Fairport Cropredy Convention 2021 cancelled

Fairport Cropredy Convention 2021 has been cancelled. It joins a long line of festival cancellations linked directly or indirectly to the lockdown extension, an inability to obtain cancellation insurance or a general lack of direction and support from the Government.

The Fairport Cropredy Convention 2021 had been scheduled to take place over the weekend of 12 to 14 August with acts The Trevor Horn Band, Clannad, Steve Hackett’s Genesis Revisited, and Richard Thompson joining the hosts who open and close the festival.

In a statement, Gareth Williams, the Festival Director, said: “I’m very sorry to have to inform you that we have finally run out of time to stage Fairport’s Cropredy Convention this year. We’re left with no other choice than to postpone our festival until 11-13 August 2022. We have reached the point where we’d need to spend BIG money without any certainty we could go ahead.

“Like the rest of the festival industry, we’ve tried everything we can to keep going, but I’m afraid we would be placing Cropredy’s future in serious jeopardy if we were to wait any longer. The dilemma we are facing is very simple, go ahead and risk potentially going out of business or postpone for a year and live to fight another day.

He added: “So far, despite over six months of lobbying, the government has failed to support any form of Covid-related cancellation insurance scheme for the festival industry. Also, there has been no guidance on what mitigations might be required post Step 4. This has made it effectively impossible to plan this year’s event.”

All the acts (and their representatives) have provisionally agreed to transfer the bookings to the same days and times next year. So it is envisaged that the Fairport Cropredy Convention 2022 will feature the same great line-up as was planned for this year.

All tickets purchased for the 2020 and 2021 festivals will automatically roll over to 2022. This will help keep the festival going throughout the coming months while they prepare for next summer.

Mr Williams continued by saying: I want to thank you all for the understanding you’ve shown in this. Of course, if you can’t attend in 2022, you will be entitled to a refund.

“I also want to thank everyone involved in the planning of the festival so far. They’ve worked through some of the most difficult challenges our industry has ever known. We are grateful for the Culture Recovery Fund grants we’ve received – as intended, the funds have filtered through to our suppliers and helped them keep going through these lean times.”

He added: “Again, if you can hold on to your tickets, please do. Knowing you will be with us again next year means a great deal to us at this time. We will see you in the field at Cropredy next year but until we do, on behalf of all at Team Cropredy, please look after yourselves and each other.”

The last 15 months have been an incredibly frustrating time for all musicians, and Fairport is no exception. Having to postpone comes as a bitter blow to them.

If you can’t roll your tickets over to 2022 and require a refund, please contact The Ticket Factory. Cropredy is not the only festival to postpone in the last few days, so please be patient with The Ticket Factory staff, who are all still working from home.