BOSSES at Scotland’s biggest Pride have admitted “over-selling of tickets” to last week’s festival in Glasgow.
There were chaotic scenes in the city’s Kelvingrove Park last week, as hundreds of people, who had already bought tickets, were knocked back when the event reached capacity at 2pm.
Organisers say they believe 600 people with tickets weren’t able to get in. That figure has been queried by some of those forced to queue for hours.
In a statement released on Wednesday, the board of trustees of Glasgow’s annual celebration of all things LGBTI, apologised “wholeheartedly” for the shambles.
They put the blame on a new system which allowed them to have instant access to cash paid for the tickets, something they said was necessary for putting on a large scale event.
The board said: “Part of the reasoning behind the issue with overselling was we had moved to a different ticketing system the week before the event which allowed us to withdraw funds the same day, to assist with cash flow. As a charity putting on a major event with big-name acts, cash flow is a constant challenge as it is for most Pride organisations.
“When we moved over to the new system, human error meant we didn’t cap the types of tickets and this led to tickets being oversold. For this we are sorry. We acknowledge this is unacceptable and offer our sincere apologies to everyone affected.”
Pride Glasgow also say their own investigation into what went wrong showed that as well as overselling tickets, there were “86 reported fence breaches”, which led to people being able to sneak into the festival site.
Labour MP Ged Killen, who attended the event, wrote to CEO Alistair Smith, asking organisers to open their books, and calling on them to be fully accountable about how much money they made, and how much money they spent.
He said: “Having spent well over an hour in a queue outside the main event before leaving and returning later in the day, I witnessed first-hand the chaotic queuing system. People were left standing with no information or guidance for several hours in the heat and with no water.”
“A significant number people were refused entry to Kelvingrove Park for the main concert despite purchasing tickets. I want categorical reassurances from Pride Glasgow that those who did not gain entry or who faced several hours waiting in line will be refunded promptly and in full.”
He added: “There is now growing interest in the seemingly commercial nature of Glasgow Pride and the fact it is not a free event as it is in other cities such as London and Edinburgh, and there are questions about whether this commercial nature had an impact on how Glasgow Pride was run.”
Pride have said that anyone who “feels they are entitled to a refund they should contact ticketsupport@pride.scot within 14 days.”
A petition calling on Smith to resign has now been signed by over 1,500 people.
Scott Agnew, who co-hosted the Glasgow event has said he will not work for the organisation again until there is a change of management.
Writing on Facebook, Agnew said the team behind the event had “become overwhelmed by the event and they lack the appropriate professional experience to take it any further.”
He accused them of treating the LGBT community with contempt.
“I will now never host another Pride Glasgow whilst this management team is in place - I can only hope for change and that in future a team will be put together that respects its’ performers, pays them a fair wage for a job done and treats them well.
“But more importantly Glasgow Pride gets a new management team that respects the community it is there to serve, listens to what it has to say and acts appropriately.”
Meanwhile, a Catholic priest has been removed as the chaplain at Glasgow Caledonian University after he held a service to atone for the “gross offence” of a Gay Pride event.
Father Mark Morris held recitation of the Rosary and blessing at the Immaculate Heart in Balornock, on Monday to make amends for the “gross offence to God which is Pride Glasgow.”
Glasgow Caledonian University’s principal Pamela Gillies said: “Following due consultation, Father Mark Morris will not return to his chaplaincy role at the university in September.
“The university will work with the Archdiocese of Glasgow to ensure the continued provision of chaplaincy support for staff and students at our faith and belief centre”.
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