Fainting, endless queues, and inaccessible areas: The messy chaos of Bludfest 2024

One attendee claimed even a member of security was smoking weed

4 months ago

Youngblud held his new festival, Bludfest, in Milton Keynes yesterday, but it seems like it wasn’t all it was cracked up to be. Fans say they’ve been left “heartbroken” after going to the “entirely unsafe” event, which saw inaccessible events and attendees fainting in the stifling heat before they even made it to the gates.

Festivalgoers say that an hours-long queue outside the National Bowl in Milton Keynes, where the event was held, was “absolutely horrendous” and was so long they missed many of the acts performing. Here’s all the Bludfest 2024 chaos from Sunday’s festival.

There were huge accessibility problems

Bludfest was sick for soooo many reasons but I gotta say from an accessible standpoint it was absolutely horrendous

— tasha bloom 🍉 (@tashabloombaby) August 11, 2024

Disabled concertgoers pointed out a number of accessibility problems that they faced yesterday. Gravel surfaces, and a number of other hazards prevented wheelchair users from easily accessing parts of the site. An accessible car park also cost £27 – more than half of the cost of a ticket.

Fans say they were left queueing for hours without water

https://twitter.com/twilightinnie/status/1822628619060908260

Some fans, including pregnant women and children, passed out in the queue, whilst others vomited. People in the queue allegedly urinated in bushes and trees as there were no toilet facilities outside the grounds. Much of this Bludfest 2024 chaos took place as people suffering in the queue could hear acts performing in the distance.

Fans added that when they asked for water, they were told they could get water once they got into the festival.

Attendees told The Tab that security staff “didn’t care in the slightest about the wellbeing of the queue” and were smoking weed.

This month there have been several weather warnings and temperatures peaked at 28 degrees yesterday in Milton Keynes.

People missed artists as they were stuck queuing

@dumbsuka.com

also it was hot and no one had water. someones getting fired 🥴 #bludfest #yungblud

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Jessica Hedges, 20, travelled for three hours to watch Nessa Barrett, arriving at 12.45pm, 15 minutes before doors opened and several hours before Nessa Barrett performed 3.35pm.

Despite this, Jessica was one of the people who passed out in the queue after waiting for hours to get into the venue. She was given water by a policeman, who had to request it from security staff. Following the incident, Jessica took today off work and is still suffering from the effects of heatstroke, is vomiting and has a migraine.

Due to this, Jessica never got into the festival, and missed Nessa Barrett’s performance.

She said: “I am now heartbroken as I missed the people I was so excited to see for the last five months.”

She called for compensation for those affected: “People deserve refunds and compensation and at least some accountability to have been taken.”

People complained about drinks prices being expensive

woke up today feeling so ill but genuinely just so heartbroken i didnt even see nessa

— jess (@arisbabyd0ll) August 12, 2024

When Youngblud announced the festival in March, it was promised that the event would be affordable and “accessible for everyone”. In marketing materials for the festival, the artist even said “F*ck the corporate bullsh*t.”

Despite this, one fan said on social media they were charged £12 for two apple juices and two waters. Those prices are in addition to the £27 cost to anyone needing to use the accessible car park.

Jessica said: “I just don’t understand how they claimed this to be such a safe and accessible event, a safe space for people who feel different and separate, and this to be the result.”

A spokesperson for AIB security, who provided security staff for the event said: “Due to high temperature on the day we had security and medics within the queue dealing a number of incidents as well as trying to get everyone through search as quickly as possible.

“We had a procedure in place which supplied thousands of bottles of water to the queue and ensured all patrons were helped in an effective manner as soon as possible.

“We had a few medical incidents that required members of the public to be removed from the queue and taken to medical tents. The members of the public were still searched and had their tickets scanned at an appropriate time to ensure the integrity of our entry procedures

“Our policy for all employees is no smoking of any kind while actively on shift, all staff have bib numbers specific to them. If [attendees] have this number and any evidence of misconduct it will enable us to investigate.

“At no point did security stand down and allow the queue to just walk in, we had a robust search system and found a number of prohibited items that were confiscated – this led to continued high level search.

“Every entrance had an accessibility entry, and we had a dedicated gate with stewards around to assist those in need. There was a huge accessibility platform and dedicated routes for accessibility customers manned by security staff that were able to pass accessibility wristbands over to avoid customers constantly having to ask for access.

“The temperature and general walk up led to larger than anticipated queues and medical incidents. Security staff managed the queue effectively and the feedback from customers was extremely positive. If there were complaints about the behaviour of specific members of staff please relay this back to us so that we can investigate.”

A spokesperson for AEG Presents regarding Bludfest told The Tab: “We recognise that some fans experienced delays in entering Bludfest this weekend and apologise for the inconvenience caused. These delays were due to rigorous and heightened security measures, put in place following recent unprecedented events which have taken place in the UK, to create the safest environment possible for fans arriving onsite, which is our number one priority.

“As part of our pre-event messaging, we encouraged all ticketholders to come prepared for the hot weather and our teams on the ground assisted with handing out water, communicating shaded areas, and directing guests in need of additional assistance to the nearest welfare and medic stations. Upon the local authorities and security giving us the relevant permissions, we also opened additional gates and entrances.

Regarding claims about inaccessible areas, a spokesperson said: “Accessibility was at the heart of our planning for Bludfest, as it is for all AEG events. We put in place a vast range of measures including a dedicated accessible entrance, level access throughout the site, additional facilities such as toilets and seating, access wristbands and an expanded platform among other initiatives. Accessibility is a major priority for us and for the fact some fans felt we didn’t meet their needs on the day, we would like to say sorry.”

We have taken on board all the feedback received and will make every endeavour to ensure appropriate changes are implemented in the future.”

Regarding claims of illegal substances, a spokesperson for AEG presents said: “AEG have strict policies regarding illegal substances and have forwarded this allegation to the appropriate team for a thorough investigation of this claim.”

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