Taylor Swift performed the first of five sell-out London events on Thursday, a week after concerts in Vienna were canceled due to a failed suicide attack plot.
The American star’s return to Wembley Stadium, where she performed three nights in June, concludes the European leg of her record-breaking “Eras” tour.
In addition to events in Vienna, the concert comes just over two weeks after three girls were slain in a mass stabbing during a dance class inspired by her music in northwest England.
The 34-year-old sang her hit song “22” on the Wembley stage while wearing a T-shirt that said “a lot going on at the moment” — a fashion statement that was perceived as a reference to both occurrences.
Three accused supporters of the Islamic State group have been seized in Austria in connection with a plot to assault the Swift concerts with explosives and knives.
London police claimed there was “nothing to indicate” a link between the Vienna events and Swift’s 90,000-person shows in the UK city.
It nevertheless collaborated “closely with venue security teams and other partners to ensure there are appropriate security and policing plans in place” .
‘Worries’
Extra security, including additional ticket checks, hundreds of stewards and extra restrictions, did not dampen the spirits of so-called “Swifties” out in force Thursday.
“It doesn’t feel real, that it’s actually happening!” Katie Moulson, 24, told AFP as she arrived at Wembley.
Fans were decked out in glittery skirts, tasselled jackets, cowboy hats and stacks of friendship bracelets as they descended on northwest London.
“After Vienna, it’s good to hear that they’ve upped the security,” student Brodie MacArthur, 23, told AFP, as she arrived wearing a long white dress inspired by Swift’s latest album, “The Tortured Poets Department”.
“In the back of your head, there’s still worries. But there are a lot of people here to keep it safe,” she added.
Following the UK knife attack, Swift said she was “completely in shock” and at a “complete loss for how to ever convey my sympathies to these families” impacted.
The BBC reported Thursday that she has privately reached out to them.
Meanwhile her fans launched a fundraiser for the victims, which raised nearly £400,000 ($514,000) under the banner “Swifties for Southport”.
The tragedy “made you realise how much Swifties need each other”, MacArthur noted. “Because obviously there’s been such horrible events, that just brought us all together more.”
Swift has not yet commented on the plot on the Vienna shows.
“I think she’s just ready to come back and perform,” said Lauren Thies, 19, who has attended five previous Swift concerts with her mother, Denise.
“She loves performing for her fans,” the teenager added.
‘Anticipation’
The US star did not disappoint, bringing out Ed Sheeran as a surprise guest to the delight of the capacity crowd.
The pair performed several hits, including two Swift tracks they collaborated on and Sheeran’s “Thinking Out Loud” as a surprise song.
Fans from around the world had travelled to Wembley, where Swift is performing more “Eras” tour shows than anywhere else.
“I was worried, because this is the first concert after that (Vienna). So I was afraid to look at my phone and see something,” said Denise, who flew in with Lauren from US state New Jersey.
“I was really nervous, I thought for sure she would consider cancelling her shows here,” said Juan Ramirez, 28, another American who took an 11-hour flight from California for the event.
“It’s been an agonising anticipation of the concert. But we’re finally here and I love it,” Ramirez added, dressed in a pink outfit, including a bandanna and heart-shaped sunglasses.
Ahead of the concert, supporters sung Swift’s songs and exchanged bracelets, as was customary during the tour.
Moulson, from Suffolk in eastern England, handed out bracelets to some of the security personnel while wearing DIY flashy purple boots and a tinsel-lined jacket.
Moulson and Denise have a bucket list of London locations mentioned in Swift’s songs that they plan to visit after the event, including the Black Dog tavern in Vauxhall, south London, which appears on her most recent album.