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Hundreds of “Swifties” dressed in sequined skirts or cowboy hats gathered around Wembley Stadium from the afternoon onwards. The American singer performs in front of nearly 90,000 people every night. Taylor Swift He will play the final five European concerts of a tour that began in the United States about a year and a half ago.
The pop star resumed her monumental “Eras” tour in London on Thursday, eagerly awaited by fans after three concerts she had planned in Vienna were canceled last week following a suicide bombing.
Enhanced security
A week ago, Three concerts he had planned in Vienna were cancelled at the last minute after the suicide bombing plans came to light Austrian authorities said a “bloodbath” had been averted by arresting three suspects, including a young Islamist, aged 19.
We always have worries in our hearts, but someone is keeping us safe
“It’s reassuring to know that security has been stepped up after what happened in Vienna,” stressed Brodie MacArthur, 23, in an interview after arriving at Wembley. “We always have concerns but someone is keeping us safe,” added the student, who was wearing a long white dress inspired by her album The Tortured Poets Department.
London police said they were prepared for the event by ensuring enhanced ticket checks at entrances and extra security measures around the stadium, and called on the public to remain vigilant.
“I can’t believe it!” »
Hours before the show, security guards were stationed on the steps leading to the paddock, while police patrolled on foot and on bicycles, maintaining a discreet presence.
On the Wembley website, ticket holders were warned that “additional checks” would take place at the stadium “before entry”. Some fans arrived early for the event, with one even arriving on Wednesday morning to exchange pearl bracelets made popular again by the song “You’re on your own, kids”.
Katie Moulson even offered some to the security staff: “They seemed to appreciate it,” laughed the 24-year-old speech therapist who had travelled from the east of England, saying that the security measures deployed made her feel at ease and, most of all, impatient: “I couldn’t believe it!”.
Record-breaking Tour
Due to tight security, fans without tickets were not allowed to gather around the stadium to listen to the music, as they are used to doing during the singer’s concerts. Taylor Swift said that during the show in Madrid at the end of July, nearly 50,000 people “listened to the concert on a nearby hill” and “participated from a distance” in the evening.
The European part of the London tour will begin in Paris in May. The global superstar will travel to Canada from November for the final concert of a series of concerts that has rocked the world, sometimes during local earthquakes, but also with great economic impact. At the end of last year, “Eras” became the first tour in history to sell more than $1 billion in tickets.
Wave of domestic unrest
Taylor Swift returned to the British capital after selling out several concerts in London in June, nearly two weeks after three girls were murdered in a knife attack in Southport, northwest England, sparking a wave of xenophobic riots in the country. The children, aged six, seven and nine, were taking part in dance lessons themed to Taylor Swift’s songs, and Taylor Swift said on social media that she was “totally shocked”.
The pop star, who maintains a close relationship with her fans, has not yet commented on the decision to cancel the concert in the Austrian capital. Some “Swifties”, who have formed a very tight and active community on social networks, have agreed to resell or even give away tickets for the London concert to others who lost their seats in Vienna.
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