Hospitality venues have praised a city-wide music festival which took over Lancaster with more than 450 live gigs over four days.
Love Lancaster Live drew the highest weekend footfall of the year to date, said organisers Lancaster BID (Business Improvement District).
The celebration of music, which ran from October 9 to 12 at more than 50 locations across the city, filled the gap left when the team behind the usual Lancaster Music Festival announced they were taking a year off.
It featured samba bands to rock music, classical to pop, steel pans to DJs, folk to punk and everything in between.
Thousands of people were drawn into the city, with footfall figures showing a 38.1 per cent increase on the previous week and a 19.2 per cent increase on the previous busiest weekend of the year, said the BID.
The BID said that city streets and squares were packed with people enjoying the music whilst pubs were bursting at the seams with some even having to operate a ‘one in, one out’ policy and cafes reported running out of food.
Phil Simpson from Lancaster Brewery said: “It was a fantastic weekend, superbly organised and incredibly well supported.
"We had people attending events in our venues who had travelled to Lancaster from all over the country. Congratulations to everyone who helped organise this terrific event.”
Below, Susannah Clegg performing in Market Square on Sunday.
Tim Tomlinson, chair of Lancaster Pubwatch, said: “This year's Love Lancaster Live music weekend was a huge success for the hospitality venues across the city centre. On Saturday in particular, the town was absolutely buzzing and as is usual, it was all in very good spirits with almost no issues reported.
"The pubs were packed, the bands were loud and the crowds were dancing.
"While it was never planned to have the breadth of the full Lancaster Music Festival, it was just as exciting, energetic and eclectic as ever. A massive thank you to the customers, musicians and staff who once again made it one of the best weekends of the year.”
Below, S.O.S performing in Market Square on Sunday.
Tony Johnson, Lancaster BID manager, said: “The music festival weekend has always been so important to the hospitality sector in particular that we felt we just had to deliver an event to fill the gap.
"The hard work was rewarded by seeing the smiling crowds and seeing the participating businesses so busy. The event really was a prime example of what Lancaster BID is all about.”
Lancaster BID said they could not have delivered the event without the support of the participating businesses who worked so hard booking all their acts to deliver such a packed programme.
They thanked all the musicians and the bar staff who worked hard throughout the event to keep the drinks flowing and ensure customers left happy.
The event was also made possible through the support of the sponsors Lancaster Brewery for supplying the specially brewed Zappa Festival Ale, Lancashire County Council Culture and Sport Fund and everyone who pledged support to a crowdfunding campaign and to St Nic’s Arcade, White Cross Business Park and EDF.
Beyond Radio was also proud to be part of the festival, hosting the Locals Live stage in Market Square and a Decades Roadshow in St Nicholas Arcades on Sunday.
Here are more photos from the event, from Joshua Brandwood. You can find more images at Beyond Radio social media.
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