Madonna in firing line over free gig tickets ‘blunder’

THE day started with Madonna being warned not to aim a gun at Murrayfield audiences on Saturday – but soon fans were taking pot-shots of their own at the queen of pop.

Hundreds of free tickets for the superstar’s first Capital show were given away yesterday, with organisers blaming a blunder which saw a secret web link leaked online.

Those who followed the link, which Ticketmaster said had only been made available to competition winners, could snap up genuine passes at no charge.

However, sceptical fans were keen to point out the free-for-all came after it was revealed thousands of tickets for the concert were unsold.

Just hours earlier, Lothian and Borders Police warned the singer that use of a fake firearm on stage, a feature of other performances on her world tour, would not be tolerated.

News of the giveaway broke yesterday afternoon, with hundreds of Twitter users quickly spreading the word.

But after organisers claimed it was a blunder, Evening News reader Robert Pearson summed up the thoughts of many people when he said: “Blunder? You mean they couldn’t sell them.”

Tickets for the show, part of Madonna’s MDNA world tour, are still being sold for all seating areas of the 60,000 stadium, ranging from £45 to £125 plus a £6 booking fee.
When the world tour was announced earlier this year, some fans expressed dismay that tickets were so expensive.

Responding to the criticism at the time, Madonna said: “Start saving your pennies now.”

A spokesman for Ticketmaster said fans who had got hold of tickets through the link would be allowed access to Madge’s first Scottish gig in her 30-year career.

He said: “This was a genuine link for competition winners set up in conjunction with the concert promoters Live Nation.

“There was a limited number of tickets for those who won. However, we think a lucky winner posted details of the link on to Twitter and
it has went round pretty quickly.

“It is unfortunate that people who have saw the link and claimed have taken away tickets from genuine competition winners. The link has now been shut down.”

Lothian and Borders Police, meanwhile, have told Madonna not to brandish guns during the concert after her pistol-toting antics in Paris and Israel earlier on her tour sparked controversy.

Officers said it was standard for any major show to meet the promoters beforehand
to discuss “appropriate 
behaviour”.

Asked if the star had been warned not to appear with fake firearms, a force insider reportedly confirmed: “It would fall under the realms of what would be deemed inappropriate behaviour.”

Anti-gun campaigners say pointing a handgun at the audience less than 40 miles from the site of the Dunblane massacre would be “extremely offensive”.

Live Nation could not be contacted for comment.