Organisers pull plug on big Ellesmere music festival

Ellesmere Chamber of Commerce were set to hold the festival on September 15. But they have said they have failed to sign up enough bands in time and the event will now not take place until next spring.

Traders were hoping it would have filled the void left by Ellesmere Proms in the Park after organisers had to pull the plug on last year's event due to a lack of funds.

Lincoln McMullan, chairman of Ellesmere Chamber of Commerce, said: "We have been forced to postpone the music festival.

"We ran out of time and couldn't get enough bands. I am sorry but we didn't want to do it half-heartedly and wanted to put 100 per cent into it.

"But it will definitely still go ahead. We are looking at April or May next year.

"We are also looking at holding it in conjunction with Ellesmere Regatta. They would look after the day and we would sort of take over in the evenings."

The idea behind next month's event was to hold the festival at different locations across the town, including by the Mere and the Wharf, and Cremorne Gardens.

Organisers also wanted local organisations and businesses to hold their own events in a bid to allow the whole of the town to come alive with music.

It was set to raise money for charity and local causes.

Ellesmere Proms in the Park was due to take place beside the Mere in Cremorne Gardens on September 17 last year, and up to 300 people had already registered for tickets.

Organisers were forced to cancel the event due to a lack of sponsorship to cover the costs of the acts, staging and fireworks.