Taylor Swift flies out of New Zealand today, Sydney-bound. Photo/AP
Taylor Swift flies out of New Zealand today, Sydney-bound. Photo/AP
Calm down everyone: Taylor Swift will leave New Zealand today after a whirlwind trip to shoot her latest music video.
Swift will land in Australia today, reports the Sydney Morning Herald, and will continue shooting her video for Out of the Woods at the Blue Mountains about an hour out of the New South Wales capital.
The first concert of her Australian tour is in Sydney on Saturday night.
Swift landed in New Zealand on Monday, skipping the American Music Awards and sparking a furore among fans eager to catch a glimpse of her.
But there weren't many to be had, with only a grainy photo of her on Bethells Beach taken. At times she was rumoured to be in East Tamaki, Henderson and at Lorde's parents' bach south of Auckland.
And then she apparently showed up in Queenstown yesterday.
Soon after a Gulfstream G450 private jet landed at Queenstown Airport, the Grammy Award winner discreetly descended the landing stairs.
Swift kept her face turned away from waiting media as she exited the plane about 10.15am.
Several men - many wearing earpieces - left the plane first and stood at the base of the stairs.
Swift, wearing a long black puffer jacket with the hood pulled up, black trousers and tan ankle boots, immediately got into a Range Rover and minutes later a motorcade of at least five vehicles pulled out of the airport.
Their destination: Paradise, where the 25-year-old was believed to be filming for a music video for Out of the Woods.
The Associated Press reported Swift was absent from Monday's American Music Awards because she was ''filming a new music video overseas''.
Land owned by the Paradise Trust was a hive of activity by early afternoon, with several tents and a large screen erected, Portaloos in place and catering trucks parked on site.
But it was not long before the hunting media pack became the hunted, with one of the earpiece-wearing men accompanying Swift training his binoculars on media, watching from two cars parked on the road.
Several rental cars containing snap-happy tourists pulled up on the Glenorchy side of the Paradise Trust land, completely unaware the chart-topping United States performer was less than a kilometre away.
In the Glenorchy township, it was business as usual.
Residents had heard Swift might be in town but none seemed to be particularly fazed. When asked if there had been any sightings of Swift, a Glenorchy Lodge staff member replied: ''Loose lips sink ships''.
Across the road at the Glenorchy Cafe, staff member Jess Scott said she was not aware of any fans on ''Swift watch''.
Her mother, Sue Scott, of Heli Glenorchy, said she had heard yesterday morning Swift might be on her way to the area, but she had not noticed anything out of the ordinary.
''I know nothing. It's just business as usual.''
Earlier this week, Swift angered Auckland beach-goers who say she put a rare native bird at risk while filming her latest music video at a west coast beach.
It is alleged the Shake It Off singer and her production team breached a permit for two vehicles, bringing up to 12 on to the Bethells Beach.
On Facebook Waitakere Ranges local board chairwoman Sandra Coney alleged Swift broke the conditions of her filming permit, and voiced her concerns for the endangered coastal bird.
Swift's record label, Universal Music, declined to comment.
Swift's 1989 World Tour began in Japan in May and will finish with seven concerts in Australia.
