MTV Europe defends U2 Berlin 'wall'

MTV organisers have denied erecting their own "wall" around U2's free concert which celebrates 20 years since the fall of the Berlin Wall.

Organisers of the MTV Europe Music Awards (EMA) said a temporary security fence had been placed around the edge of the site as part of a "comprehensive security plan".

The music network said they wanted to ensure music fans "enjoy a safe and happy experience".

But fans without tickets who gathered to catch a glimpse of their idols expressed their dismay.

"It's completely ridiculous that they are blocking the view," said Louis-Pierre Boily, 23.

MTV made 10,000 tickets available for the Irish rockers' free show - and they were snapped up in just a few hours. The Berlin celebration ceremony features a live link-up with U2 performing to a crowd at the Brandenburg Gate, in the Pariser Platz, Berlin, which organisers described as "a symbol of peace and reconciliation and the site of the first EMAs in 1994".

A statement on behalf of MTV Networks International said: "The safety and well-being of all attendees at any MTV-produced event is of the highest priority."

It said MTV had worked closely with its local promoter, the Borough of Berlin and the Berlin Police department "to create a comprehensive security plan for the event.

"To that end, MTV placed a temporary security fence around the site perimeter. Under no circumstances did MTV build a 'wall' of any kind in or around the U2 production site."

The Berlin Wall fell on November 9, 1989, ending almost 30 years of Cold War division.