Taylor Swift Treats Tour Staff to Night Out Before London Eras Tour Dates Kick-Off
Taylor Swift is gearing up to kick off a five-night run at London’s Wembley Stadium tonight (August 15) after her Eras Tour shows in Vienna were cancelled last week due to a foiled terror threat. The singer — who has not commented on the plot or made any public appearances since the revelation of the alleged plan to harm fans gathered for her shows in Austria was revealed — reportedly took her staff out in London on Monday night (August 12) to mark the end of the European leg of her juggernaut global outing.
According to People, Swift, 34, was seen at the swanky, members-only club Annabel’s in London for the wrap party wearing what Glamour described as a “Cher Horowitz-esque plaid jacket and skirt set from the Vivienne Westwood fall/winter 2024 collection” paired with a ruffled white shirt and chunky heels.
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At press time a spokesperson for Swift could not be reached for comment on the reported staff outing.
It’s not the first time Swift has treated her Eras Tour staff. Last August it was reported that the singer gave $100,000 bonuses to each of the 50 truck drivers on her tour, for a reported bonus total around $5 million; she also reportedly gave bonuses to her band members, dancers, lighting and sound techs, caterers and other staffers.
Austrian promoter Barracuda Music announced on August 7 that it had “no choice but to cancel” the three shows planned for Ernst Happel Stadium from Aug. 8-10 due to the threat in which the suspects were planning to use explosives and knives to attack Swifties outside the venue in an effort to cause a mass casualty event.
So far, the main 19-year-old suspect — who was reportedly radicalized online and had pledge allegiance to the Islamic State terror group — has been arrested, along with a 17-year-old who’d reportedly gotten a gig working for a company providing services to the stadium. A 15-year-old boy who reportedly had knowledge of the plan but was not directly involved, was also detained last week and a third suspect believed to be connected to the main suspect was arrested on August 9. A lawyer for the main suspect said this week that the case against his client is exaggerated and that he had “neither the means nor the possibility and the explosives to carry this out.”
Wembley Stadium announced earlier this week that Swifties will be let in a bit earlier than usual for the shows and that set times have been pushed up for the sold-out gigs that run from tonight through Tuesday (August 20). In addition, while unticketed Swifties have gathered by the thousands, sometimes tens of thousands, outside stadiums on the European tour for “tay-gating” events, Wembley announce that only ticketed fans would be allowed to stand outside any entrance or in the area around the stadium. “Non ticket holders will be moved on,” the venue said in a statement.
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