[Closed] COVID - How do you feel about going to 'risky' events?

How do you feel about going to ‘risky’ events?

I've started going to the cinema and gigs again. One of the gigs insisted on punters showing proof of Covid jabs or a neg test. The other one didn't. And at that one the band called the crowd in together for a group hug! I stood at the back with my mask on. It's a real mixture at the mo.
Gotta make your own choices regarding this kind of thing.

Less worry over the actual virus, and more reluctant due to not being social much over the last 18 months. Far too anxious to be in a big crowd these days.

I'm thinking on the basis that there's probably more chance of me having a crash/being mugged/run over etc., on the way to a gig as there is of catching Covid and it then being serious.

But because it's been in the headlines none-stop it's hard to put it to the back of your mind. Queuing at a bar on Saturday night felt very weird! 🙂

My first crowded gig is at Rock City in October.

I'm OK about indoor venues like museums, dubious about cinemas (depends on occupancy) and I'm OK about relatively low density outdoor events where I've some control over my exposure. No way would I go to a festival or indoor gig yet.

We went to a festival the other weekend. It wasn't rammed, but certainly a lot of people about and no attempts at distancing. I'm fairly firmly in the "we've got to start just getting back to normal" camp (after getting appropriately vaccinated, which I have done), so I'm comfortable being maskless in shops etc.

Nope. I appreciate the need for "normality" but the current case numbers suggest it's still too much of a risk.

Going through same thing. I'm going to pass, but mainly due to having a fortnight's leave booked after the gig. It would be absolutely typical if I picked a dose up and put the kibosh on my hard earned holiday time. If I was working as normal I'd happily take the risk.

As an organ transplant recipient my partner apparently has a 60% survival rate if she gets covid, even double vaccinated - however we can't just hide inside forever and we have been out to cafes/restaurants/taken kids to soft play etc as long as it's felt fairly spacious and well ventilated.

Indoor gigs with thousands of people would be a step too far for us definitely.

because it’s been in the headlines none-stop it’s hard to put it to the back of your mind

My news avoidance for the past year is paying off then. 🙂

Why do we need to get back to no masks in shops. What's the rush on that front. Surely actually getting things and people moving is the important thing rather than sensible precautions while doing so.

Going to a wedding this weekend. Concerned that the English contingent of my family coming up are vocally anti vax anti mask anti restrictions......

But I'm still going. Will be keeping my distance and using my mask as required.

Interested to know whether this segments into a rural versus urban split. Just arrived home after a few days in Hull seeing family, having come from the sticks in N.Wales. Totally different collective attitude to risk/behaviour. Now waiting for PCR test, enforced by partner!

On OP's qu. Too early for gigs for me, but eating-out was novel and enjoyable. I can deffo understand the "If not now, when?" attitude, but the figures are still are not what they should be IMV.

good timing as I'm puzzling this one myself. "Going" to Riverside Festival next Fri to see Jamie XX mainly. But after hearing about the covid spikes from other gigs lately, Boardmasters in Cornwall especially I'm having second thoughts. Want to get back to normal but also feel this gig is high risk exposure

With 2 people in the family circle in the slow terminal spiral and 2 bike/boozy/party events I'm meant to be at over the next couple of weekends, it feels like too much of risk, I'm double jabbed but catching COVID means I cant visit folks if needed or more importantly If I carried something to someone else I would seriously hasten their demise.

The fact that some absolute knobbers are boozing and then jumping about and hugging like the teletubbies at events at the moment doesn't help either.

So Its a big no for me for risky stuff with lots of people for the foreseeable and to be honest I dont feel like I'm going to be missing out.

This sums up why I won't be.

https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-cornwall-58309660

Boardmasters in Cornwall especially

Though TBF that will mainly have been 14 year olds snorting ketamine off each others eyeballs.

Yes, also wrestling with this one. The cases associated with Boardmasters seemed to indicate a 10% hit rate ! But does it really matter if you're (relatively) young, healthy and vaccinated? It would be useful if there was some decent data on outcomes, not just hospitalisation. Gut-feel says being cautious for a while longer to see how things pan out isn't a bad idea, but who knows, can't live in a cave forever.

