AEG apologise after security drags comic off stage
AEG Presents and Just for Laughs (JFL) have apologised after security dragged two acts from the stage at The O2 in London after the show they were performing ran late.
Chortle reports that comedian Jazz Emu and host Zach Zucker were forcibly removed from the stage of the venue’s Spiegeltent during the comedy festival’s inaugural UK edition earlier this month. The incident took place two weeks ago but was not reported at the time.
“On Friday 3 March at the Stamptown event at Just For Laughs London, there was an attempt to remove one of the artists from the stage, due to the event running significantly past curfew,” says a statement by co-organisers AEG and JFL.
“This is not usual protocol for events at The O2, or events conducted by AEG Presents or Just For Laughs”
“We sincerely apologise to the artists and fans present for any distress caused. This is not usual protocol for events at The O2, or events conducted by AEG Presents or Just For Laughs. We have reached out to Jazz Emu’s team to apologise and address this directly.”
AEG announced a collaboration with JFL, the world’s largest comedy festival, held in Montreal, Quebec, Canada each July, in January 2022.
Just For Laughs London debuted from 2-5 March at various venues across The O2 complex, headlined by Hollywood star Ryan Reynolds. It is intended to become an annual event at the venue.
Just for Laughs Group was acquired in 2018 by an investor group led by ICM Partners and its longtime client, Canadian comedian and actor Howie Mandel.
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MI5 criticised in final Manchester attack report
The final volume of three inquiries into the 2017 Manchester Arena bombing has concluded that security services missed a “significant” opportunity to take action that could have prevented the attack.
The Manchester Arena Inquiry, led by chairman Sir John Saunders, today published the third of three reports about the bombing, which killed 22 people at an Ariana Grande concert on 22 May 2017.
In the 226-page report, Sir John detailed his findings and recommendations on radicalisation and preventability, including looking at whether MI5 and counter-terror police could have stopped the bomber Salman Abedi carrying out the attack.
He said the reasons for the significant missed opportunity included a failure by a security service officer to act swiftly enough.
“I have found a significant missed opportunity to take action that might have prevented the attack,” he says. “It is not possible to reach any conclusion on the balance of probabilities or to any other evidential standard, as to whether the attack would have been prevented.
“However, there was a realistic possibility that actionable intelligence could have been obtained which might have led to action preventing the attack. The reason for this missed opportunity included a failure by the security service, in my view, to act swiftly enough.”
“Gathering covert intelligence is difficult – but had we managed to seize the slim chance we had, those impacted might not have experienced such appalling loss and trauma”
The inquiry also identified problems with the sharing of information between the security service and counter terrorism policing, although “none of these problems is likely to have had any causative significance”.
In response to the report, MI5 director general Ken McCallum says he is “profoundly sorry” the intelligence service did not prevent the attack.
“The terrorist attack at the Manchester Arena was a terrible tragedy,” says McCallum. “The bomber killed 22 innocent people and harmed many others. My thoughts are with the families and friends of those killed, and with all those whose lives were changed by this appalling act of terrorism.
“Having examined all the evidence, the chair of the inquiry has found that ‘there was a realistic possibility that actionable intelligence could have been obtained which might have led to actions preventing the attack.’ I deeply regret that such intelligence was not obtained. Gathering covert intelligence is difficult – but had we managed to seize the slim chance we had, those impacted might not have experienced such appalling loss and trauma. I am profoundly sorry that MI5 did not prevent the attack.”
“Since the terrible events of 2017 we have made more than 100 improvements. But we are determined to do more”
He continues: “The people of MI5 and our policing partners come to work every day to stop terrorism. We continually work to improve the counter-terrorism system; since the terrible events of 2017 we have made more than 100 improvements. But we are determined to do more. As the chair now considers his recommendations, we will engage fully.
“Where there are opportunities to strengthen the UK’s defences further, MI5 will act. We will continue to do everything in our power to keep our country safe from hidden threats. MI5 exists to stop atrocities. To all those whose lives were forever changed on that awful night: I am so sorry that MI5 did not prevent the attack at the Manchester Arena.”
The second inquiry into the attack, published in November 2022, made a series of recommendations for events after identifying numerous failings by the emergency services.
The inquiry heard that firefighters did not arrive at the venue until two hours after the explosion, only one paramedic entered the scene in the first 40 minutes. Greater Manchester Police did not declare a major incident for more than two hours.
It concluded that injuries suffered by one of the victims – 28-year-old John Atkinson – were survivable but for “inadequacies” in the emergency response, and found that the venue’s then event healthcare provider Emergency Training UK (ETUK) “had not adequately prepared to deal with a major incident response”.
