UK’s First Socially Distanced Concert – VIDEO

The first socially distanced concert in the UK post-COVID-19 took place on Tuesday and was apparently a roaring success. So they say. And a safe one as well. We reported earlier this month that the Virgin Money Unity Arena concert series was to take place in Newcastle, England. And so it did. To a chorus of…. quietness!

 

It’s a strange and unique time in history. Likes of which we have never seen before. And as people start to question why the world is still in lockdown mode in many ways, at least we are seeing some kind of movement in the events and concerts sector with these socially distanced concert events.

Socially Distanced Concert Success?

 

The Virgin Money Unity Arena concert took place at Gosford Park at Newcastle Racecourse on Tuesday 11 August. The event series is expected to continue throughout August and September during the prime English summer months. It might be a step in the right direction, but the ‘new normal’ is beginning to wear thin with the public in most nations across the world.

 

This socially distanced concert went by without a hitch, and without a pulse too. The same atmosphere that is generated from a live event was severely missing in Newcastle on Tuesday. But in the meantime, it might be the only way to kick start the concert and event scene across the UK. Thailand followed with the first Thai tuk-tuk edition of a socially-distanced concert! The new normal is far from normal.

Socially Distanced Concert Rules

 

Over 2,500 people attended the event. The venue has a capacity of 45,000 people but was drastically cut to adhere to the socially distanced concert regulations. The people, who were all standing, were situated in 500 mini-enclosures with 2 meters’ distance from each other. Each enclosure hosted 5 people. You do the math!

 

Each enclosure also had seats and unobstructed views. Attendees directly ordered food and drinks that were delivered to each platform. Thereby decreasing the risk of spreading a disease that kills only a very minimal amount of its carriers. Let’s be honest, more people died on Thai roads over the past two days than from COVID-19 in 5 months combined during the so-called pandemic. But we shouldn’t let the facts get in the way of the ‘official’ narrative.

 

Future Lineup for the Concerts

 

The first socially distended concert seemed more like a scene from George Orwell’s 1984 novel about government and social tyranny. But hey, we have to start somewhere in this social-leprosy phase of humanity.

 

The gig saw local musician and artist Sam Fender perform to a sold-out capacity of 2,500. More people used to watch Mansfield Town Vs York City in a Football League 2 match. But hey, it’s the new normal, which is obviously far from normal.

 

As the concert series moves from August to September, there are rumours of several different artists who ‘might’ be performing. The word is that The Bootleg Beatles, and Rumours of Fleetwood Mac and Van Morrison performing at the socially distanced concert in the new few weeks. But let’s not hold our breath beneath our masks on this one!

 

Some comedians also might be performing in the coming weeks. We could see Jimmy Carr, Bill Bailey, and Jason Manford attempt to make people laugh in the coming shows. Laughs are in short supply. The new normal doesn’t allow human beings to be normal anymore. And although we admire what the event series is trying to achieve, the recent concert lacked any kind of atmosphere.

 

The UK’s first socially distanced concert in Newcastle at the Virgin Money Unity Arena was a success in the eyes of the media. But in this day and age, who can believe what they tell us? Will we see the same type of concerts and gigs taking place in Thailand? Let’s be honest again. We have seen less than 60 deaths in Thailand from COVID-19, so things should already be back to the real normal, not the fake ‘new normal’.