Wembley Stadium to offer sign language at every live show
BSL will be introduced to the venue on a permanent basis, starting with Ed Sheeran's gig next June
By Tom Skinner
Wembley Stadium will offer sign language at every live show from next summer, it has been announced.
The London venue guarantees a British Sign Language (BSL) translation at all of its concerts, beginning in June 2022. Provided by Performance Interpreting Ltd, the service was previously only available on select days or if booked prior.
The permanent BSL interpretations will begin at Ed Sheeran‘s first Wembley show on June 24, which is the first of four gigs that the singer-songwriter will play at the stadium in the summer. It comes as part of his ‘+ – = ÷ x Tour’ (pronounced ‘The Mathematics Tour’).
Paul Smyth, head of event operations at Wembley Stadium, explained: “We are delighted to be able to offer British Sign Language for our customers at every concert moving forward. We pride ourselves not only on being an inclusive stadium to be enjoyed by all, but also for leading the way in terms of best practice within the industry.”
He continued: “I’d particularly like to thank our customer engagement manager and disability liaison officer Matt Owen and our partners at Performance Interpreting for working together to bring this ground-breaking service to our venue. We look forward to hosting our Deaf customers at future gigs and hope that they feel the benefit of this vital service at Wembley Stadium.”
Marie Pascall, founder of Performance Interpreting Ltd, said that the company was “elated” by Wembley’s decision to provide BSL at every show. “This will enable thousands of Deaf customers to attend music events on any given date,” he added.
“Wembley continues to be a beacon of best practice and this is a huge step in the right direction. We hope other venues will value their Deaf customers and appreciate access in the same way.”
The move will make Wembley Stadium the UK’s biggest venue to offer British Sign Language at every concert.
Meanwhile, Ed Sheeran recently revealed that he has collaborated with Elton John on a new Christmas single. The former will release his fourth studio album, ‘=’, next Friday (October 29).