Among Sir John’s 149 recommendations within the report were that “a standard should be set for the level of event healthcare services that are required for any particular event”.
The latest findings also follow the first report, published in June 2021, which found there were multiple “missed opportunities” to prevent or minimise the impact of the bombing.
The report, which looked into security arrangements at the arena on the night of the bombing, concluded that the bomber should have been identified as a threat on the night of the attack.
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Martyn’s Law legislation confirmed for UK venues
Security at venues is to be tightened in the wake of the Manchester Arena terrorist attack under new rules announced by the UK government.
The draft legislation, which will be published in the spring, has been dubbed ‘Martyn’s Law’ in tribute of Martyn Hett, who was killed alongside 21 others in the bombing at an Ariana Grande concert on 22 May 2017.
Working closely with security partners, business and victims’ groups – including Hett’s mother Figen Murray and the Martyn’s Law Campaign Team, and Survivors Against Terror – the new duty will require venues to take steps to improve public safety, with measures dependent on the size of the venue and the activity taking place.
A standard tier will to locations with a maximum capacity of over 100. This will include training, information sharing and completion of a preparedness plan to embed practices, such as locking doors to delay attackers’ progress or knowledge on lifesaving treatments that can be administered by staff while awaiting emergency services.
Locations with a capacity of over 800 people will additionally be required to undertake a risk assessment to inform the development and implementation of a thorough security plan. Subsequent measures could include developing a vigilance and security culture, implementation of physical measures like CCTV or new systems and processes to enable better consideration of security.
“As an industry, we remain resolute in our longstanding commitment to keep fans safe”
“As an industry, we remain resolute in our longstanding commitment to keep fans safe,” says LIVE CEO Jon Collins. “We will work closely with government to ensure that proposals, such as the suggested Martyn’s Law, are realistic and workable, and improve safety for all.”
The government will establish an inspection and enforcement regime regarding the proposed legislation, with sanctions to be issued for serious breaches.
“The way the city of Manchester came together as a community in the wake of the cowardly Manchester Arena attack, and the amazing work of campaigners like Figen Murray who have dedicated their lives to making us safer and promoting kindness and tolerance, is an inspiration to us all,” says prime minister Rishi Sunak.
“I am committed to working with Figen to improve security measures at public venues and spaces and to delivering this vital legislation to honour Martyn’s memory and all of those affected by terrorism.”
“Common-sense security, and making sure venues are doing all they can to keep people safe, could mean fewer suffer what myself and the families of Manchester have had to endure”
“Martyn’s Law isn’t going to stop terrorism, but common-sense security, and making sure venues are doing all they can to keep people safe, could mean fewer suffer what myself and the families of Manchester have had to endure,” adds Figen Murray.
“I welcome the government’s commitment to including smaller venues and working quickly on this legislation. It is vital we now take the necessary steps to protect ourselves and others wherever possible and I hope other countries learn from this ground-breaking legislation.”
Dedicated statutory guidance and bespoke support will be provided by the government, while expert advice, training and guidance is also already available on the online protective security hub, ProtectUK.
Last month, the Manchester Arena Inquiry, led by chairman Sir John Saunders, published the second of three reports about the bombing and made a series of recommendations for events after identifying numerous failings by the emergency services.
The findings follow the first report, published in June 2021, which found there were multiple “missed opportunities” to prevent or minimise the impact of the bombing.
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French festival cancelled due to fire risks
France’s Villa Pop festival has been cancelled at the 11th hour due to concerns over wildfires.
The boutique two-day event was scheduled to welcome acts such as Boombass, The Supermen Lovers, Julien Granel and Mountain Honey to Le Pradet in southeastern France from 25-26 August, but has now been pushed back to 2023.
Organisers say the decision was taken due to “regulatory reasons which are beyond our control”.
“The risk of fires has increased in the region in recent days, and these security constraints have come to prevent the planned progress of the event,” says a statement to ticket-holders. “We have not found the solutions to welcome you in optimal security conditions on this site.”
Wildfires have raged across France this summer, amid successive heatwaves and its worst drought on record. France24 reports that more than 57,200 hectares have gone up in flames so far in 2022 – nearly six times the full-year average for 2006 to 2021.
“Venues that would have been able to accommodate us are now out of availability”
The Villa Pop team say they tried and failed to find an alternative venue.
“In order not to ruin the party and keep the festival going, we’ve searched for a new venue that can accommodate 1,000 people per day,” adds the statement. “Unfortunately, August is extremely busy with events around the region, and venues that would have been able to accommodate us are now out of availability until October 2022.
