A long-time Oasis fan travelled from Wakefield with a group of friends for the Wednesday night (July 16) show, and was in front standing when says he was removed from the gig by security staff
A long-time Oasis fan has been left gutted after being mistakenly “dragged” out of their Heaton Park gig, missing the long-awaited reunion he’d been yearning for. Lewis Burnage, a 26-year-old from Wakefield, had made the journey with mates to the Wednesday night (July 16) concert, securing a spot at the front.
However, his excitement was cut short just four songs into Oasis’ set when security, mistaking him for another group causing trouble with flares, ejected him from the event. A die-hard follower since his early teens, Lewis shelled out roughly £135 for his ticket during the general sale last year, eager to hear the tunes that had been the soundtrack to his life.
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He and his friend Tom, who were the only ones in their group with front standing tickets, entered their section separately, filled with anticipation after watching support acts Cast and Richard Ashcroft warm up the crowd.
But as Oasis kicked off with ‘Cigarettes and Alcohol’, Lewis’s dream night turned sour due to the actions of other revellers behind him. In a recent interview with the M. E. N, retail worker Lewis recounted: “Oasis came on it started to get very busy, I was having the best time of my life.”
“I was in front of the people letting off flares. We couldn’t move, and security didn’t seem too bothered at first, but then those guys let off more flares, the security came over, picked me up, and took me out.
“My friend was asking security staff where they were taking me and they said they were moving me onto a different place,” he said, reports the Manchester Evening News.
“They didn’t tell me why they had removed me, they just said they had to and dragged me from the crowd, and I was carried over the barrier.
“Video shows about three of them carrying my arms and another my legs. Once they told me I was being removed, I started crying and some of the footage shows me becoming quite emotional.”
Footage making rounds on social media allegedly captures Lewis being escorted out by security, being pulled away from the front standing area.
“They took me left, through the gate, through the exit wall, and then the exit gate and dropped me at the barrier. I asked for a supervisor multiple times but they said I had to leave. A man just said I had been removed for a reason, but didn’t give a reason to me.
“After that I just stayed at the gate and tried getting hold of a supervisor but they didn’t listen so I tried to get hold of a friend, I was alone in a place I didn’t know, couldn’t get hold of him and had to wait on the street and listen to the show from there.
“One of my mates rang me at the end and they come picked me up because it was too far to walk.”
Lewis recounted his ordeal, explaining that when he returned to the gate he had entered earlier that day, the staff were unable to assist him. He was informed that re-entry was not possible because he hadn’t exited through that gate and should not have still been wearing his wristband after being removed.
“It still hurts now to be honest, I was in shock and disbelief, and after all these years of waiting,” he said.
He expressed his concern about safety at concerts, stating, “They should not get these flares into gigs, It’s dangerous and ruining peoples lives. It could have been far worse than a flare.”
Determined to seek answers, Lewis gathered evidence and took to social media, saying, “I’ve got all the evidence I could to find out as to why, and made a couple of posts on social media so people could see, I won’t be the first that this happened to.”
Despite understanding that some are removed for drunkenness or disorderly conduct, he remains incredulous: “I know others get removed for being drunk or disorderly, and I do get it, but I just can’t believe it happened to me, I didn’t do anything.”
The incident left him so distressed that he confided, “When I got home, I took both days off. I’ve been distraught, I didn’t want to deal with it, I just wasn’t in the mindset.”
Lewis reached out to Showsec and SJM via email, seeking an explanation. Showsec requested further details such as date and time, while SJM confirmed they would initiate an investigation within 28 days, a timeframe Lewis noted would be too late for any Oasis shows.
He provided Showsec and SJM, the organisers of the Oasis concerts, with detailed information about where and when the incident occurred, and explained that it was men behind him who had set off smoke flares.
A spokesperson for Showsec’s customer service team addressed Lewis’ grievance on Friday (July 18), expressing regret and requesting further details to look into the incident, including specifics about the time, location, and staff involved.
In a similar vein, an SJM Concerts representative acknowledged Lewis’ complaint on both Friday and Saturday, assuring that they would conduct a thorough investigation and provide a response within a maximum of 28 days.
“It’s still an open wound, it’s hard to say, speaking about it gets me quite upset, I’ve just tried to keep positive. But I have bruises and skin burns along my arms and body from the security. I waited a lifetime to see Oasis and they have taken my dream away from me.”
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