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-   -   London's FAKE half-price theatre ticket booths exposed (https://www.fodors.com/community/europe/londons-fake-half-price-theatre-ticket-booths-exposed-733291/)

NeoPatrick Aug 31st, 2007 06:01 PM

London's FAKE half-price theatre ticket booths exposed
 
Interesting article. Too bad more unsuspecting tourists won't see this article.

http://www.officiallondontheatre.co....ontentId/95505

janisj Aug 31st, 2007 08:17 PM

every time I come out of the Leicester Square tube station and see all those folks queueing at those "1/2 price" store fronts -- I want to yell "You're being taken for a ride - walk around the corner to TKTS"

But those places have been in business for at least 20+ years. Long before TKTS was called "TKTS" and long before the new kiosk was built. sad . . . .

audere_est_facere Sep 1st, 2007 01:28 AM

That's from this week's Time Out which is themed around London's worst/most shameful.

It will come as no suprise that the worst pub in London is the Punch and Judy in Covent Garden.

xyz123 Sep 1st, 2007 02:56 AM

...ah but just think how long the queues would be at TKTS if it weren't for these rip off joints on the walk from the station....in additions there is this one guy I always see walking up and down the queue at TKTS trying to sell tickets for the mega hits not on TKTS...two weeks ago they were Billy Elliot, Wicked, Mama Mia, We will Rock You...of course what he is doing is selling £15 for £50...in the USA we call this ticket scalping and it is, of course, illegal here.

Dukey Sep 1st, 2007 05:29 AM

Gee, Janis..why don't you go ahead and YELL IT..we'd all love to watch.

chartley Sep 1st, 2007 07:38 AM

Wow XYZ123

Are you saying that it is illegal in the U.S. to sell something for more than you paid for it? Haven't all your shops and businesses been closed down by now?

Gerardo Sep 1st, 2007 07:40 AM

The OFFICIAL TKTS booth is right near the Hampshire Hotel

xyz123 Sep 1st, 2007 09:29 AM

There are laws specifically against ticket scalping in many states...it is not the same thing as what a legitemate merchant does.

NeoPatrick Sep 1st, 2007 09:36 AM

As our flat is very close to Leicester Square and I'm at TKTS almost every day when in London, I pass those other places a lot. A couple years ago one morning I walked by a group of three young women standing in front of one of them loudly carrying on about the wonderful tickets they just got for two different shows. Strangers were coming up and questioning them and they were sending them over to this booth and just raving about their wonderful seats they had just gotten at half price. I ignored them. The next morning when I passed by, there those same women were again going through the same routine. That's when I realized they were hired by the booth to attract buyers who no doubt were buying overpriced tickets thinking they were getting a great deal.
Sure enough, they were there pretty much every day for our entire stay.

AJPeabody Sep 1st, 2007 05:11 PM

New York has changed its anti-scalping law. Originally it forbad resales of tickets for more than a nominal markup, essentially moving all the legitimate ticket brokers out of state ands leaving buyers to the mercies of street scalpers and counterfeiters.

Now the law only forbids sales within a certain distance from the venue -- I can't remember if it's 500 or 1000 feet. Meanwhile, some Broadway shows that alwauys sell out are selling a block of the best seats for several hundred dollars each, getting the scalper premium for the show instead of leaving the money for outsiders.

janisj Sep 1st, 2007 05:31 PM

in many US locales (if not most) the anti-scalping regs apply to the actual venue or w/i a certain number of feet. For instance in my town, one cannot sell for over face value at the arena/theater, or in its parking lots, but 1/4 mile away it is perfectly OK.


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