FEIS Liverpool 2019, the UK's largest celebration of Irish music and culture, has been cancelled due to a lack of ticket sales and funding issues.
Music promoter and festival owner Vince Power, the organiser of the event, said he had not taken the "difficult decision" lightly as he apologised to everyone who had bought tickets for the July 6 gathering.
In a statement to The Irish Post, Mr Power said: "It's with deep sadness that I have to make the difficult decision to cancel this year's Feis Liverpool, due to the lack of recent ticket sales and the company's inability to sustain the losses.
"I apologise to all the people who have bought tickets and supported the Feis, all the artists performing and all the people who have worked on this event for the inconvenience.
"With the potential shortfall of £400,000, the majority of which has been borne by me personally, it is not possible to carry on.
"I advise all ticket holders to contact your point of purchase for a refund."
Please see the very unfortunate Feis announcement below and share with your fellow festival go-ers... pic.twitter.com/4Z09ilKq43
— Feis Liverpool (@FeisLiverpool) 29 May 2019
Feis Liverpool debuted last year and attracted thousands of revellers from across the globe to celebrate Irish music at the iconic Liverpool Waterfront.
Acts at the star-studded 2018 event included Van Morrison, Imelda May, Aslan, The Chieftains, The Hothouse Flowers, The Coronas, Damien Dempsey, Hudson Taylor and special guest Shane MacGowan – who joined many of the acts named above on stage for a soulful rendition of Dirty Old Town.
MacGowan had been due to return as the headline act for Feis Liverpool 2019, along with other legendary peformers such as The Undertones, The Chieftains, Paul Brady, The Dublin Legends (The Dubliners) and Phil Coulter.
For more information on the cancellation visit www.feisliverpool.com, email [email protected] or contact your ticket provider for refunds