I wouldn't, gigs and festivals are probably the most high risk thing you can do at the moment, even cinemas and theatres will be safer, less moving around so unless you are unlucky enough to sit close to someone with it the chances are lower of becoming infected. Bit of an over generalisation but gigs have the least precautions, high levels of interaction, a younger population less likely to have been vaxxed and more likely to have caught through lifestyle choices.

I'm beginning to wonder if masks are needed in shops, you generally don't stay close to anyone for that long in most shops so chance of transmission is fairly low. Public transport, sit down events I can see the point, but only if a significant number of others are. London last week was interesting, a little out of the tourist hotspots and mask wearing seemed around 70%, in the touristy bits it was a lot lower, and that was British tourists.

I dont get the not wearing a mask in the shop so we can get back to normal. This is normal for now. You're not being prevented from shopping/contributing to the economy by wearing a mask. And if we all did there would be less cases.

I'm giving it another year before events indoors etc. I can do without catching Covid tbh. 2 weeks isolation for going out on a social. No. worst hangover ever

All my mates went to the euro 2020 final and everyone in the bar got infected, probably from one person. All my friends were vaccinated. Most of them were fine. one hospitalised due to diabetes complications and another is still feeling shit.

Cases were less or similar. It only takes one person.

But if you go get a free lat flow test to take before and the next day

The cases associated with Boardmasters seemed to indicate a 10% hit rate ! But does it really matter if you’re (relatively) young, healthy and vaccinated?

It matters if the community you return to after your fun weekend isn't universally young, healthy and vaccinated. Delta is a huge step up in transmissibility and the earliest recipients of vaccination are well down the curve for protection by now and also the most at risk of getting it seriously.

We were in Brum to see Jimmy Carr last night. Coming from semi rural Herefordshire it was weird being in a close environment with lots of people again. I couldn't get over how many people weren't wearing masks though, we were the exception with ours on.

I want to go to events and get out to see what the new normal is going to be, but i think there are too many people who are too quick to forget the last 18 months and go back to 'normal' (hint: it doesn't exist any more). I wont be rushing to another indoor event, but i'm happy to go to outdoor shows/ events with more space, maybe not a festival this year.

I’m thinking on the basis that there’s probably more chance of me having a crash/being mugged/run over etc., on the way to a gig as there is of catching Covid

I don't recall reading about 4700 car crashes on the way to Boardmasters.

But does it really matter if you’re (relatively) young, healthy and vaccinated?

It matters if the community you return to after your fun weekend isn’t universally young, healthy and vaccinated.

This. We talk about the young as if they are a discrete section of society but they aren't. They live among us, go to the same shops (well, some of) go and visit our elderly parents with us, and like a web can ensure that the virus continues to move around and find the susceptible. And as vaccine effectiveness wanes, that situation becomes troublesome again.

I have a ticket for Tailenders live in October at the symphony hall in Brum, I won’t be going. I was also considering going to Scotland next month on holiday but won’t be going up there either.

I’m seeing a majority of people just not bothering to take any precautions at all, no masks, no social distancing etc, the virus is still out there and I’m not having some numpty potentially kill me due to their stupidity.

I'm a bit immune compromised (diabetic), double vaxxed, and tbh yeah it's in my mind a bit but not enough to put me off or stop me enjoying events. First gig "back" is Biffy in Glasgow, I'm going to come home with about a thousand different people's sweat on me. It's outdoors at least. There's a testing requirement but I'm not sure how much that's really worth...

But overall I live a pretty low-covid-risk life. I'd definitely feel different if my mum or dad were still around, they were both seriously vulnerable to it.

I don’t recall reading about 4700 car crashes on the way to Boardmasters.

@theotherjonv

Neither do I.

But then neither do I recall that being the same implication as the whole sentence if you'd quoted it less selectively.

I actually checked the numbers and very crudely someone under 30 is about 50x more likely to die of COVID caught at Boardmasters than be in a KSI car accident on any random day (although that makes no account for driving down with a car full of mates and driving back with the same, no sleep, and a rotten hangover). So it's probably actually pretty close.

