ONE IN FOUR U.K. Q1 GIGS CANCELED

More than a quarter of U.K. gigs have been canceled in the first three months of 2022, leading to a serious loss of income for the live music industry, according to a survey conducted by trade body LIVE.

The survey also found that 44% of international shows have been cancelled in Q1. A lack of public confidence, the possibility of further variants and fear of more restrictions were cited as the main reasons for the cancellations. The Streets, Måneskin, Miles Kane, Rina Sawayama and Wolf Alice are among the artists who've scrapped/postponed U.K. and European tour dates for this year so far.

With the U.K. beginning to reopen but much of Europe remaining closed, the U.K. legs of international tours are also at risk due to the lack of financial viability of touring only one market.

Brexit is piling further pressure on the industry thanks to the introduction of visas and punitive regulations for trucks and vehicles. Of those surveyed, 90% said that this will negatively impact the business once all markets are open again.

As a result, LIVE is making a repeated call for a package of measures that would enable tours to go ahead. These include maintaining the reduced rate of VAT on tickets, urgently fixing the “broken” government insurance scheme and resolving roadblocks to transportation.

Said LIVE CEO Greg Parmley: “Whilst it's great news that restrictions on live music venues will come to an end in much of the U.K. at the end of January, the live music industry is still facing serious challenges. It will take a long time for us to recover from the industry's worst period in history, and the government needs to fully understand the challenges we face.”