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Irish Daily Mirror
7 days ago
- Entertainment
- Irish Daily Mirror
Nathan Carter meet and greet row erupts again as team hits back
The row over Nathan Carter's controversial Belfast meet and greet has reignited, as the country star's team hit back at claims he was ever officially booked for the event. The Wagon Wheel singer had headlined Feile an Phobail's sold-out Country Festival in Falls Park on Saturday night - joined by The Whistlin' Donkeys, Ultimate Eagles and Claudia Buckley - but confusion unfolded at The Balmoral Hotel, where a free "Nathan Carter Meet and Greet" had been promoted as part of its new Cargo Cult Smokehouse launch. Hundreds of fans turned up expecting to meet the singer, only for Nathan to post on Instagram the next day saying he had never been "officially booked" and apologising to disappointed guests. The 35-year-old said: "Regarding the meet and greet which was advertised for the Balmoral Hotel yesterday with myself, it's something that I was never booked for and apologies to people who did turn up. "When I got to Belfast I headed straight over and I met a few people at the hotel, but obviously missed an awful lot of people that had been there, so apologies about that. But unfortunately, it's something, as I say, that I was never officially booked for and it was advertised, so hope you all had a good time anyway at the Feile." But the hotel quickly hit back with a no-holds-barred Facebook post, claiming the event was booked and confirmed via Nathan's official promoter, Joe Gallagher Entertainment. Nathan Carter addressed the situation on Instagram (Image: Instagram/iamnathancarter) "Let's clear a few things up, shall we?" the hotel began. "As a proud sponsor of this year's Feile, we at The Balmoral Hotel were genuinely excited to host a FREE 'Nathan Carter: MEAT and Greet' event for the launch of our new Cargo Cult Smokehouse. This was booked and confirmed for us on Saturday 25th July via Joe Gallagher Entertainment, named as the official promoter for Nathan Carter's show. We were told that Nathan would be arriving on Saturday 2nd August any time between 4pm and 6pm." The Balmoral Hotel said they had only 250 free tickets - which "went within hours" - and claimed they reconfirmed the booking, even after being asked to "take the post down by Nathan's team", who were reportedly "getting requests from other businesses for meet and greets". They detailed extensive preparations, including shutting the car park, bringing in extra staff, providing free food, live music, a DJ, photographer, videographer and even a shuttle bus. The Balmoral alleged: "At 5pm, we got word from the promoters that Nathan would be arriving at 8pm, which overlapped with the start time of the Feile concert. We informed guests about this and let them decide what to do. Some stayed, some understandably couldn't and headed to the concert. We kept the energy up, and Nathan eventually arrived just before 10pm, posed for photos, and then headed to the show." The hotel then hit back at Nathan's social media claim: "Now here's the twist: Today, Nathan Carter posted a story on social media saying we never booked him. We're just going to say this: Maybe, just maybe, his teams should start talking to each other, because from where we're standing, this was very much booked and we planned every last detail around it. We're not in the business of drama, but we are in the business of hospitality and we're proud of the effort our team put in to make something special (and free) for our community." The Balmoral Hotel in Dunmurry on the outskirts of Belfast city (Image: Google Maps) The hotel closed their statement with a jab: "To our guests: thank you. To our team: legends. To Nathan: next time, we're booking Daniel O'Donnell. With love, The Balmoral Hotel." As the row went viral online, Nathan's team has now responded with a fresh statement. A spokesperson for Nathan Carter said that he was "never booked for this". They told Belfast Live: "On Saturday night Nathan and his band performed at Feile Country Fest, which was an amazing gig. The promoter, who booked Nathan for the show, asked if Nathan would go to the venue and meet the venue proprietor and some of his personal guests to which we agreed, but at no stage was there a time or agreement to do an official meet and greet. "Once Nathan arrived in Belfast, he went straight to the venue and met some of the people that were there. We understand people's annoyance and are very sorry that this happened, but as I said, this was never booked as an official meet and greet." Promoter Joe Gallagher Entertainment also weighed in and took to the Balmoral Hotel's defence. A spokesperson said: "Joe Gallagher Entertainment can confirm that the Nathan Carter pre-concert meet and greet advertised by the Balmoral Hotel in Belfast was pre-arranged and agreed with Nathan's Tour Manager. "After being delayed on his arrival in Belfast, Nathan did ensure he made an appearance at the Balmoral Hotel event. The delay was in no part due to the Balmoral Hotel." Subscribe to our newsletter for the latest news from the Irish Mirror direct to your inbox: Sign up here.