Going to a festival next weekend. I'm not concerned because:

It's either outside or else in a very very big tent

We stand at the back away from people anyway because we are old

Been vaxed

Don't have a lot of contact with people before/after (both home working)

But does it really matter if you’re (relatively) young, healthy and vaccinated?

I am relatively young, healthy and vaccinated. I also know that when I got COVID last time, I was in a pretty bad way. Latest worry is that as an early adopter of vaccine, mine is now nearly 9 months old and the news today seems to suggest that my vaccine is now probably beyond its best.

Talking it though here has helped, I don't think I'll go.

I had tickets for a gig tonight but sold them this morning. Venue has a capacity of 1,000, a relatively low ceiling and little ventilation. I was excited to see the band, but less so standing at the back in a mask rather than in the mosh pit at the front. I decided it wasn't worth the risk of having to spend 10 days at home. Increasingly it is this - the risk of having to isolate - that is of greater concern than catching Covid.

Me and a mate are meant to be seeing Half Man Half Biscuit at the Rescue Rooms, thankfully they have postponed it to next year, so we might still go 🙂

I don't tolerate a***holes very well at the best of times, but hopefully there won't be any at a HMHB gig, much as there were none at the last gig I went to (Atilla the Stockbroker since you asked).

Selective gigging, that's what will save us.

All my mates went to the euro 2020 final and everyone in the bar got infected, probably from one person. All my friends were vaccinated. Most of them were fine. one hospitalised due to diabetes complications and another is still feeling shit

@joefm how many of your mates was that then? In the absence of any proper data anecdotal stuff is seemingly all we have to go on!

The weekend before last we went out for a beer in a (small) pub in the city and the following day went to a toddlers birthday bash.

It was nice to be out and about for the first time in A Very Long Time. We still came down with a bad cold a couple of days later, despite hand washing/alcohol gel/masks - self test and drive by test both came back negative for COVID.

Whilst it was nice to feel back to normal for a brief period, think I’m going to continue to shun public crowds in general ‘til next summer.

But then neither do I recall that being the same implication as the whole sentence if you’d quoted it less selectively.

Point was that catching covid at a festival is far from a rare chance. 10% suggested above but that'll be ott because Boardmasters is not a site based festival, there will have been more that 50K in Newquay that weekend and there will have been town to Festival interaction and transmission.

And as already said the risk is not the infected person dying, but catching it. And then passing on to someone who is susceptible. Or they pass it on, and so on. Using the likelihood of death of the festival or gig goer as the decision point totally misses the question.

We still came down with a bad cold a couple of days later, despite hand washing/alcohol gel/masks

This is going to be a (sort of) bigger deal for a while; the transmission of 'normal' infections as people start to mingle again.

I’m beginning to wonder if masks are needed in shops, you generally don’t stay close to anyone for that long in most shops so chance of transmission is fairly low.

Think it can be as quick as 15 seconds with the Delta variant

I play in a band in Manchester and our singer also promotes stuff. Hes putting on an event on Saturday that we are due to play. It was originally planned for pre covid times. I'm nervous about playing it but don't want to let a mate down (a couple of bands have already pulled out). So i'll be arriving just before we are due on and leaving as soon as we finish. Its an "evidence of 2 jabs" thing but i still don't trust it.

We've only rehearsed once since lockdown due to restrictions and other stuff so we'll probably be utterly crap too.

Ugh!

personally, more than happy, taken the vaccine, tests for work and travel so ive a good idea at any point what sort of risk i am to friends/family.

masks in shops is not "back to normal" - it may be what 'you' are comfortable with but any benefit is calculated and essentially unproven. If you think a shop is risky, maybe just stay on the sofa and support amazon.
Delta Variant contagion in 15secs - love to see where you got that from... outdoors, indoors, symptomatic, ventilated, mask quality, distance etc etc.

masks in shops stop folk constantly touching their face then picking up the baked beans that you pick up later that day, and also touch your face...

I’ve got quite a few gigs lined up from September through December. Daft Punk classical at Manchester Cathedral and Nick Cave at the Bridgwater Hall. They should be fairly ok with been seated. Jesus and Mary Chain and Wedding Present at the Ritz will be a bit different hopefully we’ll have more folk vaccinated and vaccine passes by then. They work great here in France. Im not worried about COVID other than I don’t want it in the same way I don’t want flu and end up been sick for a few weeks.

