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Stockton Weekender on Sunday
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This year’s Stockton Weekender music festival was the last, organisers Tees Music Alliance (TMA) has confirmed.
The annual festival saw Happy Mondays and Public Enemy headline what turned out to be the last weekender in July.
Though ticket sales have been lower than expected, more than 50,000 people have attended the event, held on the Stockton Riverside during the last four years.
Rising costs have made it more difficult to run the festival - yet TMA has only been 1,500 tickets away from breaking even each year.
TMA Director, Paul Burns, said: “We’ve given Stockton Weekender one heck of a go and it’s given us some fantastic experiences in return. We’ve had some world-famous names but it has also helped to develop local bands like Young Rebel Set and Cattle & Cane, giving them great exposure while their careers took off.
“The sheer scale of the event means that just making it happen is always a challenge in itself. We’re working in an environment of seemingly runaway costs - especially for headline artists, who tend to look towards the live circuit to recoup money they no longer get from record sales. “For the foreseeable future, costs are going to continue to increase and getting the right acts in place will become harder and harder; which has been the key driver behind our sad decision to call it a day on the festival.”
Paul said he has a number of highlights from past festivals, but that he can never look beyond the last event for his favourite moment.
“It’s a cliche, but the last one is always the best,” continued Paul. “To see Public Enemy in Stockton was incredible. To see the little boy who was brought up on stage with them was one of those magical moments you’ll always remember.
“We move on with no regrets and our heartfelt thanks go to everyone who has supported us, particularly our wonderful staff and volunteers who made running the event possible – and the ticket buying public who put their faith in the festival.”
Paul also said that the loss of the festival will give TMA more time to concentrate on the music scene across Teesside, its program at the Georgian Theatre and the Green Room in Stockton and joint hosted events such as Stockton Calling.
Stockton Weekender has been held as ticketed event since 2011, but its forerunner, the Stockton Riverside Fringe Festival, ran from 1991 as a free music event.
Stockton Council’s Cabinet Member for Arts, Leisure and Culture, Cllr Ken Dixon, said: “We have been pleased to help TMA, a local community focussed organisation, with this event.
"The Weekender has had every chance to stand on its own two feet and we think it’s had a fair crack of the whip. In many ways it has been very successful, bringing in tens of thousands of visitors and giving talented local musicians a phenomenal opportunity to increase their following.”
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