£109.60 for “premium” tickets – misleading presentation, obstructed view, concert image advert designed to mislead and a dismissive response view and a dismissive response
I paid £109.60 for two premium tickets, including refund protection, for The Music of George Michael – The Candlelight Concert at Truro Cathedral on 8 August. It was a birthday present and we were looking forward to what the advertising presented as a special premium concert experience. What we experienced was so disappointing that we left after approximately 50 minutes, and we weren’t the only people leaving. Co erience Live now relies heavily on the fact that the detailed event description referred to four vocalists and a live band. That is true. But it rather misses my complaint about how the event was actually presented to a customer at the point of attraction and booking. The striking promotional artwork is dominated by the words GEORGE MICHAEL – THE CANDLELIGHT CONCERT and depicts what appears to be a single male performer, microphone in hand, centre-stage in a candlelit venue. That is the image that attracted me to the event. To subsequently argue that this imagery could not reasonably give any impression of a George-Michael-style lead performance strikes me as disingenuous .The reality was four singers and a band, none attempting to portray George Michael. More importantly, in our opinion the performance simply wasn’t of the standard the extravagant advertising led us to expect. We noticed timing problems between vocals and band and, rather than the sophisticated candlelit tribute experience we expected in Truro Cathedral, it felt to us more like holiday-camp entertainment. The “premium” seating was another major disappointment. We had paid extra for it, yet the seating was all on one level. Worse, the performers actively encouraged audience members to come forward, stand and dance in front of seated customers. Our view was consequently substantially obstructed. Xperience Live’s response actually acknowledges that their performers encourage audiences to stand and dance, but apparently sees no contradiction between doing this and selling customers premium seated tickets whose view can then be blocked. If that is an intended feature of the show, customers buying premium seating should surely be warned prominently before paying the premium.I complained the same evening, explained that this had been a birthday present, and asked for a refund. Xperience Live refused, saying the event had been “provided as advertised”.What particularly annoys me is the tone of that response. Rather than seriously addressing whether the overall advertising impression, the standard of the performance and the practical value of the premium seating matched what a customer paying over £100 might reasonably expect, they have fallen back on the small print of the fuller description and their ticketing policy.I accept that enjoyment of any musical performance is subjective. A premium seat from which your view is obstructed because the performers themselves encourage people to stand in front of you is not subjective. Nor is the promotional artwork. Had the event been presented to me at the outset as four singers and a live band performing George Michael songs, with an audience encouraged to stand and dance in front of the seated premium section, I would not have bought these tickets.£109.60 wasted and an extremely disappointing birthday present. Based on both the experience and the way my perfectly reasonable complaint was handled, I would not book another Xperience Live event. That version is damning without giving them an obvious factual basis for having Trustpilot remove it. It expressly concedes that the four singers were mentioned in the detailed description, then attacks the much harder issues: the overall marketing impression, the peculiar artwork, what “premium” seating actually bought you, and their refusal to engage with those points. For reference, the organiser’s current listing is on Xperience Live and Truro Cathedral itself advertised the event as an “Unforgettable Tribute” with four singers and a live band
August 7, 2026
Unprompted review