Madonna sued by fans for starting New York concert ‘more than two hours late’

19 January 2024, 15:34 | Updated: 19 January 2024, 15:44

Two Madonna fans are suing the megastar for starting a concert in New York City more than two hours late.

Madonna, 65, was playing at the Barclays Centre in Brooklyn for the North American leg of her Celebration tour in December.

Fans Michael Fellows and Jonathan Hadden attended the gig, which they said was due to start at 8:30pm.

But the concert didn’t end up starting until sometime between 10:45pm and 11pm and finished after 1am local time, the pair said.

They have now brought legal action against the megastar, as court documents show they said they “would not have paid for tickets” had they known it would finish so late.

The court documents read: “Many ticket holders who attended concerts on a weeknight had to get up early to go to work and/or take care of their family responsibilities the next day.”

The pair said there was limited access to public transportation or ride-sharing apps after the concert due to the time it finished.

They are also suing Live Nation and the Barclays Centre for “false advertising, negligent misrepresentation, and unfair and deceptive trade practices”.

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"Defendants failed to provide any notice to the ticket holders that the concerts would start much later than the start time printed on the ticket and as advertised, which resulted in the ticket holders waiting for hours," the documents state.

The papers also claim "Madonna has a long history of arriving and starting her concerts late, sometimes several hours later” and refer to her 2015 to 2016 Rebel Heart tour and her 2019 to 2020 Madame X tour.

Mr Fellows, who paid 155.90 US dollars (£123) for his ticket, and Mr Hadden, who bought two tickets for 292.50 US dollars (£230), have asked for a jury trial in the case.

And it’s not the first time Madonna has been challenged for her punctuality as a fan previously sued the star over a delay at a US show.

The fan later voluntarily dismissed the case, according to ABC News.

Madonna later shared a video of her live on stage, in which she is heard telling a Las Vegas audience: “There's something that you all need to understand. And that is, that a queen is never late."

Madonna started her World Celebration Tour concert last autumn after being forced to postpone it due to illness from a “serious bacterial infection”.

Her next tour date is at the Bell Centre in Montreal, in Canada, on Saturday and at Madison Square Garden in New York on Monday.

The Barclays Centre, Madonna and Live Nation have all been approached for comment.