HOP FARM SHOWS TO WEMBLEY ARENA

[1000-kissesdeep]

it took me ages to choose my limited available seat at hopfarm - like 12 hours!! Now its all changed and I dont have any idea which seats ticketmaster will reallocate Praying for better ones, but it all looks complicated! Had i have know earlier i would have repurchased through here and cancelled ticketmaster. I just got the phonecall now from TM and then logged in here. It was my birthday and I have been away from internet so had not logged in here. Was rather looking forward to hopfarm, looks like a great place and somewhere to hang out before the show. But i guess sound will be better at Wembly and more people get the opportunity to see dear Leonard! I have no idea how to get the wembly and its London Argh! (travelling alone so a little nervous) Kent was manageable and i was very much looking forward to a weekend away myself in a lovely B&B in the country. really not sure how I am organising anything at this moment - apologies for telling you all my worries! xx see some of you there? any meet ups please let me know, i am really looking forward to meeting some of you...

[lightasabreeze]

I did not think there were sending tickets out. I just printed all my details of my row and seat number and paying details, which is all I did for the Hop farm. I phoned after doing that (for the HF ) and apparently that is your proof of ticket.
For the HF they charged £2.00 for printing it myself too.

[1000-kissesdeep]

...just read the car parking fees - ouch, I am overdrawn buying my ticket and with accomodation changes!! and need to park in a safe, nearest to venue place as travelling alone worried more

[loulou]

my commiserations to all who have lost money with prior bookings etc
happened to me with Berlin Waldbuhne & i lost a bucket of money on hotel, flight & non-refunded DHL ticket delivery fee
Eventim apparently sold tickets before the contract with AEG was inked

when Hop Farm came up, i considered it but got pissed off with the whole debacle again
it wasn't confirmed concert but meanwhile tickets were on sale
adn all the best tickets were going minute by minute
and the effing stress of it all really turned me off

and am glad now that i went with my gut feeling, seeing what some of have been going through again

funnily enough, here is one of my posts from 13 April, i quote :
'p.s. i meet Vince Powers many decades ago, he is a bit of a maverick, risk taker and ambitious business man too
i see now that he is planning to take Hop Farm to stock market, so it a possibitly that he 'has not yet got Cohen' but racing ahead to make it done deal and front it out
http://www.guardian.co.uk/business/2011 ... -flotation
again, just musing ....'

looks like i was kind of on the money with at least part of that

but
i remain a massive fan & will forever treasure the shows at Manchester Opera House, London RAH and Berlin Waldbuhne (a year later) ....

[David Blackman]

Got new tickets on Thursday on line just hope they arrive in time what a sweat it was to get through to the ticket people they were in melt down just don't know why things got
changed but just pleased to see Leonard in concert again I am sure it will be worth the hassle

[cohenadmirer]

Something else I have realised is that at the Hop Farm your ticket price for car parking was included with your ticket.
Ah.. Now it will cost you another £8.00 to park at Wembly. Can't win. Can you? £16 for larger vans.

I think it is £20 in the main car park for the Arena though and still cheaper than on Stadium days. The car parking for £8 is further away with another car parking company but not that far.

Exactly right - £8 to park about a quarter of a mile from the venue seems the best deal

www.wembleyparking.net

[Yorkshire Lad]

Although I have not booked for hop farm it still saddens me to read all the critical comments on Facebook . Admitted we do not know the reason for the change but if it turns out to be purely for financial reasons I am afraid it will reflect very badly on Leonard . As I have posted elsewhere on the forum I am worried that his management are putting greed above all other considerations . It might be that at seventy seven they know his touring is limited so they are going to squeeze every last penny out of the current tour . Very sad state of affairs and far be it for me to critisice a man who i have the greatest admiration for I thought Leonard had higher moral values than this !

[lizzytysh]

Gosh, Phil... you appear to have judged him, anyway... going on appearances only.
Nothing is really known, yet... however, it was put forth elsewhere that the choice was either not having a concert at all [at Hop Farm] due to unsustainability for some reason... or moving it to Wembley. It seems that Leonard and his group already have plenty of reasons to not perform in an outdoor venue. Don't know if that's what it's about, either... the first thought was put forth by someone with more certainty.
Why not give the benefit of the doubt until more is known?


~ Lizzy

[pironi]

It came as two shows by the legendary Leonard Cohen were this week uprooted from the Paddock Wood venue and will be held, instead, at London’s Wembley Arena.

In a statement confirming the shows were moving out of Kent due to “unforeseen circumstances”, it was stressed there was no issue with its “suitability as a venue” - suggesting, instead, there were problems behind the scenes.

