Festival featuring big Merseyside bands postponed until next year

Tickets already bought can be transferred to next year's event

Festival featuring big Merseyside bands postponed until next year

A much-celebrated festival featuring huge Merseyside bands has been postponed until 2021 due to the coronavirus pandemic.

The Wirral Food, Drink and Music Festival was expected to attract up to 40,000 people but this year’s edition of the event has been cancelled following government advice on large gatherings.

But Wirral Council said next year’s festival will see legendary Merseyside bands Orchestral Manoeuvres in the Dark (OMD), Echo and the Bunnymen, and The Coral perform on 3-5 September 2021.

Next year’s event will also celebrate food and produce from across Wirral, curated by Chef Paul Askew, patron of The Art School Restaurant, along with a host of celebrity chefs.

Wirral Council’s head of tourism Tracey McGeagh, said: "While we are very disappointed not to be able to go ahead with Wirral Food, Drink and Music Festival this year, our priority has to be people’s safety.

"The 2019 event was a huge success, attracting 30,000 people to Birkenhead Park to sample Wirral’s finest produce and enjoy world-class music.

"We appreciate that it is a little further away than we had originally planned, but the 2021 festival will certainly be worth the wait! We are already busy planning and looking forward to next year’s event."

People who have already bought tickets to the evening concerts will be emailed by Tickets Wirral, and there will be an option to transfer tickets to the 2021 event.