Ticket company Ticketmaster has apologised after a computer system went down at the Glasgow branch of Virgin Megastore on Saturday leaving many many Eminem fans angry and ticketless. As reported on Monday, tickets for Eminem’s UK dates sold out within an hour, despite the last minute addition of an extra date. Ticketmaster’s computer system in Glasgow collapsed within minutes of tickets going on sale at 9am, leaving Virgin staff to deal with some angry fans while all the Slim Shady tickets got snapped up by fans using other retailers.
Ticketmaster have issued the following statement: "Ticketmaster apologises to both Eminem fans and Virgin Megastores for difficulties experienced by those fans waiting to purchase tickets from Virgin Megastores. The higher-than-anticipated demand overwhelmed Ticketmasters ability to provide sales at these locations. An investigation will take place to help prevent future problems arising."
A spokesman for Virgin Megastore told reporters: "The system went down and then it got quite scary as the crowd wouldn't disperse from the store. There was shouting and our staff felt really intimidated so we decided with the police to close the store to guarantee the safety of our staff."
Reports suggest there was a simlar situation at Virgin stores in Aberdeen and Edinburgh. Tickets for the Scottish gig are now said to be going for £175 on auction websites.