Following the death of Her Majesty Queen Sirikit, The Queen Mother, over the weekend, the authorities announced a 90-day public observance period of mourning and a year observance period for government officials and employees.
Early media reports suggested a shutdown of concerts and events for the mourning period, but government officials clarified that no such ban was set to take place. The new Prime Minister Anutin Charnvirakul stated over the weekend that while events were not to be stopped for the mourning period, they should adjust to remain respectful of the observance.
Despite the government clarifying that no entertainment ban has been made for the mourning period for Her Majesty Queen Sirikit, some events across the country have already been canceled out of respect for her passing. The Tourism Authority of Thailand has already announced a postponement of the "Vijit Chao Phraya 2025" light and sound show, the Skyline Film Festival shut down their showings over the weekend, and the 2025 BamBam ‘Hometown’ concert in Bangkok has postponed ticket sales.
The tragic news of HM the Queen Mother’s passing comes as Bangkok prepares to celebrate Halloween which takes place on a Friday this year, making it one of the bigger nightlife events of the year, with more than 50 events outlined by BK Magazine set to take place this week, many of which are centered around death.
So far, a number of events have been cancelled, but most as of now are still scheduled to go ahead. Those cancelled for children included the Harbourland Costume Contest Party and Halloween Storytime from Neilson Hays Library. For adults Halloween Tango Night, Halloween Night Party centralwOrld, and a few others have announced cancellations. Most events, however, are scheduled to go on as planned.
Rather than cancellation of events, a few venues are stating that they will be changing to accommodate the mourning period. Club and EDM organizers Mustache announced that they would still be open but reminded partygoers to not wear bright colors, with a similar announcement from new nightlife club Luna. Bangkok Island stated that their Halloween Klong Phi Lok event would be adjusted to accommodate the mourning period.
The official statement from the authorities reads, “The Government also seeks cooperation from entertainment venues to reduce or not to hold entertainment programs, as appropriate, for 30 days. It does not prohibit the private sector from organizing entertainment activities, but the format of activities may be adjusted for appropriateness to fit the mourning atmosphere.”
The early incorrect reports from various media on a shutdown of events received some pushback from local interests in the concert industry.
The Cosmos, an online portal for local concert news and announcements, posted an open letter to the government online, “I have a simple question to ask those in power who make decisions with the tip of the pen: What will the workers eat? Small venues carry various rental costs and hundreds of thousands of ‘taxes’ a month and employee fees.” The open letter to the government went on to state that the government shouldn’t make such orders unless they are prepared to pay damages.
Other officially announced changes to events announced by the government include a toning down of Loy Krathong Festival, beginning today, advising that the observance avoid celebratory aspects.
