Morecambe Music Festival 2019 launched in style

The Morecambe Music Festival launch night has been hailed as a huge success after giving a taste of what to expect at the festival itself.
Councillor David Whitaker, mayor of Lancaster, with Morecambe Music Festival founder Stuart Michaels outside the Palatine, venue for the launch night. Photo:Andy Slack.Councillor David Whitaker, mayor of Lancaster, with Morecambe Music Festival founder Stuart Michaels outside the Palatine, venue for the launch night. Photo:Andy Slack.
Councillor David Whitaker, mayor of Lancaster, with Morecambe Music Festival founder Stuart Michaels outside the Palatine, venue for the launch night. Photo:Andy Slack.

Guests including Councillor David Whitaker – mayor of Lancaster - festival sponsors, organisers, performers, venue managers and festival supporters packed into the Palatine in Morecambe on Wednesday night to mark one month before the event itself gets under way.

They enjoyed live music from The Voice UK’s Lareena Mitchell, a drinks reception, and canapes by the Palatine’s 18 North Restaurant run by Masterchef TV contestant Ben Vandenbrink.

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The new 2019 Morecambe Music Festival brochure was also available for the first time providing full details of all acts and venues at the event.

Lareena Mitchell, star of The Voice UK, performing at the launch night. Photo: Andy Slack.Lareena Mitchell, star of The Voice UK, performing at the launch night. Photo: Andy Slack.
Lareena Mitchell, star of The Voice UK, performing at the launch night. Photo: Andy Slack.

This year the festival will run over three days for the first time – from Friday July 12 to Sunday July 14.

Live music will come from more than 50 acts in more than 20 venues across Morecambe town centre, the West End and Westgate, including pubs, cafes, the Midland Hotel, the Festival Market, the Platform and for the first time this year, the Soul Bowl diner and 10-pin bowling centre.

Stuart Michaels, festival founder, said: “The launch night couldn’t have gone any better and thank you so much to everybody who came out to support us.

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“We decided to run a launch night as a way of giving back to everybody who has helped make the festival such a success since we started in 2017 and as an extra event to celebrate the festival and help it continue to get bigger and better each and every year.

Morecambe Music Festival logo.Morecambe Music Festival logo.
Morecambe Music Festival logo.

“Now we’re all systems go for the festival itself and once again we hope as many people as possible come out on the weekend of July 12-14 to enjoy the fantastic live music Morecambe has to offer.”

The festival kicks off on Friday night, July 12.

Look out for DJ Summer J from the acclaimed Escape team spinning the tunes at Harry’s Bar (7pm), top rock band Building Giants kicking things off at the Royal at 7pm and exciting Jam tribute band Acoustic Malice at the Palatine from 9pm.

Saturday July 13 is the first of two full days of live music at all the festival venues, starting at the Festival Market with Rock It Man from 10.45am.

Festival-goers enjoying themselves at a past Morecambe Music Festival. Photo: Mike Jackson.Festival-goers enjoying themselves at a past Morecambe Music Festival. Photo: Mike Jackson.
Festival-goers enjoying themselves at a past Morecambe Music Festival. Photo: Mike Jackson.
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Highlights will include a varied Saturday line-up in the idyllic Morecambe Hotel beer garden of the amazing Gathered Voices Choir, and fantastic rock bands The Rest and Sold to the Sky; The Exchange also has a packed bill throughout the day including the always-popular Reggie Mental Band (4.30pm), newly-reopened pubs the Park Hotel (Corvidae, 5pm) and the Bath Hotel (The Dead Puppeteers, 9pm) will host some great acts, the Wellington will welcome singers Jennie White (5pm) and Chloe Pitchford (7pm) while the Masons has live music from Melanie Horabin (7pm), DJ Steve Middlesbrough will play Iconic pop music hits at the Midland Hotel (7pm), the Howling Clowns will round off a full day of music at the Palatine (9pm) and Morecambe’s Ibiza DJ Matt Thiss and Friends will be in residence at Harry’s Bar from 2pm until 10pm.

Highlights on Sunday July 14 include a full day’s Freestage event at The Platform with nine acts, the Lancaster Bombers next door at the Station (2pm), ‘Soul Man’ Mark Yates will sing at the perfect venue of the Soul Bowl from 2pm, TwentyFourSeven will have everyone in the party mood at The Exchange (4.30pm), two more of our area’s top singers Jason Stardust (Davy Jones’ Locker, 5pm) and Mark McKenna (Crown Hotel, 6pm) will perform, and the festival will continue into the night rounding off with Sold to the Sky at the Palatine and Corvidae at the Chieftain from 9pm.