Earlier this month, Music Festivals, the listed company run by promoter Vince Power which is behind the Hop Farm Festival and the popular Spanish festival, Benicassim, issued a warning it would return losses due to poor ticket sales of the Kent event.

In a statement to shareholders it confirmed: “The group was particularly impacted by weaker than expected ticket sales at the Hop Farm Music Festival which was loss-making. The Benicassim festival continued to be profitable but at a much lower level than 2011.

“As a result, the group currently expects to report a material loss for the year ending December 31 and is exploring ways of raising additional working capital.”

Dire weather leading up to the event had been a major thorn in the side of promoters, as well as a busy summer which had seen the Queen’s Diamond Jubilee celebrations and a build-up towards the Olympic Games.

Here is the real reason for you Lizzitish. Nothing because the weather or Leonard or AEG or UFOs or anything like that. Vince Power, the local promoter, had no funds to do the concerts in Kent because of the losses they made during the summer. http://www.kentnews.co.uk/news/leonard_ ... _1_1491758

Pietro.

[Yorkshire Lad]

Hi Pironi
Now I am not an economist but it seems to me that cancelling two sell out concerts and all the costs involved in refunding tickets etc would only add to loses . I am trying my best not to be a little bit cynical but I think it is not as simple as that!

[Yorkshire Lad]

Gosh, Phil... you appear to have judged him, anyway... going on appearances only.
Nothing is really known, yet... however, it was put forth elsewhere that the choice was either not having a concert at all [at Hop Farm] due to unsustainability for some reason... or moving it to Wembley. It seems that Leonard and his group already have plenty of reasons to not perform in an outdoor venue. Don't know if that's what it's about, either... the first thought was put forth by someone with more certainty.
Why not give the benefit of the doubt until more is known?


~ Lizzy

Sorry to come across in a negative way Lizzy but the lack of opportunity to see him in the uk coupled with the hike in ticket prices has left me a little deflated to say the least

[lightasabreeze]

Something else I have realised is that at the Hop Farm your ticket price for car parking was included with your ticket.
Ah.. Now it will cost you another £8.00 to park at Wembly. Can't win. Can you? £16 for larger vans.

I think it is £20 in the main car park for the Arena though and still cheaper than on Stadium days. The car parking for £8 is further away with another car parking company but not that far.

Just booked my parking space, it was £8.00 and 400 yards from the Arena. If you book you get an actual space, you don't have to fart about looking for one even if you are late getting there.

[imyourwoman]

It came as two shows by the legendary Leonard Cohen were this week uprooted from the Paddock Wood venue and will be held, instead, at London’s Wembley Arena.

In a statement confirming the shows were moving out of Kent due to “unforeseen circumstances”, it was stressed there was no issue with its “suitability as a venue” - suggesting, instead, there were problems behind the scenes.

Earlier this month, Music Festivals, the listed company run by promoter Vince Power which is behind the Hop Farm Festival and the popular Spanish festival, Benicassim, issued a warning it would return losses due to poor ticket sales of the Kent event.

In a statement to shareholders it confirmed: “The group was particularly impacted by weaker than expected ticket sales at the Hop Farm Music Festival which was loss-making. The Benicassim festival continued to be profitable but at a much lower level than 2011.

“As a result, the group currently expects to report a material loss for the year ending December 31 and is exploring ways of raising additional working capital.”

Dire weather leading up to the event had been a major thorn in the side of promoters, as well as a busy summer which had seen the Queen’s Diamond Jubilee celebrations and a build-up towards the Olympic Games.

Here is the real reason for you Lizzitish. Nothing because the weather or Leonard or AEG or UFOs or anything like that. Vince Power, the local promoter, had no funds to do the concerts in Kent because of the losses they made during the summer. http://www.kentnews.co.uk/news/leonard_ ... _1_1491758

Pietro.

So we should all blame Bob Dylan

[Kimmerriott]

I only just heard about change of venue contacted last.minute and
They have only offered me seats right at back in tiered section, where as I had seats at hop farm 3 rd block back and level, so no priority given, and not like for like, and lost money on hotel I had booked for Kent! Not happy! Any one any ideas on who to contact to try and get better seats? So much for saying on site we would get priority!!

[jarkko]

Lastminute was not the original seller in our Forum presale. All who booked their tickets through the Forum presale received a coded message from their seller and were offered a like for like ticket. All others had to use the new presale.

AEG:

All fan club customers have been sent links with codes. All other customers have been sent links to book from the ring fence. The codes were to ensure that front row customers were still guaranteed front row tickets and so on.