To think it's fair play to take the better offer?

[Midge1978]

Imelda May cancelled a gig on Saturday at the last moment. She was headlining a festival in a small town in the midlands and cancelled it as she had been invited at the last minute to sing the Irish national anthem at the boxing match between Conor McGregor and Floyd Mayweather in Las Vegas.

She has apologised saying that she felt duty called and she felt it was the biggest sporting event in her small island's history etc. Yet her Facebook feed is full of vitriol from disappointed fans. Yes of course it's gutting for her real fans and very stressful for event organisers but could they realistically expect her to turn down more money and more exposure for less work? Give the woman a break - she did what anyone would do, surely?!

No, I think she should have honoured her original commitment - really unfair on the game who has paid for tickets and possibly transport/accommodation to cancel at the last minute.

If she had been I'll fair enough but to cancel for another job which she feels is better is not on.

Nope, very bad style to cancel an agreed gig. If you say you'll do it, you do it. Else you get known as the one who drops out if something better comes up and that's a risky reputation. It means you cease to get the 'ordinary gigs' that feed you between the big events.

Fans will have made arrangements for tickets, travel, accommodation etc and will be out of pocket. I'd be fuming

I agree, she should have honoured the prior commitment.

I don't think the vitriol on social media is called for. But I think she should've honoured her original commitment.

There will be people who bought tickets specially to see her, even if the organisers refund ticket prices (and the small print may well mean they don't as it's not the organisers fault) the cost of travel and accommodation and time off work can't be reimbursed.

I think she showed zero respect for her fans. So, SWBU.

There was no way she was not gonna do the gig that was viewed by millions of people. No way. Best publicity she'll ever get in her entire career.

"Duty called" my arse. It was for the exposure, pure and simple.

Exactly I think it's daft for people to expect otherwise. She's here to earn money pure and simple- if you want loyalty get a dog ffs!

Really bad form. Its not the ticket cost its the train tickets, hotel rooms, time off work. People can't get that money back and the dissapointment factor. The knock on for local hoteliors is the rooms are paid for and unused but no ones drinking in the bar or eating in the restaurant either. Then there are all the support services and zero hours contract workers like venu staff who just wont get any money as the gigs off.

The gig still went ahead and they found a replacement who by all accounts was amazing.

She owes every one of the fans who bought a ticket a free ticket for another gig. It's just not on, disappointing fans like this.

Who is she even?
Take the money and run love

I think she should have honoured the original gig.

It's not terribly good form. Though the fact that it was a festival she pulled out of is less bad than just cancelling a gig - a fair percentage of the festival audience would not be that bothered about who was headlining (some would have been going along because they specifically wanted to see another act on the bill, some would be going because YAY FESTIVAL and the actual acts are not all that relevant, etc.)

But, mostly, even if you are self employed, it isn't very good for your reputation to just bail out of a job because you've been offered a more appealing one.

I'd be hugely pissed off and I don't think it's fair play at all. I've never heard of the woman but a pasting on social media is to be expected. And YY to pps who say the price of the ticket is the least of the expense for many fans.

It was a really shitty thing to do.

Well I guess that every fan now knows not to buy a ticket for a performance of hers in the future. As she may or may not turn up depending on whether she gets a better offer.

@rippleeffect it didn't mean the whole event was cancelled, so probably not that much of a knock-on effect. She's not that big a deal so the rest of the bill was probably as much of a draw for most of the attendees anyway.

Maybe that should be her new stage name - Imelda Maynotshowup!

Presumably the promotors found an equally mid-range act to headline in her place rather than Fred Anus the pub artiste farting into a trumpet and telling mildy racist jokes...

The biggest sporting event in her small island's history

How thick is she?

I think it's poor form.

BUT Imelda is from the Liberties, a fairly deprived part of Dublin. Five minutes down the road is Crumlin, another deprived area where McGregor is from. It felt quite fitting that the two of them, who've become successful far beyond what their start in life would have predicted, shared that ring on Saturday.

Now if only McGregor wasn't obnoxious ...

Will promoters be keen on booking her in future if they know they could easily be gazzumoped?

Or gazzumped even!

Mind you, not sure that singing for a contest between a racist and a wifebeater is all that much of a step up anyway.