DURAN DURAN FORCED TO RESCHEDULE FIRST SHOW IN TWO YEARS AMIDST FEARS OF FAN CHAOS IN CENTRAL LONDON
ODEON CINEMA CHAIN CALL CENTRE CRASHES AS BAND ANNOUNCES THE PREMIERE OF 'RED CARPET MASSACRE'

City Officials Shut Concert Plans Down Fearing For Public Safety As Thousands Of Fans Send Box Office Phone Lines Into Meltdown!

Pop legends DURAN DURAN have today (Friday 2nd November) been forced to reschedule the UK premiere of their much anticipated new album RED CARPET MASSACRE at the Odeon Leicester Square, London on December 3rd amidst serious concerns over the safety of their fans and members of the public.

The Odeon box office went into meltdown last Friday (26th October) and over the weekend as tens of thousands of DURAN DURAN fans jammed telephone lines to the Odeon’s call centre, causing it to crash and preventing members of the public from buying film tickets at the venue. The problem arose when band members Simon LeBon, Nick Rhodes, Roger Taylor and John Taylor announced the one-night only engagement at the landmark cinema, premiering their entire new album alongside many of their classic hits and a special electro set.

The announcement was made in The Sun newspaper, on several official websites and through a number of TV interviews, including GMTV’s Entertainment Today and SKY News, as the band prepared to leave UK shores for a two week stint debuting their new record on Broadway.

With anticipation for the band’s stunning new album, RED CARPET MASSACRE, which features collaborations with JUSTIN TIMBERLAKE and TIMBALAND, now at fever pitch, the band’s website and management company based in New York, were also besieged with hundreds of telephone calls and emails from frustrated UK and European fans desperate to purchase tickets for this unique show.

A spokesman for DURAN DURAN said; “Following discussions with the Metropolitan Police and local authorities at Westminster, we regrettably had to cancel the UK premier of the new album RED CARPET MASSACRE at the Odeon, Leicester Square and move the event to a larger venue. Seeing the response when the band announced the show, authorities expressed serious concerns that thousands of hopeful fans would turn up on the night trying to buy tickets to an event that was sure to sell out in seconds. Ultimately the worry was that this would lead to crowd control problems in Leicester Square and that both their fans and other members of the general public would be at risk. With this in mind, the band have had to move the show to a larger venue.”

Speaking from New York on the eve of the official opening of their run on the Great White Way, singer Simon LeBon said: “The safety of our fans is the most important thing so as disappointed as we are not to be able to showcase the new record at this historic ‘premiere’ venue, we are now looking for somewhere larger for the rescheduled show.”

In 2003 Duran Duran’s original five founding members, Simon Le Bon, Nick Rhodes, John Taylor, Roger Taylor and Andy Taylor reformed for their first British concert at London’s Forum. Tickets for the show sold out in four minutes and were later being auctioned on eBay for more than £500 per ticket. Duran Duran’s last major UK tour in 2004 saw the band perform to 250,000 British fans over a 19 date arena run, in which the pop legends broke all box office records with five consecutive sold out nights at Wembley Arena to 75,000 fans.

DURAN DURAN will take to the stage on Broadway tonight (2nd November) at the Ethel Barrymore Theatre for the official opening of a unique two week – 10 night - residency, which will be the first of its kind by any band and will conclude on November 13th.

An announcement on the new venue for the London show is expected imminently and will be made via the media and the band’s official website: www.duranduran.com. DuranDuranMusic.com will offer VIP Packages and Presale Tickets prior to the public onsale. Details TBA as soon as available.

The band’s new single FALLING DOWN, which was co- written and produced by Justin Timberlake is released on November 12th. The album, RED CARPET MASSACRE, is released on November 19th.