Peter Kay’s Birmingham show has been brought to an abrupt halt tonight after a suspicious bag was discovered at the Utilita Arena, with the comedian pulled off stage mid-performance and thousands of audience members evacuated from the venue.
A 19-year-old man has been arrested in connection with the incident, Birmingham Police confirmed on X. Officers are currently searching the site as a precaution. “We are carrying out an evacuation at the Utilita Arena in Birmingham after a potential suspicious bag was found,” the force wrote. “A 19-year-old man is in custody and as a precaution the site is currently subject of a search. We will provide further updates when we can.”
Kay was approximately 45 minutes into his performance when he was abruptly pulled from the stage. Audience members described scenes of confusion as security staff took over. “Peter Kay was on stage, then he got bundled off, security then walked on, took the mic and told us all to leave calmly,” one concertgoer wrote on X. Another said: “He’s just been dragged off stage abruptly and we’ve all been hurried out.” A third added: “After 45 minutes we were told to leave and the show has been cancelled.”
The show was one of two consecutive nights Kay had been scheduled to perform at the Birmingham venue, with a second performance due on Saturday. It remains unclear whether that show will go ahead as planned.
The area around the arena remains under search at the time of publication. Further updates are expected from Birmingham Police.
This is a developing story.
