This is how key workers can apply for free tickets to attend The Brit Awards

Dua Lipa and Calvin Harris accepting the British Single award during The BRIT Awards 2019 (Photo: Gareth Cattermole/Getty Images)Dua Lipa and Calvin Harris accepting the British Single award during The BRIT Awards 2019 (Photo: Gareth Cattermole/Getty Images)
Dua Lipa and Calvin Harris accepting the British Single award during The BRIT Awards 2019 (Photo: Gareth Cattermole/Getty Images)

The Brit Awards 2021 are set to go ahead on 11 May after it was pushed back from its usual date in February.

The awards will take place in front of a live audience, and will go ahead without social distancing or requiring audience members to wear a face covering. This is because the awards ceremony is part of the Government’s Events Research Programme, which explores how venues and events can reopen safely.

This is everything you need to know.

What are the Brit Awards?

The Brit Awards is the biggest music awards ceremony in the UK, and were first held in 1977.

The awards celebrate not just the biggest musical successes, but also works to promote and introduce new talent as well.

Award categories include International Female Solo Artist, Breakthrough Artist, British Group, BRITs Rising Star, International Group, British Single, Male Solo Artist, Mastercard Album, International Male Solo Artist and Female Solo Artist.

Who is performing this year?

Comedian Jack Whitehall is set to host the show for the fourth year in a row and so far the following acts have been confirmed as performers:

  • Dua Lipa
  • Arlo Parks
  • Headie One
  • Griff

Dua Lipa said: “This has been a long tough year for everyone and I’m delighted the night will honour the key worker heroes who have cared for us so well during that time and continue to do so.”

Headie One also said: “It’s my first live performance in 18 months, and I couldn’t think of a better place to do it.”

Arlo Parks added: “To be able to share my work and vision with such a massive audience is a dream. I’m excited to create something that feels immersive and inclusive.”

Geoff Taylor, Chief Executive of the British Phonographic Industry and Brit Awards, said: “This year’s Brit Awards with Mastercard is one of the most significant in the show’s history.

“Not only will we be celebrating the brilliant music and artists that have helped us through the pandemic, but we hope it will provide a path for the return of live music that fans and artists have so sorely missed.

“And as a thank you to the key workers who have kept our country going through the difficult times, we are inviting them to be our audience for the first live performances at The O2 in over a year.

“We’re buzzing about the show and working closely with the Government, The O2 and all our partners to ensure all safety measures and guidelines are adhered to.”

How to get tickets?

There are 2,500 tickets up for grabs for free for the Brit Awards for key workers, and their guests via ticket ballot.

To enter the ballot, you must complete a consent form, found on the Brit Awards website, which explains the risk of attending the event and confirms your agreement to the terms and conditions of attending.

You can invite one guest by adding their email address to your entry - they do not have to be a key worker. Your guest will then have to complete their own application and consent form via a link that will be sent to them through email.

The ballot opened at 12pm on Thursday 22 April, and will close at 11:59pm on Monday 26 April.

Winners will be selected at random and notified by email on or before 29 April 2021. Winners’ names and email addresses will also be provided to The O2 so that they can provide further instructions regarding how to obtain their tickets. A valid digital ticket must be presented on entry to The O2 via smartphone in order to gain admission.

Photo ID will be required to gain entry into the O2 and you may be asked for proof of your occupation as a key worker.

To gain entry to the event, ticket holders must complete a Covid-19 Lateral Flow Test within 36 hours of the event (after 7am on 10 May 2021) at an asymptomatic testing site.

Winners will also be requested to undertake a PCR at home test as close as possible to their attendance at the event and again five days after their attendance.

Who can enter the ballot?

You are only able to enter the ticket ballot if you have been classified as a key worker during the Covid-19 pandemic.

Both you and your guest must live in Greater London and be aged 18 or over.

If you or your guest are considered to be clinically extremely vulnerable, live with someone clinically extremely vulnerable, or are pregnant, you should not enter the ballot.

For those who can’t get tickets to the event, the awards will also be broadcast live on TV.

Will the event be socially distanced?

The Brit Awards is part of the Government’s Events Research Programme, which is a programme that looks at how venues can restart large events and welcome back crowds safely.

Audience members will not be socially distanced nor will they be required to wear a face covering once seated in the arena. All attendees must have proof of a negative lateral flow test result to enter the venue, and as part of the wider scientific research, they will be asked to take a test after the event to gather further evidence on the safety of indoor settings, reduced social distancing and the removal of non-pharmaceutical interventions like face coverings.

Attendees will also have to provide contact details for NHS Test and Trace to ensure that everyone can be traced in the event of an audience member receiving a positive test after the event.

Health Secretary Matt Hancock said: “We continue to take steps to getting back to doing the things we love, whether that’s meeting friends and loved ones, or attending live sport and music.

“These planned pilots mean we can gather the necessary evidence to inform our plans for future events, ensuring mass events can take place safely.

“I am enormously grateful for the hard work of scientists and clinicians from across the country, which will mean we can start to enjoy these events safely.”

Culture Secretary Oliver Dowden said: “The Brits are always a big night in the music calendar, but this year’s awards will be particularly special.

“They will reunite live audiences with the best of British talent for the first time in a year, while providing a vital opportunity to see how we can get large crowds back safely as soon as possible.

“Music connected us when we were separated by this pandemic, and now it’s going to help bring us back together again.”

A version of this article originally appeared on our sister site NationalWorld