I play in a band in Manchester and our singer also promotes stuff. Hes putting on an event on Saturday that we are due to play. It was originally planned for pre covid times. I’m nervous about playing it but don’t want to let a mate down (a couple of bands have already pulled out). So i’ll be arriving just before we are due on and leaving as soon as we finish. Its an “evidence of 2 jabs” thing but i still don’t trust it.

I did our first gig back a few weeks ago - very nervous about being in a hot, sweaty pub and the obvious flouting of any restrictions by the punters (and some of the staff!).

We did another one the following week which was outdoors - much happier about that, and the same again this weekend - a decent crowd expected (500+) but all outdoors.

we’ll have more folk vaccinated and vaccine passes by then

We don't, and won't, have vaccine passes. Anything that is in place is purely voluntary.

I've got a weekend meet up in Leeds early September which basically always turns into a massive pub crawl into the early hours. I'm not going as it's too risky to my liver, let alone COVID.

@soobalias - comes from analysis of delta transmission in Australia where cases (were) lower and so easier to track actual transmission events

https://www.forbes.com/sites/williamhaseltine/2021/06/28/infection-through-fleeting-contact-with-the-delta-variant-leads-to-lockdowns-across-australia/?sh=7d653e015d4f

Answers on this thread go someway to explaining why the gigs that are being arranged are so cheap. (Eg. Wolf Alice @£15 + 1 free - I failed in my bid to get a ticket for that one). Bands need to earn their living again, so putting on low-price gigs to those prepared to take the risk gets them a bit of income, as well as practice playing live again/doing what they love.

Just come back from the Edinburgh Fringe.

Most shows tried to seat people a metre apart. Masks were technically compulsory, though many ignored that, but most shows felt pretty safe, and I'm very anxious about Covid - you may gave noticed!

One gig was in the basement of a pub. No ventilation, 50-60 people shoulder to shoulder, many without masks. That gig made me twitchy, but 5 days on, LFTs still negative and no symptoms. Ben Clover was very good though.

Well I caught COVID at a festival last month. Tramlines in Sheffield. Supposedly neg lft or double vac needed to attend but the checking of qr codes left a lot to be desired. Of course it may have been the bus queue after or the bus itself we got on Friday night. Not many masks on the bus.
I’m double vaxxed but nearly a year since my second dose as in the trial.
Felt shit for 2 1/2 weeks after but back to normal now I think.
Also meant I missed a lovely eggs gig on 29th July. At least it didn’t put me in hospital, and now my antibody levels are topped up I felt super confident at green man last weekend. The 5 other 50 somethings I was with were more nervous than me so I happily did the bar queuing. It was so good to be able to be right at the front for working men’s club in the tent last Thursday. That is a feeling I’ve missed.
The others are doing lfts every 2 days this week and negative so far. I got symptoms on the Wednesday following tramlines. I’ve got another gig on 4th sept- rescheduled twice since the original March 2020 date. So far all 5 of us with tickets are happy to go. It’s a sit down, city hall type gig but I’m not sure if extra social distancing in place.

Still kinda nervous watching cases rise and rise. Want to wait it out a bit to see what happens over winter before committing to gigs, cinema, crowded places indoor and outdoor.

Currently at Portobello beach, visiting, but I've now retired to the car as it was getting quite crowded in certain areas despite the sea fog.

Wanted to go to the Malverns, but will wait till next year for that too. Could be busy, could be a well spaced field...

Got tickets to Repercussion in Manchester which is a club event in a huge warehouse space + outdoor section. Plan was to stay in the outdoor bit only or at the back, whatever, but yeah I'm not 100% sure now.

Guessing toilets and bar queues are going to be pretty risky regardless of what else we do. It starts at 2pm though so might do an early start and early finish as will just be having a few beers anyway rather than staying up for 48 hours straight like the old days.

As Henning Wehn pointed out for comedic effect at the Fringe, LFT test results mean nothing, as you can tell the NHS whether you were positive or negative to suit whether you want to go to a gig/festival, or have some time off work.