Lewis’s Coffee Shop, Rita’s Café and the Clock Tower Café are among the new festival venues for 2019, joining Jo ‘n’ Lees Café on the Westgate Precinct as the café locations. Throughout the weekend live music will include Jay Blackburn (Jo ‘n’ Lees, Saturday 2pm), Leah Silver (Clock Tower Café, Sunday 3pm), Daniel Liptrott (Lewis’s, Saturday 2pm) and Dave Metcalf and Dave Kellett (Rita’s Café, Saturday and Sunday, 2pm).

A special festival ale, called Festivale, will be on sale in many of the venues.

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Festival brochures are available from Morecambe Visitor Information Centre and festival venues.

For more information visit https://www.facebook.com/MorecambeMusicFestival/.

Full festival line-up

THE CHIEFTAIN

Friday July 12: Dave Wright, 9pm

Saturday July 13: Dave and Sandra 3pm, Ronnie String 9pm

Sunday July 14: Corvidae 9pm

BATH HOTEL

Saturday July 13: Dead Puppeteers 9pm

Sunday July 14: The Section 4pm

CLOCK TOWER CAFÉ

Saturday July 13: Gathered Voices Choir 3.15pm

Sunday July 14: Leah Silva 3pm

CROWN HOTEL

Friday July 12: Jennie White 9pm

Saturday July 13: Carlie Mai 9pm

Sunday July 14: Mark McKenna 6pm

DAVY JONES’ LOCKER

Friday July 12: Karaoke with Kev 8.30pm

Saturday July 13: Jamie Walker 6pm, Corvidae 9pm

Sunday July 14: Jason Stardust 5pm, Carlie Mae 8pm

THE EXCHANGE

Friday July 12: The Seals 8.30pm, Jay Blackburn 12.15am

Saturday July 13: Joe Publix 2pm, Reggie Mental Band 4.30pm, The Reaction 7pm, Sensational Hit Soul Band 9.30pm

Sunday July 14: Away From The Numbers 2pm, TwentyFourSeven 4.30pm, Chris Taverner 7pm

FESTIVAL MARKET

Saturday July 13: Rock It Man 10.45am

Sunday July 14: Trickle Charge 11am

HARRY’S BAR

Friday July 12: DJ Summer J 7pm

Saturday July 13: DJ Matt Thiss and Friends 2pm to 10pm

Sunday July 14: Andy and Ady 1pm to 7pm

JO N LEES CAFÉ, WESTGATE

Saturday July 13: Jay Blackburn 2pm

Sunday July 14: Rachel Parga 2pm

LEWIS’S COFFEE SHOP

Saturday July 13: Daniel Liptrott 2pm

THE MASONS

Saturday July 13: Northern Soul DJ 3pm, Melanie Horabin 7pm

Sunday July 14: Jefferson Moore 8pm

MIDLAND HOTEL

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Saturday July 13: Gathered Voices Choir 2pm, Steve Middlesbrough DJ 7pm

Sunday July 14: Sold to the Sky 2pm

MORECAMBE HOTEL

Saturday July 13: Gathered Voices Choir 12.30pm, The Rest 1.30pm, Sold to the Sky 4pm

THE PALATINE

Friday July 12: Acoustic Malice 9pm

Saturday July 13: Jamie Walker 1pm, Rock It Man 4pm, Howling Clowns 9pm

Sunday July 14: Olta Ego 1pm, Mark Yates 4pm, Sold to the Sky 9pm

PARK HOTEL

Friday July 12: Danny Liptrott 7pm

Saturday July 13: Corvidae 5pm

Sunday July 14: Maggie McCreathe 3pm

THE PLATFORM

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Sunday July 14: Chris Price 2pm, Them Too 12.40pm, Benni Beard 1.20pm, Flissy-Lou Harris 2pm, The Broken Hearted Few 2.40pm, Me and Fred 3.20pm, Andy Reaus 4pm, Intovision 4.40pm, Deccan Traps 5.20pm

RITA’S CAFÉ

Saturday July 13: Dave Metcalf and Dave Kellett 2pm

Sunday July 14: Dave Metcalf and Dave Kellett 2pm

ROYAL HOTEL

Friday July 12: Building Giants 7pm, Bedlam 9pm

Saturday July 13: Chasing Visions 6pm, Two Hoots 9pm

Sunday July 14: Flip 3pm, Rock It Man 6pm

SOUL BOWL

Saturday July 13: CJ Stewart 2.30pm

Sunday July 14: Mark Yates 2.30pm

THE STATION

Saturday July 13 Two Stroke Diesel 2pm

Sunday July 14: Lancaster Bombers 2pm

THE WELLINGTON

Saturday July 13: Jennie White 5pm, Chloe Pitchford 7pm

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