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gotdablouse
Yep, quite the ordeal...
It was off to a bad start from the beginning : "Confusion over Hyde Park "Seating Chart" with the whole T1/T2 - DC/GC mess [www.iorr.org]
And the ticket deliveries : "AEG Ticket Chaos for Rolling Stones at Hyde Park " [www.iorr.org] "
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Topi
It was a freemason conspiracy! =P
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Aquamarine
I went through all that too, like so many of us, but in retrospect it's amazing to think that there was actually a bright side, namely the tier 1 section turned out to be so much better than expected. But all that needless anguish was ridiculous--total bunch of amateurs.
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paulywaulQuote
gotdablouse
Yep, quite the ordeal...
It was off to a bad start from the beginning : "Confusion over Hyde Park "Seating Chart" with the whole T1/T2 - DC/GC mess [www.iorr.org]
And the ticket deliveries : "AEG Ticket Chaos for Rolling Stones at Hyde Park " [www.iorr.org] "
Indeed, these are the two most relevant threads for the issues that dominated a lot of peoples' lives in the weeks leading up to those Hyde Park shows; namely (i) actually comprehending WHAT precisely the layout was going to be on the day (and therefore by default comprehending what you'd paid for in "location" terms), and (ii) actually taking delivery of tickets and/or wristbands. There seemed to be so much confusion between three companies in particular - Barclaycard Unwind, The Ticket Factory, and Front Gate Tickets - that none of them knew what their own or anyone else's responsibilities were when it came to ticket dispatch. I've never witnesses a f**k up like it, and never wish to again. All I know is that without having made countless phone calls to both the Ticket Factory and Barclaycard Unwind in order to establish which of them precisely was responsible for sending out either the paper ticket or the plastic wristband with embedded chip (and then duly harassing them on a daily basis to actually stick afore-mentioned in the post) - I would most definitely not have received them in time for the event.
As if to prove the point, does anyone recall that Elton John was due to play in Hyde Park on Friday 12th July ? Regrettably he cancelled at the last minute because of appendicitis or something, but interestingly enough - the f***ing useless Ticket Factory did NOT even manage to get my ticket to me on time, it actually turned up at my address on Saturday 13th.
These sorts of companies do not deserve to be in business, they exhibit the competence of a three year old and their notion of customer service equates to having the manners of a pig.
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paulywaulQuote
Aquamarine
I went through all that too, like so many of us, but in retrospect it's amazing to think that there was actually a bright side, namely the tier 1 section turned out to be so much better than expected. But all that needless anguish was ridiculous--total bunch of amateurs.
Indeed, but WHAT an agony we all had to go through before finally discovering on the day what the layout was and how good it actually turned out to be.
The other thing of course not to overlook is that due ONLY to the massive pressure exerted on AEG by us (fans) to modify the front of stage layout to at least something "resembling" what they had stated it would be at the time people had bought their tickets, did it work out OK in the end. Be under no illusions, had it not been for the huge outcry and the innumerable complaints lodged with AEG, those people (like myself for example) who had bought TIER #1 tickets from the outset would have ended up being royally f***ed !!
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grzegorz67
Put beautifully Paul - I agree with every single word of that.
I work in Swindon and did a full day on 5th so had to do a mad dash to West London after work than continue to the Hyde Park Ticket booth by tube. I collected my T3 ticket minutes before the ticket booth closed for the evening. I had zero comminication from anyone and Had it not been for this board I wouldn't have known. I spent the previous week anxiously coming home and checking my post every day. Memories flooding back now.
Horrible, just horrible and the responsible parties clearly couldn't care less. T3 with no sealed FoS for early arrivals was a nightmare too - What concert venue still does that in this day and age ?
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with sssoul
Don't even get me started.
They had actually switched my shipping address to a tobacconist in Norway at one point before they switched all international orders to will call.
And that was only a tiny part of the hassle - it was like they were trying to get as much wrong as possible.
They did have it all sorted out better by the 13th, and some of the on-site personnel were very good, but ... ugh.
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LQ1977
Oh yes, very familiar. After having booked the tickets 3 months befor the actual show July 6, we were told about one-two weeks before (?) that they did not "have the time" to send the tickets by registered mail to many of us abroad before the show. It turns out we have to pick them up in the Park two days before/the day before/same day as the show. As we arrived in the evening July 5, it meant picking up the tickets the morning of the show day. Needless to say, I feared the worst and was rather annoyed and afraid of there being a mix-up and not getting or tickets.
BUT, as it turned out, picking up the tickets was a joy! Showed up about an hour before opening of the desks, it was already hot and sunny at 9 am, meeting other fans in the queue (which was not long!) and playing the Stones on my phone to the nearest ones. Enjoyed talking to people, both local and international (mother and daughter from Canada, guy from Israel...). And 10 minutes after the desks open, the tickets were in hand.
So, it ended well. But I do not understand why it should take 3 months to send the tickets - being paid for directly upon booking! Reimbursement for the extra fee for registered mail must have meant lots of extra work for them.
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paulywaul
Nor do I. I didn't THEN and I still don't now, not least of all because in this week ending Sunday 30th March 2014, I have (a) not only bought tickets for Berlin, Vienna, and Zurich, but (b) the bloody things are sitting here on my table looking at me !! A WEEK, just ONE WEEK - to buy and to receive at home. This is the way it should be.
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gotdablouse
In AEG's defense, let's remember that they were pretty responsive in accommodating T1 and T2 ticket holders requests after the layout was changed from what was originally advertised. For instance, those of us who hadn't been able to get a standalone T1 or T2 so had gone for a T1/T2+Unwind, were able to get the Unwind removed for a £100 refund (in my case they initially getting it wrong by converting my T1+Unwind into a T2+Unwind !). They could have just said, keep the ticket or get a refund and we wouldn't have been able to do anything about it.