Petition launched to save Brixton O2 from being permanently shut after crush

A petition has been launched to save the Brixton O2 Academy from being shut down after a two people were killed in a crowd crush.

More than 17,000 people have signed the plea to Lambeth Council to keep the venue open, after it came out that the Metropolitan Police called for its licence to be stripped for good.

The south London music spot had its licence suspended for three months after fans without tickets tried to get into a gig by Nigerian artist Asake on December 15 last year.

Security guard Gaby Hutchinson, 23, and Rebecca Ikumelo, 33, died after receiving serious injuries in the crush.

A decision on whether to reopen the site will be made at a Lambeth Council licensing meeting in the near future.

Stuart O’Brien, who started the petition, wrote: ‘Brixton Academy is an iconic London music venue and should this cease to be so, another part of the musical landscape and history is lost forever.

‘What happened there was a tragedy, but caused by people. Bring in new security procedures including crowd control to ensure a repeat doesn’t happen.

‘But let’s not turn this venue into soulless flats as would more than likely happen in the event of permanent closure.

‘I personally have been to hundreds of gigs in my lifetime, many of them here and I have never once felt like safety was an issue! The loss of this venue would also have a devastating effect on the local economy!’

Kiri Freer, one of the people who signed, said: ‘Brixton is one of the last iconic venues in London. Its size and reputation mean that you get epic bands playing smaller gigs that are better for the fans.

‘Don’t let one accident stop something from bringing so much joy, fix the problem and make it safer.’

Others agreed, calling the Academy ‘iconic’ and insisting the issues just need to be ‘sorted with security’.

Pauline Britten-Jones said: ‘This is a ludicrous decision following a one off caused by individuals who were in the wrong. Nothing a review couldn’t sort. We need our live music venues.’

The Met declined to respond to the petition. Metro.co.uk has contacted Lambeth Council for comment.

The venue’s operators were required to ‘come up with workable changes to their licence in a way that fully addresses police concerns’ in January.

The council previously said it is currently considering the O2’s proposals alongside the Met’s application to permanently pull the license.

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