Had to show the LFT acknowledgement text to get into his show.

soobalias
Free Member

masks in shops is not “back to normal” – it may be what ‘you’ are comfortable with but any benefit is calculated and essentially unproven. If you think a shop is risky, maybe just stay on the sofa and support amazon.

Well, first off the person you're responding to didn't say masks in shops is "back to normal", they said it's now normal.

We're at a point where we have to balance the risks against the benefits/drawbacks. So yes wearing a mask in a shop is unlikely to make any difference, in that isolated nstance. But it's also extremely low effort- one of the very lowest impact things you can do to reduce the risk. And it's something that happens a lot.

Meanwhile there are things which are higher risk, but which can't be done with masks, or not without serious detriment. But just because we allow or do those things, doesn't mean we shouldn't take steps to reduce risks in less risky situations.

It can seem unintuitive to wear masks when doing a low risk activity, but also doing a higher risk and not wearing masks, in the same climate. But nothing's in isolation, all the tiny risks go in the same bucket as the big risks and so things that everyone does or people do often, like going to the shops, even if they're low risk, add up. And small mitigations of those also add up. And X number of masks worn in shops, can cancel out Y amount of going to orgies.

SSUK in 10 days, currently thinking I'll avoid the front of the crowd, and swap the usual double digits of beer for Berocca.

Jabbed a couple of weeks ago so should be nice and resilient. But it's right at the start of a block of freelance work, and having not worked all summer so really can't afford to get ill.

😬

@soobalias

Queensland’s chief health officer, Dr Jeannette Young decided to close the state’s borders to people from Sydney hotspots, telling The Guardian, “with the Delta variant, we’re seeing very fleeting contact leading to transmission. At the start of this pandemic, I spoke about 15 minutes of close contact being a concern. Now it looks like it’s five to 10 seconds that’s a concern. The risk is so much higher now than it was only a year ago.”

https://www.forbes.com/sites/williamhaseltine/2021/06/28/infection-through-fleeting-contact-with-the-delta-variant-leads-to-lockdowns-across-australia/

Céline Gounder, a clinical assistant professor of medicine and infectious disease at NYU’s Grossman School of Medicine told STAT News, "At the beginning of the pandemic, the CDC said that a close contact was somebody that you’re indoors with unmasked for 15 minutes or more.

"The equivalent of that with the delta variant is not 15 minutes, it’s one second."

https://www.politifact.com/article/2021/jul/28/how-contagious-delta-variant-it-isnt-easy-quantify/

going to the shops, even if they’re low risk, add up. And small mitigations of those also add up. And X number of masks worn in shops, can cancel out Y amount of going to orgies.

It's slightly worse than just additive as well.

I.e. it's not 0.001 probability at Tesco + 0.1 at Torture Garden =0.101. If everyone wears a mask in the supermarket, then no one catches it there and we can all* wear gimp masks without catching COVID.

*Well, 50%.

I’m thinking on the basis that there’s probably more chance of me having a crash/being mugged/run over etc., on the way to a gig as there is of catching Covid and it then being serious.

Yeah, I thought that. I ended up with 15 months+ of long covid. It's not something I'm keen to revisit, so I'll be avoiding risky events and places for now thanks. I might revise my opinion when more information on the efficacy of vaccines in preventing long covid is available.

We’re at a point where we have to balance the risks against the benefits/drawbacks. So yes wearing a mask in a shop is unlikely to make any difference, in that isolated nstance. But it’s also extremely low effort- one of the very lowest impact things you can do to reduce the risk. And it’s something that happens a lot.

I'm still wearing masks in shops not because I'm worried about myself particularly (double vaxxed etc.), but more as a courtesy for the people in the shop who will be seeing far more people every day than I will. I like the people in my lbs and it'd be a real shame if they got ill.

As for events and things, I've done a bit of holiday travelling over the last couple of weeks including time in busy train stations and trains etc. All felt a bit 'goodness look at all these people', so while I'm fine sitting in a restaurant or something I think I'll stick to small scale stuff/riding my bike for the time being.

Feel absolutely fine about "risky" events.

