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Why 'Bridgerton Ball' scam is being called the new 'Glasgow Willy Wonka Experience' explained
Raw chicken and a pole dancer? The Ton would NEVER.
Fans are fuming after trying to escape into a Regency-era fantasy world by attending a Bridgerton-themed ball turned into an epic fail!
Photos and videos taken by attendees are going viral on social media for the event on Sunday, which was advertised as a way for fans of the Shondaland series to “step into the enchanting world of the Regency-era … for an evening of sophistication, grace and historical charm” in a historic building in downtown Detroit.
Instead of the glitz and glamour fit for a queen, people who bought tickets for the "Bridgerton Ball" were greeted by a nearly empty event hall with no seating that left decked-out attendees sitting on the floor, a pathetic grass background for photos, raw chicken dinners, and to top it all off, the only entertainment provided was a single pole-dancing stripper and a lone violinist.
Hundreds of people paid anywhere from $100 to $1,000 per ticket to attend what many are calling a “scam” and comparing to the Willy Wonka Experience that earned headlines back in March for being such a mess, except the Bridgerton Ball was less terror-inducing and more just sad, according to the Hollywood Reporter.
People who bought tickets and donned beautiful gowns and suits were probably expecting something akin to Netflix’s touring event called the Queen’s Ball: A Bridgerton Experience, but instead got Party City-level decorations and were left buying Kit Kats from vendors so they would have something edible to eat.
This may not have risen to the level of the Fyre Festival scam, but people who were disappointed and angry with the event put on by Uncle & Me LLC took to social media to air their grievances. Some made TikTok videos documenting the bizarre experience, while others posted photos on X (formerly Twitter).
@kiimberyly Dearesr gentle readers, Enjoy my POV on unclenme bridgerton ball… YIKES #bridgertonball #unclenme #scammers #detroitbridgerton
Not only were people comparing it to the fever dream that was the Willy Wonka Experience, but also writing that someone should make a documentary, calling it a “dumpster fire,” and clowning on the “Temu” decorations.
The Cut even interviewed the dancer, Tink, who was only hired three hours before the event and paid $800 to pole dance, and was told to mingle with guests and say “Hello, I’m your Bridgerton fairy,” calling the request “weird.”
“I didn’t really think about it too much because of the Great Gatsby event I did; they had pole dancing there. But now, thinking about it, Great Gatsby is in the ’20s. Bridgerton is the 1800s. But I just had a role to play, and they were paying me, so I did it.”
Keep scrolling for more funny reactions to the Bridgerton Ball!
Ariel Messman-Rucker is an Oakland-born journalist who now calls the Pacific Northwest her home. When she’s not writing about politics and queer pop culture, she can be found reading, hiking, or talking about horror movies with the Zombie Grrlz Horror Podcast Network.
Ariel Messman-Rucker is an Oakland-born journalist who now calls the Pacific Northwest her home. When she’s not writing about politics and queer pop culture, she can be found reading, hiking, or talking about horror movies with the Zombie Grrlz Horror Podcast Network.
