Nicki Minaj has now finally confirmed the rescheduled date for her Manchester gig following her arrest in Amsterdam over the weekend.
In case you need bringing up to speed, the Trinidadian-born rapper and singer-songwriter was due to be flying from the Dutch capital over to Manchester this past Saturday (25 May) to perform a handful of sold-out shows at the city’s newest state-of-the-art arena, Co-op Live, as part of her ‘Pink Friday 2’ world tour.
But, in what was a chaotic and rapidly-developing saga, the 41-year-old was arrested at Amsterdam Schipol Airport after allegedly trying to take what was described as “soft drugs” into another country, according to Dutch Police.
Unsurprisingly, despite fans being let inside the arena and waiting several inside the brand-new premises hoping that Minaj would come on stage to perform, the Co-op Live, gig had to be called-off right at the last minute.
A statement from Co-op Live announcing the gig’s postponement on the night said: “Nicki Minaj’s scheduled performance at Manchester’s Co-op Live on Saturday 25th May has been postponed.
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“Tickets will remain valid for the rescheduled performance which will be announced ASAP.
“Despite Nicki’s best efforts to explore every possible avenue to make tonight’s show happen, the events of today have made it impossible. We are deeply disappointed by the inconvenience this has caused. More information will be available at your point of purchase.”
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The ‘Starships’ and ‘Anaconda’ singer was providing a live commentary of her arrest saga on her official social media platforms on Saturday night, and was very vocal on how her situation was being treated and handled by authorities, before eventually issuing a public apology to all fans who had travelled to see her in Manchester on the first night of her shows.
Nicki Minaj has confirmed the date for her rescheduled Manchester gig after Amsterdam arrest chaos / Credit: Nicki Minaj (via Facebook)
“Please please please accept my deepest and most sincere apologies,” Minaj wrote on X.
“[Dutch police] sure did know exactly how to hurt me today, but this too shall pass. They’ve been doing this over and over and over and over and over again, and I’ve tried so hard to not discuss it because you guys deserve to just get the good stuff. I hate involving you in anything that isn’t for entertainment purposes only.
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“We will have another date for [the 25 May] show shortly, and I’ll probably be able to share it tomorrow.
“One July option and one June option is currently being discussed. I’ll find a way to not only make up the date with the performance, but I’m going to create an added bonus for everyone that had a ticket for this show. Promise.”
Minaj also expressed her gratitude to Co-op Live’s willingness to keep the venue’s doors open until past 11:30pm on the night, in the event that she may have been able to perform.
OK guys, I was JUST RE-ADVISED that we actually CAN NOT do any other date for the make up #gagcityMANCHESTER date besides JUNE 3rd. So JUNE 3rd is the new official date for all ticket holders who originally had tickets to the MAY 25th #Manchester show. I apologize for all the…
And now, following days of discussion to agree on the plan of action – and following ‘confirmation’ of an incorrect reschedule date, which was already booked for Kings of Leon – Minaj and Co-op Live have now officially confirmed the date for the rescheduled show.
The ill-fated 25 May show has now been rescheduled for next Monday (3 June 2024), it has been confirmed.
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“OK guys, I was JUST RE-ADVISED that we actually CAN NOT do any other date for the make up #gagcityMANCHESTER date besides JUNE 3rd. So JUNE 3rd is the new official date for all ticket holders who originally had tickets to the MAY 25th Manchester show.
“I apologize for all the inconvenience this has caused. I really hope you can make the #JUNE3rd show. It’ll be really special.
“Ticketmaster will contact you to advise officially. Love you.”
Featured Image – Nicki Minaj / Live Nation / Ticketmaster
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Oasis finally confirm ‘private ballot’ ticket information for reunion tour
Daisy Jackson
Oasis have just announced more information about how tickets will be sold through a ‘private ballot’ for their extra reunion tour dates.
The group added two additional shows at Wembley Stadium after their initial 17 gigs across London, Manchester, Dublin, Edinburgh and Cardiff generated huge demand and sold out in a day.
Oasis and Ticketmaster came under fire though for the use of dynamic pricing, which saw ticket prices shoot up by hundreds of pounds by the time people made it through the online queues.
For these additional reunion tour dates at Wembley, ticket sales will look a little different.
