An Oasis fan missed the whole of a Manchester reunion show last month after he was “clattered” by a security guard.
The Britpop band played five shows at Heaton Park as part of their blockbuster comeback tour and at the third on July 16, 34-year-old Joel Garner was forced to miss the entirety of the gig after he was knocked unconscious by a security worker that was trying to keep out gate crashing fans.
As reported by Metro, Garner was in attendance with his sister Evie and three others and they were heading to a bar when the incident happened.
“There were five to seven security guards fully sprinting, tailing this guy who jumped over the gate,” Evie has said. “There was one massive pile-up and they clattered into the guy who jumped the barrier, and Joel.”
Garner is said to have had a seizure after being knocked unconscious and was rushed to the medical centre, before being taken to the hospital.
“The security said to my boyfriend, ‘did he jump the fence? or was he collateral damage?’,” Evie added. “What a way to refer to someone they’ve just knocked over. Then they just walked off and all of them just left. It seemed like they were trying to take down the guy and didn’t care who was in their way.”
Garner’s CT scan was clear and he was released from hospital at 4am that night, but all five of the party missed the entire show.
“I am absolutely gutted to not have seen Oasis,” he said, referring to them as his favourite band. “We were just looking forward to having a good time and literally within 15 minutes all hell breaks loose. There was a bit of a commotion and before you know it, I was knocked flying by someone. I’m grateful I’m still in one piece. The five of us spent £700 on tickets and we didn’t get to see a single band.”
The Heaton Park shows saw ticketless Oasis fans trying to jump the fence, with some eventually being arrested. Others flocked to a local pub to listen and some gathered on a nearby viewing point dubbed ‘Gallagher Hill’, where viewers could see the screens from afar.
However, when the hill was eventually fenced off, fans scaled the walls anyway in the hopes of catching a glimpse of the brothers. Liam eventually dedicated ‘Bring It On Down’ to those watching from the Hill.
Revenue from Oasis’ five Heaton Park shows is set to be used to help fund grassroots music venues in Manchester. Along with money raised from gigs by other major names in recent months, the local council is now offering a fund that will be available to bid on by small venues.
The band went on to play five shows at London’s Wembley Stadium. At the fourth on Saturday, a man fell to his death from an upper tier of the stadium, which the band said they were “shocked and saddened by”.
