Last updated 09:32, Thursday, 07 August 2008

IT’S make or break time for Whitehaven and its future in hosting major events and music.

Thousands of people came to enjoy a memorable night of entertainment when Status Quo rocked the Recre on Saturday.
Whitehaven Maritime Festival Company, which organised the event, hopes it will be able to continue to bring big names to the borough – perhaps including the likes of Bon Jovi.
“There is no reason why West Cumbria cannot host events of the same quality and diversity as Glastonbury,” said Gerard Richardson, chief executive of the festival company, which is made up of volunteers.
“This is our tenth year, and out of a year that started with the end of the Maritime Festival, it has been incredible.
“What we really want to do now is to go back to the drawing board. If we can count on the same solid support from the nuclear industry as we have had from Copeland Council, whose support has been rock solid for 10 full years, then we can continue to make things happen.
“For 10 years we have been doing major events but this has probably been the most exciting and enjoyable,” he said.
“This is either the start of something massive for the area or it’s the end of the line.
“The challenge now is to go back to our stakeholders to see if we can make this work.
“We have the capacity and the professional skills to make anything happen. We want to deliver world-class events but we no longer want to do it in the way we have in the past. Either we are recognised and become a properly-funded body or we step aside.”
Proposals will be put together over the next few days and discussed with stakeholders.
“If we get supported and plans come to fruition then the bands we could be looking at next are the likes of Bon Jovi, Nickleback or Bryan Adams,” said Gerard.
He and Catherine Nicholson are the executive directors of the company and have run it for the past 10 years, supported by a small board of volunteers.
They took care of everything – from clinching the Status Quo deal to cleaning and picking litter up off the rugby pitch the day after.
Feedback from Status Quo was that they thoroughly enjoyed the concert and thought that the reception from the crowd was superb.
“They were here throughout the day – Francis Rossi even helped us to move a fridge,” said Gerard. “And Rick went to see the fans at the entrance. They were both really down to earth.
“And I thought that the local bands were absolutely brilliant too, It Bites were astounding.”
He added: “We have had more feedback – all positive – than we have ever had from all the Maritime Festivals.”
It wasn’t just those in the ground who enjoyed the music, there are reports that the Quo could be heard quite clearly as far as Frizington and Cleator Moor.
Police are thanking everyone who attended the concert for helping to ensure it ran smoothly. Of all the thousands who attended, only four people were arrested outside the venue for minor public order offences.