Entertainment

Thousands left disappointed after tickets sold out for Michelle Obama

The former US first lady will be talking about her book.
The former US first lady will be talking about her book. The former US first lady will be talking about her book.

Crowds have flocked to London’s Royal Festival Hall desperate to get tickets to see Michelle Obama.

The former US first lady will be talking about her memoir, Becoming, at the Southbank Centre with novelist Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie, on December 3.

Tickets sold out quickly and fans on social media said thousands of people were in the queue.

Radio 1 DJ Nick Grimshaw wrote: “I was 30562 in the queue… so close.”

Obama will talk about her childhood and “her years as an executive balancing the demands of motherhood and work to her time spent at the world’s most famous address”.

She “will also share life lessons learned, and inspire people to become the very best version of themselves”.

The venue said it has asked for tickets on the site Viagogo to be removed.

People tweeted that they had been queuing since the early hours and demanded that a bigger venue, such as a stadium, was booked.

A spokeswoman for the Southbank Centre said: “The capacity of Southbank Centre’s Royal Festival Hall is just over 2,700 and due to extreme demand for this event, unfortunately there will be people who are disappointed at not being able to purchase a ticket.

“We have worked hard to ensure that tickets are available to as wide an audience as possible by limiting tickets to two per booker and ensuring there is a lower price point.”