They’ll be using a ‘private ballot’, which will give first dibs to those who missed out on the first ticket sale.
You’ll only be invited to register for the sale if you signed into your Ticketmaster account on Saturday 31 August, and joined a queue for a specific show.
And you’ll only receive an invitation if you DIDN’T manage to bag tickets the first time round.
THEN you’ll be able to register for the actual ballot, which still doesn’t guarantee you a ticket but does at least get you into a (hopefully less lengthy) queue.
“Invitations to enter the private ballot will be sent overnight tonight (Saturday) to eligible fans we have been able to identify.
“If you signed into your Ticketmaster UK account on Saturday, 31st August, and were able to join a queue for a specific show, but didn’t get a ticket-then you may be eligible to take part and will receive an email on how to register for the ballot.
“Keep an eye on the inbox associated with your Ticketmaster account, and don’t forget to check your junkmail.
“Once successfully registered, you will be entered into the ballot for a code for access to the final Wembley on sale.
“Due to the demand for the shows and to avoid last week’s long queues, codes will be strictly limited. Entry to the ballot does not guarantee you will receive a code.
“The ballot is only open to invited fans. You must register with the email to which your invitation was sent and which is registered with your Ticketmaster account.
“All other entries will be discounted. If you do not receive an email then unfortunately you will not be eligible for the ballot.
“You will be automatically discounted from the ballot, even if you go through the registration process.”
Featured image: Simon Emmett
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Manchester Airport named UK’s worst in annual Which? survey for third year running
Emily Sergeant
Manchester Airport has officially been declared the worst airport in the UK, according to a new survey by Which?… yet again.
The summer travel season may be drawing to a close now, with hundreds of flights having taken off and landed in our region over the last couple of months, but for any Greater Manchester holidaymakers who are still yet to jet off, an annual ranking by consumer choice group Which? has proved to be pretty grim reading.
That’s because several terminals at the UK’s third largest airport have found themselves at the bottom of the list in Which? latest findings.
Manchester Airport has hit back at the survey and defended itself, saying its own passenger surveys suggest people are “much more positive” about the airport, adding that it was “proud to give people in all parts of the North easy and affordable access to nearly 200 different destinations across the world”.
For its annual survey, Which? spoke to nearly 7,000 passengers to gather feedback about their experiences of flying from UK airports over the last 12 months, and asked them to score the airports across 11 categories.
Manchester Airport has been named the worst in the UK for the third year running / Credit: The Manc Group
Some of these categories including seating, staff, toilets, and of course, the queues we all dread at check in, bag drop, passport control, and security.
And just like in both 2022 and again in 2023, it was Manchester Airport Terminal 3 that ranked right at the bottom, receiving the lowest customer satisfaction score of 37%.
Manchester Terminal 1 ranked one place above that with a score of 40%, while Manchester Terminal 2 was a little further up the the list with a score of 51%, and just saw Luton Airport, London Stansted, and Belfast International Airport sandwiched in between it.
According to Which?, some of the complaints it received about Manchester Airport from passengers who responded to the survey this year was that older people struggled with long walks due to travelators being broken since 2021, difficulties with finding a seat, and “horrendous” queues with people apparently being “corralled like cattle”.
As mentioned though, Manchester Airport has slammed Which?’s findings in a formal statement.
The UK’s third largest airport has hit back at the survey results and defended itself / Credit:
Describing the survey as “disappointing to see”, Manchester Airport’s statement reads: “We understand not every experience is perfect and want all passengers to feel able to raise their concerns directly with us. That is why we speak to them on a daily basis, surveying hundreds of people a month to get in-the-moment feedback from a full range of perspectives.
“That is in stark contrast to Which?, which conducted a tiny and unrepresentative survey of its members six months ago, asking them to recollect airport experiences that could have been as far back in time as April 2023.
“Which? fully understands that its readers form a narrow group of passengers whose views cannot in any way be taken to represent those of the travelling public at large, but chooses to promote its survey findings as if they do.”
Manchester Airport says it’s disappointing see Which? “chase cheap headlines” with its “sensational and over-simplified characterisation of airports” and the different roles they play, adding: “To make matters worse, it has printed inaccurate statements about our facilities and security waiting times that paint a more negative picture than reality.