Irish Daily Mirror
04-08-2025
- Entertainment
- Irish Daily Mirror
Nathan Carter meet and greet drama explodes as hotel and star blame each other
A dramatic fallout has erupted between country music star Nathan Carter and The Balmoral Hotel, after an advertised meet and greet left fans disappointed and both sides pointing fingers. The Wagon Wheel singer headlined Feile an Phobail's Country Festival in Belfast's Falls Park on Saturday night. The sell-out event was part of the wider arts festival and also featured performances from The Whistlin' Donkeys, Ultimate Eagles and Claudia Buckley. But while thousands were enjoying the show, confusion was brewing elsewhere - namely at The Balmoral Hotel on the outskirts of Belfast city, where a free 'Nathan Carter Meet and Greet' had been promoted as part of the hotel's new Cargo Cult Smokehouse launch. Posting on Instagram on Sunday afternoon, Nathan, 35, addressed the situation directly. He said: "Hi everyone, just jumping on to say a massive thanks to everyone who attended the Feile in Belfast last night. The best gig of the year so far, over 10,000 people and the atmosphere was incredible." He clarified the controversy surrounding the advertised meet and greet, saying: "Now, regarding the meet and greet which was advertised for the Balmoral Hotel yesterday with myself, it's something that I was never booked for and apologies to people who did turn up. When I got to Belfast I headed straight over and I met a few people at the hotel, but obviously missed an awful lot of people that had been there, so apologies about that. But unfortunately, it's something, as I say, that I was never officially booked for and it was advertised, so hope you all had a good time anyway at the Feile." Country singer, Nathan Carter (Image: Instagram) The Balmoral Hotel swiftly responded with a no-holds-barred Facebook post that claimed the event had been arranged, and confirmed, through Carter's official promoter. "Let's clear a few things up, shall we?" the hotel began. "As a proud sponsor of this year's Feile, we at The Balmoral Hotel were genuinely excited to host a FREE 'Nathan Carter: MEAT and Greet' event for the launch of our new Cargo Cult Smokehouse. This was booked and confirmed for us on Saturday 25th July via Joe Gallagher Entertainment, named as the official promoter for Nathan Carter's show. We were told that Nathan would be arriving on Saturday 2nd August any time between 4pm and 6pm." The hotel said they had only 250 free tickets - which "went within hours" - and claimed they reconfirmed the booking even after being asked to "take the post down by Nathan's team", who were reportedly "getting requests from other businesses for meet and greets". They detailed extensive preparations, including shutting the car park, bringing in extra staff, providing free food, live music, a DJ, photographer, videographer and even a shuttle bus. The Balmoral alleged: "At 5pm, we got word from the promoters that Nathan would be arriving at 8pm, which overlapped with the start time of the Feile concert. We informed guests about this and let them decide what to do. Some stayed, some understandably couldn't and headed to the concert. We kept the energy up, and Nathan eventually arrived just before 10pm, posed for photos, and then headed to the show." The Balmoral Hotel in Dunmurry on the outskirts of Belfast city (Image: Google Maps) The Balmoral Hotel then hit back at Nathan's social media claim: "Now here's the twist: Today, Nathan Carter posted a story on social media saying we never booked him. We're just going to say this: Maybe, just maybe, his teams should start talking to each other, because from where we're standing, this was very much booked and we planned every last detail around it. We're not in the business of drama, but we are in the business of hospitality and we're proud of the effort our team put in to make something special (and free) for our community." The hotel closed their statement with some cheeky final words: "To our guests: thank you. To our team: legends. To Nathan: next time, we're booking Daniel O'Donnell. With love, The Balmoral Hotel." The hotel's post has since gone viral, with thousands of likes and hundreds of comments - many focused on the playful jab at the end. One person wrote: "Savage put down!" Another added: "Daniel is the cats pyjamas, I'd be over like a shot." A third said: "Please book Daniel. I love Daniel O'Donnell." Subscribe to our newsletter for the latest news from the Irish Mirror direct to your inbox: Sign up here.