“Not wanting to welcome you in a setting that does not fit the image of the festival, we are forced to postpone this event to the summer of 2023 with a new suitable space.”
Dates for the 2023 festival will be announced soon, with tickets purchased for this year remaining valid. The deadline for refunds is September 15 2022.
Earlier this summer, the opening two days of France’s Eurockéennes de Belfort were cancelled after falling victim to inclement weather, while Rock en Seine scrapped a planned standalone date headlined by Rage Against the Machine, following an injury to RATM frontman Zach de la Rocha.
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ASM partners with AI-based security scanning system
ASM Global has announced a partnership with Evolv Technology, a leader in weapons detection security screening.
The implementation of the “state-of-the-art technology” is said to enhance venue safety and security at ASM venues, as well as improve the customer experience by reducing queues and offering a seamless and swift arrival to the venue.
AO Arena (cap. 21,000), operated by ASM, is the first arena in Europe to use Evolv’s technology as part of a £50m investment into Manchester’s iconic venue.
The venue has been using AI-based threat detection screening system, Evolv Express, to screen guests as they arrive at the arena for events, without the need to stop or remove items from their pockets or policy-compliant bags.
So far, the system has been used for eight shows and welcomed over 54,000 guests with a full roll-out planned for September.
As part of the new partnership, ASM Global has been working closely with Evolv to ensure the technology has been tested to government standards in both the UK and US, as well as collaborating on further improvements and continuous development.
“We are planning a further roll out to other venues in Europe as part of our VenueShield programme”
Evolv Express uses powerful sensor technology with proven artificial intelligence (AI) to provide safer, more accurate threat detection at unprecedented volumes and speed of entry. Venue ingress data provided by Evolv’s analytics also helps venues to transform the way in which they plan their security staff and wider operations.
In an industry first, security professionals can use historical and real-time screening data to gain insights and to make predictions about throughput, with the goal of improving the guest experience while making the space more secure.
Peter George, CEO, Evolv Technology, says: “We are thrilled to partner with ASM Global to provide an enhanced security posture for AO Arena while making sure the guest experience is truly enhanced. With this partnership, AO Arena joins other iconic venues secured by Evolv, including Lincoln Center and Gillette Stadium in the US. As we continue to expand globally, we look forward to working with ASM to help bring safer venues and better experiences to more people.”
Gary Simpson, director of safety security and risk for ASM Global, adds: “We have been working with Evolv for over two years supporting the testing and development of the Evolv Express system. The detection technology has been used for some time in America but this is the first such deployment at an arena in Europe. Given the positive experience at the AO Arena, Manchester we are planning a further roll out to other venues in Europe as part of our VenueShield programme.”
Evolv operates as part of ASM Global’s VenueShield, the company’s safety and security programme. Evolv marks the first addition to VenueShield since Covid as security and safety turn to new technologies to keep customers safe and to future-proof venues.
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Astroworld investigation: ‘This is about learning’
Crowded space expert Professor Chris Kemp has spoken to IQ about concert safety following the deadly crowd surge at Travis Scott’s Astroworld Festival in Houston, Texas.
Police have opened a criminal investigation after at least eight people, aged between 14-27, died and hundreds others were injured at the 50,000-capacity event at NRG Park on Friday (5 November). Multiple lawsuits have already been filed by Astroworld attendees.
Inquiries are expected to take “weeks if not months” to complete, and Kemp, of Mind Over Matter Consultancy, hopes the findings will go towards preventing similar tragedies in the future.
“These reports sometimes contain less than is actually needed because they tend to focus on blame, rather than support in delivery and development,” he tells IQ. “But what needs to be looked at is both the distal and proximate causations – those elements are so important for the industry to learn from – because this is about learning.”
He adds: “There are a lot of things going on at an event of that size and you have to make sure you’re mitigating risks as much as you possibly can. But I can’t cast aspersions about anything that happened to that event, because I don’t know and we don’t know. All we’re getting is snippets from the press, newspapers, TV, and remember, people like sensationalising things. We need to know the underpinning facts. And as those come out, to learn from them and take that on board.”
Kemp explains the key areas likely to be scrutinised by the authorities.
“It’s most likely going to focus on the planning of the event, the management of the event, the artist’s behaviour, the crowd behaviour,” he says. “It will focus on a range of things with those as major blocks, but also the interoperability between all the services that were there.
“We haven’t yet really got a full view from anybody about what happened. We know what the main elements are, but the overall timeline hasn’t been released yet.”
