Hebridean Celtic Festival survives festival fatigue 20/7/08
The Hebridean Celtic Festival is surviving the current malaise of festival fatigue say organisers.
A number of relatively large scale music events have been cancelled this year following a bout of low crowds and less ticket sales leading to financial problems.
Tennent's Vital in Belfast and the Isle of Skye music festival are just two examples on the swollen festival scene which are not going ahead.
Even the famed Glastonbury has been moaned about by its faithful attendees with complaints that it is too stale.
The credit crunch, high fuel costs and rising prices is causing regular summer festival fans to scale down their activities or even stay at home.
But the four-day Hebridean Celtic Festival has attracted thousands to visitors to the Western Isles giving the tourist trade a welcome boost.
Organiser Murdo Maclennan said: “We have noticed that people were quite slow in booking this year but we are experiencing a last minute rush.
He added: “We are doing surprisingly well considering the problem of festival fatigue which is symptomatic in the whole industry.”
The issue was rammed home when the massive blue marquee for the main venue turned up cleaner than usual. It had been hired out for the Knebworth's Wild In The Country Festival which was due to be held last Saturday but was cancelled at the last minute.
The tent swayed to over 4000 people rocking to the Red Hot Chilli Pipers on Thursday night as well as headline act Saw Doctors on Friday.
Saturday was the last day of the bash. A festival shinty match saw Lewis Camanachd winning 6 - 4 on aggregate and taking the Heb Celt Fest Challenge trophy.
Colourful street entertainment acts, afternoon and evening concerts warmed the scene for the folk band Bodega and indie folk signer Seth Lakeman who supported the crowd-pulling Shooglenifty on the main stage finale.