Its funny that because it's constantly been in the news it's now a risk, yet we don't discuss about the risks of driving to said events which can be as risky as actually catching and dieing of the disease itself especially when double vaccinated.

Funny how the mindset can be driven by the media.

Like everyone, it's something I've been thinking about a lot.

I've come to the conclusion, based on nothing but what I can learn from the news, that there is no longer much, if any point avoiding 'risky events', in fact, it might be counterproductive to do so.

As I understand it, based on the last thing I read on the news, that being vaccinated does very little to stop you spreading it, and offers a good protection against catching it, but it's far from 100%, what it does very, very well is almost completely removes the chances of me getting up in Hospital, or dying from it, and it does the same for, most, if not all people. Everything else is a bonus, this was always the intent as far as I know.

Based on the current 'restrictions' here in Wales and the almost complete lack of them in England, it seems to be inevitable that, even vaccinated I will catch Covid eventually, in the same way I will catch a Cold and other viruses multiple times during the rest of my life. Even if I spend the rest of your life, living like we did back in the darkest days of the first wave, one day, it's going to find me.

Why do I say counterproductive? Well, and again I don't pretend to be an expert, I just read the same news stories as everyone else, the vaccine effect dwindles, I had my 2nd Jab 12 weeks ago, so it's now 60% effective (at what, I don't know) down from 70% back in June. I'll probably get a booster here in Wales, AFAIK and based on what the Wife has been told in the Vaccination Centre, Wales will be starting all over again in about 3 weeks, I'll probably get my booster in Feb-ish.

As I understand it, Covid is never going to go away, this will only ever truly end when we've all been exposed to it so much that it is just 'another cold' and you can only do that on an individual basis, we don't have an collective immune system of course.

I can only assume/guess/conclude that the best way to avoid getting really sick, or dying of Covid, is to build the best immunity I can now, whilst my vaccine is working effectively and before the inevitable next, potentially worse variant arrives. That's not to say I'm going to hold a 'pox party' or go around licking door handles, but this period now, whilst most people are vaccinated and it's working well, it possibly as good as it's going to get for a few years at least.

That's not really even taking into account the whole, 'you've got to live your life at some point' side of the discussion, which is of course perfectly reasonable.

Its funny that because of constantly been in the news it’s now a risk, yet we don’t discuss about the risks of driving to said events which can be as risky as actually catching and dieing of the disease itself especially when double vaccinated.

Control the things you can control. Don't worry about those you can't.

I can't control the way that it seems a vast majority of drivers are bell ends thus won't worry about it.

Wearing a mask in a shop(or another place while I'm living my life) makes no odds to me really unless I'm paranoid the media are lying to me and want to be "edgy"

The Scotland game euros pub thing happened to all the young apprentices at work who went down on the bus. The whole bus ended up positive.

Funny enough despite the apprentices being vocally anti vax/anti restrictions before the incident....they are all now mid vax programme except 1 of them.....

Thought the very same thing today as I booked a gig for mid-November, we have 4 over a 3 week period, 3 of those rearranged from last year. It is telling that bands I would have expected to sell out very quickly haven't. Will just make sure we're comfortable in a part of the venue that isn't as squashed together etc.

Will just make sure we’re comfortable in a part of the venue that isn’t as squashed together etc.

I know how you feel.

I've booked a restaurant and 2 bars for a night out in a few weeks 'in town' some might even call them nightclubs (I'm waaaay to old for night clubs). I don't know what the format will be, assigned seating, table service, social distancing or a complete pre-covid style free-for-all.

I've decided I'll go with it regardless, I never thought it would be like this, we had a thread, must have been a year ago about what we were all going to do after covid and most of us wanted to embrace 'normal life' with a renewed vigour and never take social contact for granted again, but it hasn't worked out like that has it? I think it will take a long time before that feeling of slight shock and panic when someone comes 'too close' to feel normal again, a few months at least when covid isn't in the news and it starts to fade into the back of our mind. If it's safe, I'm really looking forward to not worrying about it anymore.

That’s not really even taking into account the whole, ‘you’ve got to live your life at some point’ side of the discussion, which is of course perfectly reasonable...

...or the impact you getting infected and spreading COVID could have on other people, not just yourself.

