Glasgow Lantern Festival branded 'scam' as hundreds queue for 'experience they'll never forget'
A festival in Glasgow which promised to be an experience attendees will 'never forget' has been branded Willy Wonka 2.0 and a 'scam'.
Angry Glaswegians have hit out at organisers of the festival where attendees were handed cheap lanterns that contained a helium balloon and taped on LED - after forking out £35 each.
Hundreds turned up at the event at Petershill Park in Springburn on Saturday (September 14) which was being run by Lantern Festival UK.
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The advert had promised the event would 'create magical moments that leave you breathless and filled with wonder' as you and your loved ones enjoy an 'experience that will touch your heart and soul'. The company claims to 'guide you through the mesmerising process' using its 'unwavering commitment to you and the environment'.
However, attendees were left disappointed by the "pathetic" event which saw hundreds left in random queues and organisers run out of lanterns, some of which "fell apart" before launch.
Many were also left enraged after turning up to discover that the balloons which could fly had already been launched by 9pm, despite advertising stating the best time to see the display was between 9 and 10pm.
Many Glaswegians took to TikTok to complain about the event with hundreds of comments slamming the company.
Keri Mooney, who was at the event with her friend Megan after seeing advertisements was one of them. She told Glasgow Live: "When we got there we got wristbands and were directed inside.
"However, two long queues were going in different directions, we asked staff and they said that they didn't go anywhere. No one seemed to know what was happening so we waited around for 40 minutes.
"It was so unorganised that I started to get a bit panicked. I asked some paramedics if they knew what was happening and they told us they were feeling stressed because it was chaos."
The makeup artist was eventually directed around to another line and, after another wait, they were given the lantern which ripped easily.
Keri continued: "The lantern was just a balloon that had an LED light sellotaped onto it. Some people who had waited for over an hour to get the balloon had to re-join the queue when they released it wasn't even attached when they got onto the football pitch.
"There were no staff guiding people or telling them what to do. There was also no countdown, people just made one up.
"My friend's tore just before she was meant to launch hers so we tied it to mine and let it go."
She added that when the pair were leaving, groups of people had only just arrived. Keri added: "On the website, it said the best time to go was between 9 and 10pm. So there was a group of people really unhappy at security but they told them they had been booked through a third party."
Keri believes that around 600 people showed up to the event - which she branded a scam and compared to the failed Willy Wonka Chocolate Experience event earlier this year.
She added that the Glasgow event page has since been taken down, and negative comments posted on the brand's Tiktok videos are 'deleted'.
Criticisms have also been levelled at the companies claims that the lanterns can be retrieved and are eco friendly. It is also understood that the council were not aware of the event.
The Lantern Festival UK have been contacted for comment.
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