Rollercoaster of emotions as many left out of pocket after 1D cancellation

Devastated One Direction fans burst into tears when they learned the last-minute Belfast show cancellation was real and not just a cruel prank.

Mother and daughter duo Louise and Kim Byrne travelled from Carlow to Belfast to see the pop band strut their stuff on stage on Tuesday but were left bitterly disappointed.

Kim, 15, began queuing at 3.45pm in a bid to get as close to the stars as possible. “Kim had got her standing area after queuing for hours and she wasn’t budging from that spot,” said mum Louise.

“She just burst into tears when she heard the news. Strangers were trying to console these young children who were very, very disappointed.”

Louise said the situation should have been handled better by the band. “I’m very disappointed but I’m actually a bit annoyed as well at the way the show was cancelled just minutes before they were due to go on stage.

“Why didn’t the other three come out and just literally show their faces? I think even if people got to see them it would have made a big difference.”

Tears of disappointment turned to cries of joy as young fans waited outside the SSE Arena in Belfast to receive news that last night’s and tonight’s gigs were to go ahead. Tuesday’s cancelled show has been rescheduled for tomorrow

Louise said she and other parents were left out of pocket. “The guts of about €450 was spent on the trip and I’m driving back home now and we haven’t even seen them.”

She said the band’s rescheduled show is little consolation to her.

“It’s still a massive inconvenience. I mean I had these two days marked off work for months but I’m working all this weekend now so I won’t be around to go.”

Her husband Stephen is hoping to get time off work to bring their daughter up.

Another One Direction fan left devastated was Katie O’Connor who made the trip from Newbridge, Co Kildare, with her three cousins, her mother, and her aunt.

The 15-year-old had been looking forward to the concert and said she was “so excited” to finally see her idols on stage.

Like Louise, she said fans initially thought the announcement was a joke.

“As soon as we got the announcement we straight away thought it was a joke. Everyone was laughing then suddenly the lights in the arena came back on and we were told to leave immediately,” Katie said.

Charlotte Hagan shows off her ticket.

It’s been a rollercoaster of emotions for the teenager.

“My emotions were very high and then suddenly I was crying my eyes out and everybody around me was in tears too,” Katie said.

There were tears again yesterday but this time they were tears of joy when Katie learned her favourite band would be rescheduling the show for tomorrow.

“Oh my God I’ve never been as happy in my whole entire life. As we speak I’m sitting on my bed crying my eyes out I’m so happy,” she said.