Waterstones BookFest blasted as 'hell on earth' as 'utter chaos' descends on store

An event at the flagship Waterstones store was branded "hell on earth" yesterday due to serious overcrowding and safety concerns.

Customers descended on the branch in Piccadilly, central London for BookFest, the company's annual celebration of literature, but were met with "utter chaos". Attendees said it was disorganised and potentially unsafe, with some social media users joking they had "survived" the event while one deemed it "hell on earth".

Videos posted online showed large crowds throughout the shop in Piccadilly, central London, with long queues winding up the stairs and out onto the street. The mayhem comes after our correspondent recommended a fantasty novel, which she says is the best book she has read all year.

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Waterstones has apologised for the experience, which it marketed as an opportunity for booklovers to meet their favourite authors - including Rosie Hewlett and A S Webb - and a chance for keen readers to bag exclusive merch giveaways.

But instead Waterstones, a household brand in the UK since the 1980s, fended off criticism and complaints on Wednesday. Kellie Greenhalgh, who attended the event, said there were no staff present to give directions or assistance.

Kellie, 33, said: "I did not see a single member of Waterstones or event staff the whole time. The queues were all on the stairs, all in front of the lifts... I was shaking and did not feel well from the heat and stress." She told the BBC one author had a panic attack and had to leave the event.

And another attendee, who uses crutches, says she was left "standing shoulder to shoulder with hundreds of other people" trying to hand an author a book to sign, and that she was twice knocked over due to overcrowding.

Some talks were ticketed, but entry to the shop was free - and attendees said access was left open to the general public. Amy White, who visited the Piccadilly shop, told the BBC: "There was still shoppers trying to browse the shelves pushing through the queues, some with children or more elderly people who had no idea about the event."

But Waterstones said the safety of attendees was "never at risk". It has, though, apologised for the "negative experiences" and recognised some guests may have felt "uncomfortable or distressed." In a statement posted to X late on Thursday, the booksellers said they would "review and learn from this year to deliver much-improved future events".

In a further statement to the BBC, Waterstones added that "an unexpectedly high turnout led to very long queues and some crowding around publisher tables and author signings."

Both the central events team and the shop team were on hand throughout across the floors, and the safety of our customers was our top priority as always."

It continued: "We fully appreciate that this was an unusually busy event, which unfortunately may have caused some of our visitors to feel uncomfortable or distressed."