Lily Allen has hit back at criticism of her world tour after fans voiced a series of complaints.
Concert-goers were unhappy that the event wrapped up too quickly, that the tickets were expensive at £86 ($113), and that Allen didn’t say “one word to the audience.” Rupert Hawksley, the opinion editor for London’s The Spectator magazine, to whom Allen responded on X, also said there was no support act to the show in question, which took place at London’s O2 Arena.
Allen, 41, issued a lengthy statement in response, addressing each complaint.
“There is a support act. The show has always been advertised as ‘Lily Allen performs West End Girl,’” she began, adding that, “I was a few mins late as my tights were laddered and i had to change them.
“The show is just over an hour as it’s just the album in its entirety. It’s my artistic choice not to talk to the audience, the fourth wall helps with the storytelling. Most people find it to be effective.
“I don’t want anyone to feel ripped off, Everyone on this tour is really working very hard to give people the best show we possibly can, and i’m extremely proud of it,” she concluded.
Hawksley’s post gained widespread traction on X. He later clarified, “To be clear because this is obviously framed in a negative way (my fault). The performance was brilliant — but it can’t be right to charge that much for an hour, late on Sunday night.”
Hawksley and Allen continued their interaction on X, with the editor saying, “No support act and not even a ‘thank you so much for coming’ was a bit weird.”
Allen hit back, writing, “I’d happily concede that I’m a bit weird, though.”
Allen announced her “West End Girl” tour in October shortly after the album was released. The 14-track album was inspired by her break-up with her ex-husband, Stranger Things star David Harbour.
Allen and Harbour split in 2024 after rumors of his infidelity took the internet by storm.
