Taylor Swift: Disabled fans struggle to get Eras Tour Wembley tickets

July 12: Tickets for Taylor Swift's Eras Tour are the most in demand in the UK right now. But for disabled fans trying to grab a place for shows at Wembley Stadium, it's been a tougher experience.

Accessibility places for the shows there aren't sold by Ticketmaster, with people needing to call the venue directly. Complaints include being kept on hold for several hours, with some people saying they were unable to get tickets.

Wembley Stadium has told BBC Newsbeat that demand for tickets has been "unprecedented" and that waiting times were longer than usual. Saryna Glazebrook says she called over 200 times to get on to the access line.

The 22-year-old who has Ehlers Danlos syndrome, describes the experience as "frustrating", and feels it shouldn't be so hard for disabled fans to get tickets. "I know getting tickets for this show and tour is going to be difficult, but having thousands of disabled people and one phone line just puts about 20 more hurdles in front of us. Especially because I've bought accessible tickets online before," she adds.

Eventually, Saryna says she was told by another fan to call Wembley's hospitality line and ask to be transferred - though she says not all fans were put through. Saryna's condition means she needs a ticket for her companion.

"I need someone with me at every point, especially when I leave the house," she says, "Because alongside my physical disabilities, I also have tendencies of blacking out, forgetting where I am and getting overwhelmed very easily. It's really helpful as well being able to sit in a space that doesn't require a lot of stairs or a lot of walking to get there," she adds.

For 27-year-old India, who is the creator of the Swifties with Disabilities Network, it took two days of trying before she was able to get tickets. "I need accessibility requirements because I have cerebral palsy, a disability from birth, so I struggle with balance," she says.

She also tried to get tickets through Ticketmaster, but says she wouldn't have been able to sit in the seats they were selling. "Without the disabled options I pretty much have no options," adds India. Ticketmaster is selling accessibility tickets for the shows in Edinburgh and Cardiff.

Speaking before she got the tickets, India feels disappointed that disabled fans have had to buy tickets over the phone for Wembley. "I just feel really disheartened because I'm lucky enough to have had a connection with Taylor Swift over the years. She's been really generous to me as a person. And I know she'd hate this", she said, "She'd be really disheartened that disabled people have basically just been excluded because the phone lines aren't adequate."

A Wembley Stadium spokesperson added: "For those customers unable to wait on the phone we have a call-back system in place which can be accessed via our website."

(BBC)