Archive for June, 2011

Access Fail for See Tickets, for Derren Brown at the Shaftesbury Theatre

UPDATE: Thursday 9th June. I called back during office hours, only to get through to See Tickets hold music once again. After a wait, I again explained what I needed, and was told they weren’t able to help. I was given another number for See Tickets Access Team. Another call, more hold music…when I finally got through to someone, I was told See didn’t handle access bookings for this show, the theatre did. I was given YET ANOTHER... 
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Visual Impairment versus The Smartphone!

YET ANOTHER UPDATE: 11/03/13 Earlier this year, I was thrilled to see reports that O2 and RNIB train Gurus to better assist blind and partially sighted customers.   O2 have trained 80 “gurus”, with training from the RNIB, to be able to advise visually impaired customers on smartphones. They are available in store, online, and over the phone, as well as having a dedicated YouTube channel. I am so pleased to see O2 lead the market... 
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Sexism and Disability: A Powerful Combo

David writes: Just back home from a ruined night out (4 June 2011)! I went into The Eagle (a popular gay bar in Newcastle upon Tyne’s gay quarter), only to be told my female personal assistant couldn’t come in cos its their once-a-month Men Only Night! I’ve had ongoing problems with the company that owns the bar – their accessible toilet is frequently full of furniture blocking access which means I have to ask them to clear... 
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A grand day out

When you go out for the day what is it that stands out for you? Following on from comments on the Home of Metal post – is it the company, the location, your experience? We all want to store happy memories of a grand day out. You pay  for it so why not? What if in a theatre your carer is seated away from you (meaning you can’t be assisted when you need help). What if you are forced to pay double to go to an event so you have a carer to... 
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A Deaf customer in the Apple store – there’s no app for that

With the fuss recently over IKEA and the Empire cinema, another incident slipped by the blog. Time to remedy that. Apple Store Eldon Square, Newcastle I recently popped into the Apple Store in Eldon Square in Newcastle upon Tyne. Its a large shop with hard surfaces and lots of noise, and all that reflecting sound was causing a considerable problem hearing the staff with my hearing aid. So naturally, I asked if they had a loop system at the desk or... 
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