My level of comfortable "risk" is still very low, I tolerate a sizeable proportion of my work colleagues (~100 in per day before delivery) not wearing masks inside the depot and I just about tolerate sharing a van with two different colleagues on delivery each week.

Sometime soon I'll need to tolerate getting on a train and being surrounded by people not wearing masks in England and from the sound of things, a number ignoring the legal requirement in Wales.

And for now that's it, I wear a mask everytime I go indoors besides at home and I try to keep 1m+ away from others. So many in Southampton are trying to "pretend" Covid is all over now but it blatently isn't from those who are testing positive, we recently at work had the worst outbreak since the pandemic started.

My locally living double jabbed + 2 months mother-in-law, unjabbed sister-in-law and her unjabbed partner (conceiving concerns) have all had Delta recently and come out of isolation between the weekend and today.
My partner and I have had Covid at least once back in March '20, possibly twice as my partner was back to herself last summer after prolonged breathing complications in March, before coming down with similar issues in October and she hasn't worked since Xmas due to Long Covid.

I'm expecting Boris to be under severe pressure to re-introduce some restrictions this autumn/winter.

Its funny that because of constantly been in the news it’s now a risk, yet we don’t discuss about the risks of driving to said events which can be as risky as actually catching and dieing of the disease itself especially when double vaccinated.

Car crashes won't ever increase exponentially and overwhelm the NHS though.

Funny how the mindset can be driven by the media.

And basic logic.

Car crashes won’t ever increase exponentially and overwhelm the NHS though.

Having been nearly wiped out by a learner with a driving instructors car this morning, who nearly took out the oncoming council van as well, I wouldn't be so sure.....

I'm still being overly wary of going anywhere that means I can't keep out of the way of other people.

Double jabbed and, according to all indicators, wouldn't be to badly effected if I did get infected.

However, if I test positive it impacts my work rotation. That could possibly mean being off work on sick pay or reduced pay for 2 months+. A risk I can't take.

Also, Mrs Seadog, because of other health complications, would find it very hard. Aoiding each other in out small house would be impossible.

Car crashes won’t ever increase exponentially and overwhelm the NHS though.

You should take a drive around West Yorkshire.

With the current vaccine rollout it's also less and less likely the NHS will be overrun. Impact other services maybe.

With the current vaccine rollout it’s also less and less likely the NHS will be overrun

Well that's what the media says.

Late 20's and I'm feeling happy to go to my gigs in the autumn. I still wear a mask in shops though, for the people like on the first page who have conditions you can't always see. They're obviously not going to be in a gig anytime soon but we can at least make them feel safe in normal life settings

I never liked crowds before covid. Now I have an excuse to not go to populated places.

Two of my nieces went to Boardmasters. Both caught the virus. The youngest has been pretty ill and much worse than flu. They are 18 and 16. Personally, I wouldn't without precautions (vaccination, masks and hand washing).

So I wrestled with this last week! Got 2 tickets to see the 1st James gig of the tour. I’d been missing live music and paid up, but then the questions started, not just from me but Mrs fp also. Mrs FP wanted to sell or give away her ticket at one point. However we went….. to start with most people did their best to keep some kind of social distance, but by the 3rd song that was it, no one I could see was wearing a mask and everyone was singing, including Mrs FP. It was great! James stayed on for 2 hour plus and it was like normality had returned to my life after 18 months.

The next 6 days however started with the same thing, a FAST Covid test and the worry that it would be positive. As all the days started the same it seemed the results were too - all negative. Woohoo I went out enjoyed life and didn’t die - or get a mildly annoying virus!

However north of the boarder on the same night(I think?) my brother in law went out to see Huey Morgan and a few days later tested positive!

Not sure what you should make of that:

James fans are less likely to carry Covid? Huey Morgan is a super spreader? Scotland is dangerous? O2 Oxford can’t give you Covid if you had the AZ vaccine as the students that worked on it all got drunk there? None of the above?

Whatever, you will know when the best time to go out to these events is for you, and until that band/dj/festival calls keep safe, keep well, and keep riding (whatever size your wheels!)

