Coldplay fan who claims she was ejected from band's gig in Manchester after dancing along to Yellow which was played at her mother-in-law's funeral blasts security staff's 'disgusting' behaviour
- Andrea Nelson said was soon escorted out barely halfway through the set
- She said she was 'targeted' by 'rude' security staff at the stadium on Saturday
A woman who claimed she was ejected from a Coldplay gig in Manchester after she stood up and danced during the song which played at her mother-in-law's funeral has called the behaviour of security staff 'disgusting'.
Andrea Nelson was in a seated area of the Etihad Stadium and got up to dance to the band's hit Yellowbut was soon escorted out barely halfway through the set on Saturday evening.
She was not aware that tickets for her section of the stadium stipulate that standing during the concert is not allowed and tried to reason with security when they asked her to sit down.
But Ms Nelson, who paid nearly £150 for her ticket, and her partner Anthony were removed from the venue after she asked if she could move somewhere else where she could stand up.
She said she was 'targeted' by security staff at the stadium who were 'rude' and 'would not listen' when she tried to explain the situation to them.
Andrea Nelson (right) and her friend Tracy at the Coldplay gig at the Etihad Stadium in Manchester before she was removed by security staff for standing up
Coldplay lead singer Chris Martin during Saturday's performance
Andrea, from Moston, north Manchester, said: 'I stood up to dance, but so were other people. Because we were near the steps, security were next to us.
'They asked me to sit down, so I asked if we could be moved somewhere else, bearing in mind this was my mother-in-law's funeral song. I told them this.
'They said I might fall over the barrier, which basically came up to my chest. I'm five foot. Next thing, about 10 security came and escorted me out.'
Footage of Andrea dancing at the concert, moments before she was removed, has been posted to TikTok and has received tens of thousands of views.
Andrea continued: 'About 10 men [arrived]. They said basically you need to leave. I told them I hadn't done anything wrong, I'd not been abusive, I said this is my mother-in-law's song, and this is why I got up.
'I didn't realise the seats were restricted. If I had, we shouldn't have been paying full price for them. I would not have paid that fee if I'd known you couldn't stand up. Who goes to a concert where you can't stand up?'
Yellow was the ninth song to be played on Saturday night, meaning that Andrea and her partner, who left with her, saw less than half the show before being asked to leave.
Andrea said: 'It was disgusting really. It was just rude. They wouldn't listen. Other people were stood up on our row, but much further around into the row.
'Nothing was said to them, because they were more difficult to get to. It was just us who were targeted, because we were right next to security.
'They came and said, "you need to sit down", I said "this is my mother-in-law's song, I will sit down in a minute".
Andrea Nelson (right), friends Paul and Tracy, and partner Anthony, pictured at the Coldplay gig at the Etihad Stadium
A view of Etihad Stadium where the Coldplay concert was held
'They were just rude, saying "we're watching you". And because I didn't sit down straight away, they called security and a load of blokes came.
'The way it was handled was atrocious. I'm a five foot, 50-year-old woman, does it really need that many people to come and escort me out? I felt like a criminal.
'They said if you don't leave with us, we can remove you by force. I've stood up and danced at a concert, what have I done wrong?'
Andrea said that the security staff did not remove her by force, and "did not touch" her as she and Anthony were escorted out of the venue.
She admits that she just 'scanned' her ticket when she'd been sent it. The ticket's terms explain that gig-goers in the restricted seats are not permitted to stand.
Andrea added: 'Had I known this when I bought the tickets, I wouldn't have bought them.
'It's probably my own fault, but at the end of the day, I just wanted to stand up at a concert. Should they be selling tickets at full price when the seats have restrictions? No, they shouldn't.
'This meant a lot to me and my family. I was devastated. We'd paid a lot of money to come to this concert. It may never happen again in my lifetime. It was supposed to be a memorable concert for us, and this ruined it.
'They could [have been] a lot more sensitive. They didn't listen. How can you not stand up at a concert? That's not my idea of going to a concert.'
Andrea said she had contacted the venue to request a refund for her tickets.
A spokesperson for the show's promoter, SJM, said it was 'unable to comment' on the matter.
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