makeshift venue started scaling fences to get in.
It’s thought that more tickets were distributed than the venue could accommodate, with the DJs informing fans the event was always meant to be “first come first served”, reports the Manchester Evening News.
Footage widely shared on TikTok shows individuals attempting to climb the fence, followed by pleas for those outside the venue to disperse. Student Peter Gallagher, from Eccles, arrived at the event 40 minutes prior to its start and was granted entry. The 20-year-old told Manchester Evening News the venue quickly reached capacity, before gates were shut with ticket holders still outside.
Those outside the skatepark started “getting rowdy” and began to scale the fences, causing the event to be abruptly halted. Peter said: “They were meant to be on for three hours but were only for 30 minutes.
“Even though it’s a free event, it was pretty annoying. They have had free events in other cities around the world like Milan and Rio and they have gone ahead fine.”
Peter mentioned there was a 30-minute period without music, with attendees hoping ANOTR would resume their set. He recounted seeing individuals start to climb onto toilet cubicle roofs to try and get over the fences, while those who went outside to use the loo were “getting angry” after being barred from re-entry.
But, following a half-hour wait, people began to disconnect equipment from the DJ booth, and an announcement confirmed the event had been cancelled.
In a video shared online, Jesse van der Heijden – one half of the DJ duo ANOTR – could be heard pleading with the crowd outside the fence to back off “otherwise this party is gonna be shut down.” He added: “This is a free party, it’s a pop-up. It’s one in, one out, first come, first served. So people that came too late… next time, come early.”
A second man then implored people to move away so the event could proceed. He stated: “Alright, everybody outside, please stop ruining it for everybody. We need you all to leave. Please leave, please let this go ahead. If you’re waiting outside, please go somewhere else, because this will not get going again until you leave. Please.”
ANOTR – who are scheduled to perform at the No Art Open Air festival in Bolesworth Castle, Cheshire – subsequently posted a message on TikTok expressing their dismay at how events transpired. They stated: “We’re so disappointed that the pop up got cancelled.
“Unfortunately – people started climbing the fences, and the police decided to stop the event. Hopefully we’ll get another chance to make it happen!”
Several ravers took to TikTok to slam the event’s organisation. One individual wrote: “The whole thing was a mess.” Another stated: “Or just don’t do a pop up in a skatepark in Manchester like what were they expecting?”
However some placed the responsibility firmly on those gathered outside the barriers. One attendee told Manchester Evening News: “It was a great event, just a few who ruined it for everyone. Police shut it down as people were jumping in over the fence.”
Others voiced worries about the number of tickets distributed beyond capacity, though one TikTok user observed: “Mate could’ve easily fit hundreds more into the venue it wasn’t oversold at all.”
ANOTR also addressed the matter of tickets being purportedly “oversold”.
Addressing allegations on TikTok that twice as many tickets were distributed as the venue could accommodate, ANOTR stated: “We didn’t send tickets to that many people and it was a free event. it’s always first comes first serve (as communicated on the tickets) some people couldn’t take that.”
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