CELEBRITY
Taylormania hits Wembley! Fans start queuing for Taylor Swift’s first London Eras Tour concert a day early (and make each other friendship bracelets to pass the time)
Taylor Swift fans have started queuing for the popstar’s sell-out Wembley Eras Tour more than 24 hours before the doors are set to open. Some 90,000 people are set to descend on Wembley stadium tomorrow night as the Bad Blood songstress starts a mammoth four-day musical marathon at the arena – to the delight of her London fans.
They will be hoping Taylor Swift will sing London Boy and The Black Dog as two of her surprise songs, in a nod to the time she spent in the capital with her ex-boyfriend Joe Alwyn. Prior to the hotly anticipated concert, the star is rumored to be staying in a £3,000-a-night Cotswolds bolthole close to Soho Farmhouse and a private airport.
She has already wowed fans with performances in Edinburgh, Liverpool and Cardiff marked with marriage proposals, a Welsh welcome and even a small earthquake. As the countdown started to tomorrow night, fans have already started queuing up and are trading friendship bracelets to pass the time. The beaded bracelets have become a staple item for Swifties at her concerts, with many exchanging with one another as a token of unity and friendship.
Others have started queuing for the singer’s sell-out merchandise and painting their nails in preparation. Brian Wood, 56, is the first in line for Friday’s show while he waits for his 16-year-old daughter, Caitlin, to join him – the pair are planning to attend all three shows. The corporate tax lawyer from Philadelphia said he first scouted out the size of the line on Sunday evening, but after realizing that nobody else had arrived, retreated to his room at the Novotel near the stadium.
Sat by the fence in a camping chair since Thursday morning, Mr Wood said: ‘I’m not going to give up the place. If I left, it would be gone. ‘My daughter is a big Taylor Swift fan. I’m holding the spot for her – that’s what dads do.’ Mr Wood said he’s been working since he arrived on Sunday by taking work calls in his hotel room. He said: ‘I’m getting some sleep, not a lot. I’ve got a sleeping bag in my tent. ‘This is the way we always do it when we go to shows. It’s a better experience when you’re first in.
‘If you’re up front, the artist is right there. For us it’s worth the time and the hassle. The payoff comes when you’re inside the arena.’ Lucy Smith, 40, has been sat outside with daughter Ella Smith, 15, since 2pm on Thursday. Ms Smith, who works in customer service, said she made the trip from Wales especially for the gig having never seen Swift perform. She said: ‘It’s a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity. My daughter’s a big Swiftie. She’s been planning this for a year.
‘We’re going to keep alternating in shifts. We’ve got a room in the Premier Inn so we’ll do naps and then change.’ Maria Barrientos and Manuel Cordero, both 27, have come from Cadiz, in Spain, to watch Friday’s performance. Ms Barrientos, who works in finance and has seen Swift perform four times, said the pair did not plan to wait in line but changed their minds when they saw a queue forming.
Mr Cordero, who works for a translation company, said: ‘We wanted to see her super close. We thought, if there are people queuing we have to be there. Ms Barrientos, who said she has been listening to the singer’s music since she was a child, added: ‘We paid 400 euros each for the tickets. We have to make it work.’