Camping chairs as weapons ?

[Toon Army]

Despite hundreds if not thousands of people taking them into the arena, some had them confiscated at the gate and had to collect them on the way out. Gate 6 at hylands, one queue took them off you, adjacent queue weren't bothered. Talking to a bunch of people in their 50's who were very upset about it, don't blame them

[Toon Army]

And umbrellas

[Zygon]

I know what you mean - utter madness, and caused major delays in getting into the arena on Saturday.

This was my 7th V Festival in succession, and I've never seen this happen before. Pretty sure the organisers didn't list chairs under the list of banned substances this year - and the haphazard way in which it was implemented just made things worse.

[phil the shrew]

Not been to the Hylands site but at Weston chairs have been banned for many years and is pretty heavily advertised with your ticket and signs above the arena when you go in

Don't think it's so much that someone might use them as weapons more that they take up a lot of space in the main stages and mske it a bit difficult to navigate through the crowd. Know I've gone arse over tit at other festivals over a fan sat in a chair in the middle of a crowd

[lorretta]

And umbrellas

I would ban umbrellas at every event personally, not only do they get in peoples queues the water drips down onto people around them, not to mention the potential to injure someone. Don't see why people can't just wear waterproof jackets like everyone else, not too bad if they stay back in the crowd but once in lots of people don;t

[Toon Army]

I would ban umbrellas at every event personally, not only do they get in peoples queues the water drips down onto people around them, not to mention the potential to injure someone. Don't see why people can't just wear waterproof jackets like everyone else, not too bad if they stay back in the crowd but once in lots of people don;t

Aye and shoes, the potential to injure someone is quite high. And belts.

[lorretta]

I don't tend to wave my shoes or belts in the air plus unless we are moving the festival indoors shoes are quite important, brolleys not so much just put a hood up like the rest of us! As I also said and was my main point they get in peoples views and everyone else gets dripped even more from it just so they can stay nice and dry. I have no problem with them if they stay out of the main crowd but there is no way for them to enforce that.

[grumpyhack]

Never been to V so can't comment directly on their chair ban. But I'm bringing a complaint against Orchard Entertainment who refused to allow chairs into the Cardiff Castle concert by Paul Weller last month. Under the Equality Act 2010 I've argued it was discrimination on grounds of age (one of the protected characteristics) as older people find it hard to stand for five hours - the duration of the event.

They are trying to counter with Health and Safety but there were plenty of areas where chairs could have been allowed without jeopardising the exit routes.

I'll never go to an Orchard Entertainment event again after the attitude they displayed. One woman, who broke her foot two days before the event, was refused entrance because she had brought a folding chair. The organisers refused to allow her in, or give her a refund, so she had to sit on the chair outside the castle gates and listen from a distance to the evening.

Orchard's security were also searching people on entrance for any food and drink. Even if you had a cheese sandwich it was confiscated and you were forced to buy their food and drink inside.

I can understand forcing everyone to buy their booze at their prices -fairly common in arena events - but to have a total ban on food was going a bit far.

[Toon Army]

The problem at V was that some people were allowed to take them in, but others had them confiscated. We took 2 in between 4 of us, but just the tiny tripod type, lovely to have a sit down, makes a long day much nicer.

[tjamest]

Aye and shoes, the potential to injure someone is quite high. And belts.

Back in the seventies when the Specials and Madness had a big skinhead following I was at a gig in Poole and they made everyone wearing Doc Martens take the laces out before they were let in

[insertwittynamehere]

I've never been to an outdoor event where they are allowed so I'm surprised people thought it was acceptable to bring them.

[Rose-Colored Boy]

I've never been to an outdoor event where they are allowed so I'm surprised people thought it was acceptable to bring them.

Glastonbury goers??

[Kris_lcfc]

Glastonbury goers??

Glastonbury doesn't have a segregated arena and campsite, hence you being able to drink your own carry in all weekend

[Rose-Colored Boy]

Yes but if the festival you'd learnt your 'festival etiquette' at was Glastonbury I can understand why you'd think it was perfectly acceptable and normal to bring camping chairs to a festival. With the more diverse lineup this year I wouldn't be surprised if some folks who normally stick to the more relaxed bourgeois fests like Glasto snuck in.

[grumpyhack]

I've taken a folding chair to every festival I've been to. My back wouldn't allow me to do otherwise. And it's not just bourgeois festivals.

My best fest of the year was a tiny event with 2,500 people Farmer Phil's Festival near Shrewsbury (slogan "Get on my land") where the website even encouraged people to bring their own chairs

http://www.farmerphilsfestival.com/

Edited August 19, 2014 by grumpyhack

[FeedMeBeats]

Well if WWF has shown us anything, its that Smashing people over the head is the main purpose of collapseable chairs.