Ricky Gervais aims to beat touts with Platinum tickets
- Ricky Gervais aims to beat "scummy" ticket touts by offering Platinum tickets for his new stand-up shows
- The aim is that people willing to pay a higher price will buy official tickets rather than use secondary sellers
- The extra money raised will go to charity. Normal and Platinum tickets go on sale on Friday. Ticketmaster
Ricky Gervais has announced a plan to try and "beat ticket touts."
Speaking today ahead of tickets going on sale for Humanity, his worldwide stand-up tour, the comedian outlined a plan to try and stop price inflation on his tickets.
Gervais is allocating a limited number of 'Platinum' tickets across his tour. The explanation is: "This way premium seats are guaranteed, priced at market rates, in an attempt to dissuade people from buying higher priced tickets from touts."
Last week, The Office star announced the first American, Canadian and European dates of Humanity, his first worldwide stand-up tour in seven years, including his first ever stand-up tour date in Canada, as well as the second-leg of his UK tour with fourteen new dates added due to strong demand.
Gervais will donate the extra profits from the UK tickets sold via Ticketmaster Platinum equally to Macmillan Cancer Support and the RSPCA.
He explained: "My frustration with touts is twofold: people spending way over the odds on tickets from illegal touts and, the association that ticket touts are connected in some way to my tour without my consent.
"Platinum tickets feels like a good way to try and stand up against ticket touts making a fast buck by exploiting fans and this way people willing to pay higher prices will at least know it's going to charity instead of some scummy tout.
"If this scheme works it will take back some of the millions of pounds scalped every year by touts and divert it to worthy causes. I will split the extra profits generated between Macmillan Cancer Support and the RSPCA."
Normal tickets and Platinum tickets go on sale on Friday via sites including Ticketmaster
List Of 2017 Dates
Bristol: 21st - 23rd February (Sold Out)
York: 28th February - 1st March (Sold Out)
Cardiff: 6th - 7th March (Sold Out)
Manchester: 13th - 14th March (Sold Out)
Liverpool: 15th March (Sold Out)
Bournemouth: 22nd - 23rd March (Sold Out)
Belfast: 28th - 29th March (Sold Out)
Sheffield: 3rd April
Portsmouth: 11th April
Iceland (Reykjavik): 20th April
Plymouth: 25th April
Glasgow: 2nd May
Brighton: 9th May
USA (New York): 21st May
USA (Chicago): 24th May
Newcastle: 5th June
Edinburgh: 8th June
Oxford: 13th June
Southampton: 18th June
Dublin: 24th June
Birmingham: 28th June
Sweden (Stockholm): 1st July
Canada (Toronto): 14th July
Netherlands (Amsterdam): 8th September
Denmark (Copenhagen): 29th September
London (Hammersmith Apollo): 4th - 7th October
USA (Los Angeles): 28th October
Tickets for the new dates are set to go on sale on Friday 24th February on vendor sites including Ticketmaster