Capital of Culture Update: McCartney tickets screwed-up

To the long-line of mistakes, errors and fluffs in the organisation of Liverpool's year as Capital of Culture, add another: irate early ticket buyers are angry that they paid £75 for tickets that are now being offered for as little as £35. The Culture Company is trying to put on a brave face:

Last night, Kris Donaldson, director of Liverpool Culture Company, said: ''As has been well publicised, the Liverpool Sound capacity has expanded by 11,000 since the ballot last September.

"In that time, stage specifications have also changed. Both of these developments will be of huge benefit to concert goers in terms of the overall experience.

"As a consequence, some event logistics have been modified, including reconfiguring the location of some of the seats for less than 10% of the audience.

"An initial poll to those affected has been very positive, and most are happy as their seats are in an excellent position. As an alternative, customers have been offered a refund."

A team of translators are trying to write a version of this statement in English. They're failing, though, as there is no positive way of "paying forty quid more than someone else for the same seat" in any language.

Of course, it's easy to offer refunds - after all, the tab is going to be picked up by Liverpool council tax payers.

Still, brave face, good people of Merseyside: Only another six months of dripping humiliation to endure.