It’s about three key elements: security, safety and service
Such concert tragedies are infrequent, but not unprecedented. Eleven people died in a crush at a gig by The Who at Riverfront Coliseum in Cincinnati, Ohio, in 1979, while two people were killed at a Guns N’ Roses performance at the UK’s Monsters of Rock festival in 1988 and three people died at an AC/DC concert at The Salt Palace in Salt Lake City in 1991.
Since the turn of the century, nine people died at Pearl Jam’s 2000 headline show at Denmark’s Roskilde Festival and 21 people died and more than 650 were injured in a July 2010 crush in a tunnel that served as the sole entrance to the Love Parade festival in Duisburg, Germany.
“The occurrences themselves are fairly rare,” says Kemp. “But there are thousands of near misses. And it’s about three key elements: security, safety and service, which are things that you balance to make the event work.
“Planning, communication and management, of course, are absolutely essential in ensuring the event is fit for purpose before people come into it.”
Kemp also addressed reports that a concert-goer was going around injecting people with drugs at the Astroworld event.
“Although that was probably not a contributing factor to the disaster, I think it’s something that we need to keep our eye on because it’s been brought up from all sorts of different events, starting in UK nightclubs,” he says. “So it’s very difficult to get a handle on.”
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Safe presents findings of three-year project
After three years of research, Safe, a pan-European project working to improve safety at live events, today (22 March) presented its conclusions.
Initiated and coordinated by French live music association Prodiss, in partnership with Le Laba (FR), Issue (CH), Mind Over Matter Consultancy (UK), TSC Crowd Management (NL), Wallifornia MusicTech (BE), ILMC (UK), BDKV (DE) and the European Arenas Association (NL), the Safe Project aims to improve the safety of live event spaces and develop the skills of safety and security professionals across the continent.
Initiated after the 2015 terrorist attacks in Paris, the project, funded by the EU’s Erasmus+ adult education programme, evolved with the Covid-19 crisis to ensure that health, safety and security continued to be seen as priorities during the pandemic.
As part of the project, Safe participants presented results of their research and experiments, including:
- The implementation of two innovative safety education programmes for event professionals
- Four tests of these new training formats on site with European experts in the field, at La Seine Musicale (Paris), Barclaycard Arena (Hamburg), MaMa Festival (Paris) and Eurosonic Noorderslag (Groningen)
- Two hackathons to develop technological solutions for welcoming and securing audiences, one in person at Wallifornia Music Tech (Belgium) and the other online in 2021
- An overview of European experiments (and lessons learned from them) following the pandemic’s emergence in March 2020
Five events were used to disseminate the results of the Safe project. These included an online webinar, broadcast in French on 26 February, and the recent 33rd International Live Music Conference (ILMC), which took place online from 3 to 5 March.
Following the initial broadcast of the webinar, which can be watched back on the Safe YouTube channel, 67% of participants said they plan to use Safe resources and 70% will to share the information presented with their colleagues.
Live events professionals may access the Safe project resources at www.thesafeproject.eu.
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Article 25: Keep guns out, urge French festivals
French festival associations De Concert! and France Festivals have expressed their concerns about a controversial new security bill that would allow off-duty police and gendarmes to carry their weapons into music festivals, entertainment venues and other places open to the public.
Article 25 of the proposed global security (sécurité globale) law, introduced last October by the incumbent Jean Castex government, would remove the right of so-called public establishments (établissements recevant du public, ERP) to deny entry to police officers or soldiers of National Gendarmery who are carrying guns when they are not on active service.
The bill, which is opposed by many civil liberties groups, also contains several other provisions strengthening police powers, including giving municipal police access to CCTV footage, restricting when police and gendarmes may be filmed by the public, and expanding the use of police drones.
Ahead of the bill reaching the Senate, the two associations – along with six other groups, including the SMA (Union of Contemporary Music), Fedelima (Federation of Contemporary Music Venues) and Profedim (Union of Producers, Festivals, Ensembles and Independent Music Distributors) – have urged politicians to act to keep weapons out of ERPs, which also include concert venues, rehearsal spaces, theatres, cinemas, hotels and restaurants.
“With the adoption of article 25, the presence of weapons within ERP, and therefore cultural places, would be facilitated or even trivialised, and we see a serious danger,” say the eight associations in a statement.
“Our teams are unable to absolutely check the validity of a potentially falsifiable police card”
The associations’ objection is two-fold: First, that anyone posing as a policeman or gendarme could smuggle a gun into a live event, and secondly, that it reduces ordinary concertgoers to second-class citizens not entitled to the same privileges the police would enjoy.