@paul0
About 10, plus the staff and other tables in the bar. This was in Southampton.
They may have caught it elsewhere but the likelihood is that it was in the one place given that was the only time they all met up together.

It's purely anecdotal but enough to make me think about it i.e. it could just be one person in an enclosed space.

There was a local outbreak as mentioned above.

Went to a gig at Omeara in London last week. Small venue, pretty crowded. I'm double-jabbed, my daughter single-jabbed. We were the only people wearing masks that we could see, and no covid status was checked on entry. TBH we nearly came straight out again, but decided to lurk at the back instead. A week later we have both tested negative multiple times, so my advice would be that mask wearing certainly doesn't hurt at the moment. For all that, it was great to be seeing live music again!

I'm currently isolating having caught Covid at Bloodstock festival. I'm double jabbed and knew the risks, I figured we have to start living again sometime. I would hope everyone at the festival thought the same.
I'll still wear masks in shops etc as those are places where people need to go and don't want that same risk forced upon them. Indeed here in Scotland we still have to and I think that's a good thing.
I've got more gigs coming up and will happily go to them all and am happy to follow any entry requirements they request.

I feel fine about it personally. Doubled pfizered and healthy. Been to one very small festival, lot's of pubs and restaurants and had a garden party for 20 recently. Off to London to the Globe Friday. Will do masks on crowded public transport but not keen on wearing in gigs or events as it takes away from the enjoyment and release. Full on packed nightclub would probably not be up for though that's more about not being used to being in a crowd and getting too old for all that.

If you think a shop is risky, maybe just stay on the sofa and support amazon.

There are plenty of older people who wouldn’t go near internet shopping. I wear a mask in shops to reduce the chance of spreading the virus and putting them at risk. Soon we’ll be both well on top of vaccinations to reduce spread and illness and have many improved drugs to help those that do fall ill and/or can’t be vaccinated. In the meantime, we all know exactly how to help protect others while shopping. Refusing to do so marks you out as being… well… what’s the nice way of putting it?

Anyway, been to one gig (social distancing was in place and I still managed to end up buzzing from it) and have several gigs lined up… Nick Cave in Bradford and New Order in Halifax. Great to have musicians on stage again. I’ll be mask wearing at gigs for a while yet, strongly suspect most won’t be, that’s up to them at this point though. Not sure it’ll stay that way.

Well that’s what the media says.

And the data, readily available to all.

Would love to resume going to...gigs, cinema, restaurants, pubs but won't yet.
Covid secure means nothing since johnson removed all restrictions and I value my health more than a bit of short-term pleasure.
I continue to assume that everyone else is irresponsible and don't care about covid so my behaviour and double vaccination is the only protection I can rely on.
As for masks, for those who wear the cheap disposable and generally ineffective ones how often are they replaced? Single use, daily, weekly, longer?
Hand sanitising or washing them more frequently - 10 minute wonder; next time you go shopping spend 2 or 3 minutes at entrance watching how few people use the available sanitiser.
Unmasked staff and customers, little if any social distancing.
That applies generally; it's not limited to shops.
Those considerations inform my decision.

Genuinely curious how many of this critical of festivals and large gigs were at event like ard rock? There seems to a be a little bit of snobbery about who’s activity and event is justifiable… or maybe that’s just me being critical. I don’t recall protests of “don’t visit Swaledale and ard rock as it’s isolated and locals don’t have the healthcare provision. (Nothing against ard rock it’s just an example)

Eh, I’m not sure anyone mentioned local healthcare provision or suggested events shouldn’t go ahead? Comments have mostly been about risk of catching covid at different events. I’m not sure anyone going to ard rock has popped up on here either, but it hardly seems comparable to a music festival or gig..

don’t tolerate a***holes very well at the best of times, but hopefully there won’t be any at a HMHB gig,

Dunno about assholes, but it’s not entirely unusual for a bunch of blokes of a certain age to start a body-slamming moshpit in front of the stage at a HMHB gig - I just moved to the side a bit and let them get on with it. A lot of paracetamol and ibuprofen consumed the next morning I’m sure. 🤣
I’m certainly going to the gigs I’ve got tickets for, I’ve got proof of my vaccinations, and I’ll happily wear a mask if necessary.