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Live music is set to return to London’s The O2 this December after nine months of coronavirus-enforced closure.
The 20,000-capacity arena will host a socially-distanced show on Saturday, December 5, headlined by Squeeze.
The venue’s capacity will be reduced from 20,000 to 4,700 for the show, and tickets will be sold in groups of two, three and four.
A one-way system will be in operation throughout the arena and entrances, while all separate groups of fans will have empty seats between them. Food and drink can also be pre-ordered via an app.
Tickets for the gig are on sale from 10am BST on Friday (October 9) here.
We're excited to announce that after 9 months without events, our first socially distanced gig will be held on 5 December 2020 with London band Squeeze
Find out what we’re doing to keep you safe here https://t.co/sMleqfsUb0
Tickets on sale Friday 10am https://t.co/brBYPVFBPA pic.twitter.com/dhT3Z7wVos
— The O2 (@TheO2) October 5, 2020
Steve Sayer, General Manager at The O2, said of the gig: “We have been working incredibly hard to bring back events at The O2 and put measures in place to ensure our fans will have a safe and COVID-19 secure experience.
“At the moment, we’re only able to host under a quarter of our capacity in the arena, so this is not a long term solution for us or other venues and we continue to press the government for targeted support and guidance to get the live events industry and its supply chain back on its feet.
“The O2 was designed to give artists and fans the best live music in the world and we look forward to doing that again with Squeeze. As The O2 returns to live, it’s really fitting that a band from the local area are the ones to reopen our doors to the public once again. The whole team are excited to see them on our stage for the first time.”
Since the pandemic, a number of socially distanced gigs have taken place across the UK.
Sam Fender opened the Virgin Money Unity Arena in Newcastle in August, which ran for an entire month in a festival-style setup, while another socially distanced festival called Wild Paths came to Norfolk in September.
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