Just hours before they were set to take the stage for the second show of their 25th anniversary tour, British pop group S Club abruptly canceled their Oct. 13 performance at the M&S Bank Arena in Liverpool. In a joint statement, bandmates Bradley McIntosh, Rachel Stevens, Jo O’Meara, Tina Barrett, and Jon Lee told fans the show was postponed due to “an unforeseen technical issue.”
“We’re beyond devastated to announce that tonight’s show in Liverpool has had to be postponed by the venue, due to them having an unforeseen technical issue impacting their power supply and therefore your safety,” the group announced. “We can’t begin to express how sorry we are. Especially as we know so many of you have travelled great distances to join us tonight. But your safety is our priority always… We’re absolutely heartbroken, but really hope we will see you then. Thank you for continuing to support us. Sending you much love.”
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In a separate statement, M&S Bank Arena said an “unforeseen technical issue which is beyond our control is impacting power supply,” forcing them to “take the decision…to postpone” the show. The venue added, “We understand that S Club fans and the band will be very disappointed but as the safety and comfort of our visitors is our utmost priority, the show cannot proceed as planned.”
According to Lee, the show’s sudden cancellation was due to “a fire in the building which knocked out some of the electrics, which meant it was completely unsafe for us to allow an audience into the arena.” In a video shared to his Instagram Story, per Metro, Lee said the postponement “was not our decision. We were fighting to perform to you guys right down the last minute. But unfortunately it’s health and safety and your safety is paramount to us. We just weren’t allowed to perform tonight.”
The group’s Liverpool show has since been rescheduled to Monday, Oct. 30. The group and venue assured ticketholders that all tickets will remain valid for the rescheduled date. Lee added, “We know that some of you have travelled from all over the world to see and we are absolutely heartbroken. We really, really are. It’s devastating for us. Please accept my sincere apologies.”
S Club is currently on their highly-anticipated Good Times reunion tour. The tour kicked off in Manchester, England on Thursday, Oct. 12, with the group taking a moment to pay tribute to their late bandmate Paul Cattermole, who died unexpectedly at age 46 in April. At one point during the concert, the group left the stage as audio of Cattermole singing “Good Times” played. The group’s current tour is set to continue through November.
