Taylor Swift fans were barely able to contain their excitement when a Kentucky Gala appeared to accidentally leak her next tour dates - but they were about to get a rude awakening.
An upcoming gala event next month had plenty of eye-catching prizes, including a vacation in a five-bedroom Airbnb in New Orleans and private guitar lessons with former Bon Jovi band member Richie Sambora - but one particular giveaway sent the internet into overdrive.
The 12th Unbridled Eve Derby Gala, set for 2 May at The Galt House in Louisville, was offering two tickets for a 2026 Taylor Swift tour, along with a signed guitar.
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Now, Swifties will recall Swift wrapped up her 149-show Eras Tour last year. Tickets for the three-hour long extravaganza were notoriously difficult to get hold of - so naturally people were beside themselves when it looked like she’d be back on the road next year.
One Swiftie wrote: “HER UPCOMING 2026 WHAT ?????? TOUR ????????? TAYLOR ??? ON TOUR ???? IN 2026 ????? NEXT YEAR ????????????????? WHERE IS THIS FROM SSHDHHZSHSHJEH.”
Another said: “So i log on and see the timeline freaking out because there's a Taylor Swift 2026 tour?! HELLO WHAT.”
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A third said: “TAYLOR TOURING IN 2026 WHAT THE F**K???????”
But their dreams were soon crushed as the item was amended last week to say ‘Taylor Swift’s next tour’, and it turned out the reference to 2026 was all a mistake.
E! News reports that gala co-founder Tammy York Day said in a 17 April press release: “In the most recent Unbridled Eve press release, it inadvertently listed one of our auction items as a ‘Signed guitar by Taylor Swift and two concert tickets during her upcoming 2026 tour.'
“Our deepest apologies for getting the Swiftie Nation excited.”
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Here’s hoping Tay-Tay fans can shake it off.
Swift has actually been keeping a bit of a low profile of late, and hasn’t posted on her Instagram grid since December.
She has, however, broken cover to congratulate her pal Selena Gomez on her new album, and her boyfriend Travis Kelce’s brother Jason on his new baby.
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A source told Us Weekly that Taylor and Travis are ‘taking a break from the public eye’.
They said: “Just doing nothing at all has been a dream of theirs for a while.”
Another source told the publication: "Obviously the [Eras Tour] threw them into the spotlight.
"[Now] they’re enjoying some R&R after working their butts off, making the most of their time off. They’re fully living their best lives."
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Fans will be hoping Taylor is taking the time to work on a new album, or indeed clearing out a blank space in her calendar for her next tour.
Topics: Music, Taylor Swift, US News, Social Media, Twitter
Simon Fearn