RTE has issued a statement explaining why ticket-holding fans were turned away from the Late Late Show London special.
The national broadcaster said that the event was “oversubscribed” and that applicants were told the show would only accommodate people on a “first-come, first-served” basis.
This comes after many disappointed fans took to social media last night to say that they had been turned away at the Central Hall, Westminster venue.
Many of those turned away had been queuing prior to the show’s start at 9.35pm.
RTE said:
“Audience tickets for The Late Late Show in London were allocated and managed by UK-based company Applause Store. Applause Store are ticket specialists for UK TV audiences.”
“Tickets were allocated to applicants stating that it was not a guarantee of entry, but seats would be allocated on the night on a first-come, first-served basis.”
The statement continued that such procedure is standard for audience management in the UK, and that the high volume of people hoping to see the show was “unprecedented.”
Applause Store’s audience manager Mathew First said that they have to operate in such a way to ensure they don’t have any empty seats on the night.
He said:
“We have, however, experienced a higher than normal turn-up rate which has meant that, regrettably, we could not accommodate everyone with a seat in the venue.
“The demand for Late Late Show tickets is unprecedented.”
During last night’s special, Ryan chatted to Graham Norton, Imelda May, Laura Whitmore, Angela Scanlon, Mick McCarthy, and a host of British politicians for a Brexit debate.