“Our teams and our private security agents are unable to absolutely check the validity of a potentially falsifiable police card,” they continue. “Nothing could be simpler, therefore, for those who would like to commit a mass murder.”
Secondly, the statement adds, “because an undercover police officer who is not on duty is a citizen like any other, and citizens remain free and equal in rights, we see in this difference in treatment as an attack on the founding principles of our Republic.
“Thus, it seems to us that the benefits that the extension of the authorisation to carry weapons within the ERP would represent [pale in comparison] to the heavy risks involved.”
The draft global security law returns to the French parliament next month.
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Safe to hold hackathon on Covid-19 solutions for live
Safe – a European project that deals with event safety, security and crowd management – is inviting the public to join its hackathon, which aims to find innovative and viable solutions to help festival and events manage the constraints caused by Covid-19.
The hackathon will take place in the form of an ideation camp with four different focus groups, which will be guided by experts from the live sector, safety management, technology, data, smart cities and sociology:
- Tracing, guided by Paul Williams (head of security, AEG, O2 Arena), will focus on how to collect and streamline Covid-related health data from live events participants and how to process them at an operational level while ensuring users’ acceptance and personal data treatment compliance.
- Customer journey, guided Daniel Fletcher (chief innovation officer, Primavera Sound) will tackle how to imagine and design the implementation of Covid protection measures in the customer experience journey, with the contribution of technology and data flow to avoid frictions and facilitate seamless access.
- Flow and distancing management, guided by Morten Therkildsen (head of security, health and safety at Roskilde Festival) asks what is the right set and use of advanced tools to facilitate crowd management and meet the requirements of social distancing and available spaces for participants (crowd counter, distance measurement or capacity simulation)?
- Social Acceptance, guided by Pascal Viot (head of safety, security and services at Paléo Festival, director of the Swiss Institute for Urban and Event Safety), will address a transversal framework for reflection on the social acceptability of Covid protection measures (in general as in connection with event activity). Existing tensions exacerbated after 2015 terrorism attacks are palpable today with Covid when it comes to the point of balance between control and freedom, the imposition of measures and the social acceptability of these. How could live events become a laboratory for measures and civic behaviours to be adopted in our daily lives?
The Safe hackathon will take place on 21 and 22 January from 9:30 am –12:30 pm CET. Each group will host a maximum of 12 participants and registration is now open.
Safe is a project lead by Prodiss, with International Live Music Conference (ILMC), Le Laba, Issue, Wallifornia, TSC Group Management, Mind Over Matter Consultancy, BDV and European Arenas Association, and backed by the European Union via Erasmus Plus program.
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French biz laments “very partial” Collomb circular annulment
French industry association Prodiss and trade union SMA have deemed the State Council’s recent changes to the controversial Collomb circular as “very partial”, saying they will continue to “defend the sector against the directive”.
Proposed by former interior minister Gérard Collomb in May 2018, the so-called Collomb circular (circulaire Collomb) saw organisers pay the government for the deployment of police at live events, except in the case of terrorist-related incidents.
The idea was met with incredulity across most of the industry, with many citing a drastic increase to security bills as a result.
Under the new changes, organisers no longer have to pay a deposit – equalling 60% to 80% of the total security cost – when agreeing a contract with the state. The annulment also removes a deadline that obliged organisers to complete their payment within a month of an event’s conclusion.
An additional change dictates that an agreement must be signed between organisers and the government in advance of an event, if any law enforcement is to be deployed and billed for.
“Safety is a sovereign matter that should not be dealt with by the organiser of festivals and shows alone”
Although Prodiss and SMA, who took legal action to revoke the circular in 2018, call the partial annulment “a first step against the injustice of the circular”, they state that the key issue of organisers reimbursing the state for security costs has not been called into question.
“Event owners will continue to single handedly bear the costs of all police intervention that is directly associated with their events,” reads a statement from Prodiss and SMA.
“For professionals, safety is a sovereign matter that should not be dealt with by the organisers of festivals and shows alone,” continues the statement. “Our organisations will continue to fight to defend the sector against this directive that weakens its entire cultural and artistic ecosystem.”
The changes to the circular come following the French government’s creation of a new decree last year, which provided funding for security enforcement at live events. The law failed to appease Prodiss and SMA, with event organisers only being spared costs in the case of “exceptional circumstances”.
Photo: Arthur Empereur/Wikimedia Commons (CC BY-SA 3.0) (cropped)
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