Download festival-goers told to put smartwatches on airplane mode to avoid accidental 999 calls
©UK Independent
Today at 21:30
Metal fans heading to Download Festival in England this weekend have been urged to put their wearable tech in airplane mode when heading into a mosh pit to avoid making accidental 999 calls.
Most weekends, Leicestershire Police handle about 600 emergency calls, but when the three-day festival is underway at Donington Park, Leicestershire, these calls rise by nearly 700.
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The Irish Sun
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Reality show winner and pop star ‘unveiled' as mysterious masked performer President ahead of Download Festival slot
THE identity of a mysterious mask-wearing performer who leads new band President has been revealed ahead of its Download Festival performance tomorrow afternoon. The hard-rocking act launched its presidential campaign out of the blue earlier this year with a series of cryptic social media posts. 4 President is playing a 30 minute set at Download tomorrow afternoon Credit: Instagram More recently the band announced its first rally (headline gig) is taking place on July 30 at The Garage, London. It quickly sold out. Two crushing singles, In The Name of the Father and Fearless, are aural manifestos, acting as a rallying cry for rock and metal lovers to pledge allegiance. Speculation over President's identity has been rife ever since the first images of its frontman wearing a creepy rubber mask went public. A place on the Download Festival bill before a physical release indicated the band's members had some gravitas in the industry. READ MORE ON CHARLIE SIMPSON The consensus is that the singer Busted frontman Charlie Simpson. President's songs bear a striking resemblance to Charlie's trademark gravelly vocals, particularly from his time leading Fightstar in the early noughties. That band reunited last year for a sellout gig at Wembley Arena to celebrate its 20th anniversary. Most read in Music Not only that, but fans have spotted a gap in the front teeth of the singer, which Charlie is known to have. Beyond the vocal and facial similarities, though, is the fact that the trademark for President's music on Spotify belongs to King of Terror. The Masked Singer crowns Charlie Simpson winner as Rhino revealed The sole director for that firm on Companies House is one Charles Robert Simpson, while documents show his wife Anna holds 50 percent share stake in the busines s. Though the mystery may be solved, the concept is still creative and refreshing. Faceless acts aren't particularly unusual in modern rock - Ghost have been doing it ghoulishly well for years and Download headliners Sleep Token are currently the genre's biggest poster boys - but President's committal to its theme remains intriguing. And mystery still surrounds the remaining members of the group with former Bring Me The Horizon star Jordan Fish and members of Sleep Token and Bullet For My Valentine tipped to be involved. If you're at Download this weekend check them out on the Dogtooth Stage at 4.25pm tomorrow. 4 It appears Charlie Simpson is the man behind the President mask Credit: Getty 4 Charlies is best known for his work in Busted with James Bourne and Matt Willis Credit: Getty 4 Was President inspired by his time on The Masked Singer? Credit: ITV
Irish Independent
2 days ago
- Irish Independent
Download festival-goers told to put smartwatches on airplane mode to avoid accidental 999 calls
©UK Independent Today at 21:30 Metal fans heading to Download Festival in England this weekend have been urged to put their wearable tech in airplane mode when heading into a mosh pit to avoid making accidental 999 calls. Most weekends, Leicestershire Police handle about 600 emergency calls, but when the three-day festival is underway at Donington Park, Leicestershire, these calls rise by nearly 700.
The Irish Sun
3 days ago
- The Irish Sun
Police issue urgent mosh pit warning to rock fans ahead of Download Festival
ROCK fans looking to jump around at this weekend's Download Festival have been urgently warned to disconnect their smart watches. Leicestershire Police say the devices wreaked havoc for the force in previous years, causing emergency calls to spike severely. 3 Download Festival will take place this weekend and Leicestershire Police are urging attendees to disable their automatic emergency calls on smart watches when getting into mosh pits Credit: Download 3 Rock bands such as Green Day and Korn will no doubt get crowds moving this weekend Credit: Alamy 3 The festival is known for its hard-core rock fans, and for many it wouldn't be complete without some pushing and shoving in crowds Credit: Alamy Smart watches such as the Apple Watch or Google Pixel Watch have a built-in crash detection feature which is designed to alert emergency services when it detects the wearer has been in a "severe car crash". Many of these 999 calls are unnecessary, and caused by smart watches worn by those participating in mosh pits which "assume they have been in a collision". Users then have the option to cancel the call, but if no action is taken the device will proceed to dial 999. Music fans who want to get involved in the rowdy, physical crowds at acts such as Green Day, Sleep Token and Korn, have been urged to put their wearable tech on airplane mode, or disable emergency calls. Read more in Music Leicestershire Police receive around 600 emergency calls on a typical weekend, with this number leaping by 700 over the three days of Download Festival in Donington Park from June 13 to 15. The force reports that: "All calls had to be assessed, with three outbound call attempts completed to ensure there is no threat, risk or harm, taking our contact handlers away from answering true emergency calls." This work takes handlers away from attending to true emergencies and puts undue stress onto the team. Leicestershire Police said on Facebook: " #HelpUsHelpYou by answering our callbacks from hidden numbers to let us know you are safe. Most read in The Sun Here's how to do festival looks on a budget - and save the planet " We also recommend switching on 'airplane mode' or disabling emergency alerts on your wearable tech. " Apple have previously said that they are working to improve the accuracy of the crash detection feature to reduce the number of false calls.
