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| Whitehaven International Festivals
The scale of Festivals has diminished in recent years, but for uptodate information either contact Copeland Council or http://www.thefestival.org.uk/ In 2015 A Liverpool tall ship race for young people was the biggest in the UK including representatives from west West Cumbria. The Apprentice Ship Cup, run by Merseyside Adventure Sailing Trust (MAST), announced its plans at the Titanic Hotel, Stanley Dock Village, for next summer’s race around the Irish Sea. Whitehaven will be one of the stop-over points for the race in June. In 2015 thousands were treated to an enthralling mix of stilted jugglers, live jazz, artisan food, mingling celebrities, make-overs and cookery master classes at this year’s Home and Garden Festival. The Festival Co was founded in 1998 by a volunteer board of directors and it remains all volunteer to this day despite having been credited with creating a spend of over £40m to West Cumbria since 1998. Day to day running is from an office in Richardsons Wines on Lowther Street. Whitehaven Fest 2013...... June 21-24 McFLY – one of the biggest pop bands to come out of the UK – played in Whitehaven. On Friday, June 21, McFly performed on Whitehaven’s harbourside. The tall ships coming for 2013 included The Pelican, a 45-metre sail training vessel from Weymouth, Dorset, which is coming to the festival for the first time, as is the Johanna Lucretia, built in 1945 in Ghent, Belguim. The other two have been before – the Bessie Ellen and Ruth. Also this year there will be a giant continental market. The Sunday afternoon charity gig (June 23) with Les McKeown’s Bay City Rollers.
Whitehaven Diamond Jubilee Festival 2012 The Festival in 2012 featured the concert by Katherine Jenkins and the National Philharmonic Orchestra although there will be a lovely atmosphere throughout the town for the two or three days building up to the event. Saturday saw the Seventies Stars and Sunday includes the Charlatans and The Enemy live on stage. The RV8tors display team combine high speed (up to 230mph) with tight formation aerobatics, promising an exciting and memorable show. A high energy show is also on the cards from the Breitling Wingwalkers – who call themselves the world’s only aerobatic formation wingwalking team. If you are travelling by car, please remember that the town has limited space but we have two big car park and ride operations. From the North you can park at Lakes College and from the South, Westlakes Science park. The park and ride is operated by Reays Coaches. Times and prices to follow. Tall Ships,
Cookery demos, Jet skis, fairgrounds and stalls open all three days. Previous Fests The festival June 25, 26 and 27th in 2010 was a huge success again. Highlights: Friday: Fish cooking and Afternoon Tea Demos on the Sugar Tongue, Jet Skis and Book Launch by Jean Christophe. The latter is at 6pm. Saturday: Live music on three stages including Madness, street theatre, Jet skis and celebrity chef demos. Sunday: Forces Parade starting 10:30am at the Sea Cadets and finishing in the Arena. Spitfire flypast at 12:30 and Full air show program from 3pm. On stage Razorlight. Tall Ships, Cookery demos, Jet skis, fairgrounds and stalls open all three days. Some pictures from the 2010 weekend. The big events included an Armed Forces Day and celebrity chefs. Status Quo are to play at a 2,000 capacity venue by the harbour. Katherine Jenkins and the National Symphony Orchestra One of the most intimate performances you will see. One of the Worlds top artists headlining the Friday night (June 25)of the Festival. And Status Quo, Saturday 26th June 2010 Status Quo rocking all over the harbour! Vast array of attractions including three fairgrounds and a giant Ferris wheel that Gerard Richardson has nicknamed The Whitehaven Eye. There was also a huge floating bubble being walked around the inner harbour. There will be a military village with impressive gear from all the armed services, even including a missile rocket system. http://www.thefestival.org.uk/ 2010: Festival organiser, Gerard Richardson, the town’s independent wine merchants, is to receive a special award for his efforts in promoting goodwill between the United Kingdom and America as a result of the US Navy’s involvement in the Whitehaven festivals. Every year the US Ambassador to the UK can award up to 10 letters of commendation in three categories. Mr Richardson’s special efforts with the Whitehaven Festival and its American links have been appreciated by the US Navy in particular, earning him a nomination culminating in the special award. Festival updates can also be found at http://www.thefestival.org.uk/ In 2009 although there was not a full Maritime Festival Whitehaven did l host a Food Festival August 8 and 9 including timber tall ship 'Kathleen and May', built in 1900.(Pictured below) The Whitehaven Food Festival attracted nearly 100,000 people over the weekend. The weekend also featured a dramatic fly-past by the massive V Bomber, Vulcan B2. See a live webcam view of the harbourside.. Gerard Richardson, chief executive of the Festival Company, said: “This is the big daddy of all the aircraft. It’s the rarest aircraft in the world and to see it fly over Whitehaven will be very special. We will never see it fly over these skies again.” There were celebrity chefs Jean Christophe Novelli and Ainsley Harriott. On the harbourside alongside the 'Kathleen and May' it is expected to see the two masted brig Irene on a visit.
.Last
massive Maritime Festival event was June 15-17, 2007 WHITEHAVEN’S Maritime Festival went
International and even bigger in 2007. The FREE event has now officially
been branded the Whitehaven International Maritime Festival. Next fest
expected 2010.
Among the Festival 2007 highlights were: This year's event also featured the Red Arrows, Tall sailing ships and much much more..
Action from
the 2005 Festival |
The Grand Turk The Zebu The Mathew of Bristol |
The 2005 Festival, the fourth hosted
by the town, took place on June 25-26 and is timed to coincide with the International
Year of the Sea and Nelson's death at the Battle of Trafalgar 200 years ago.
It
attracted 250,000 visitors and was blessed with sunshine throughout.
Among attractions
were the Utterly Butterly flying circus (Pictured).
There were fly pasts by the
Red Arrows, and Tornado jets plus a World War 2 fly-past..
Four tall ships came for the event; Liverpool's flagship the Zebu and sail training ship, Jean de la Lune, Scotland's only working square-rigged tall ship. They will also be joined by Jeannie Johnston and The Kathleen & May a wooden coaster launched in 1900, costing around £2,700 at a time when shipwrights earned the equivalent of £1.25 a week and was among the last four vessels who remained on trade routes in British and Irish waters. Her home was the Port of Bideford in the West Country until her retirement in 1961. She was purchased by a private trust in October 1998 from Gloucester Docks and brought home for a £1million restoration.
The Zebu came to Whitehaven last year especially to take part in the festival, choosing it over Liverpool's own maritime event. Its success in the town convinced the crew to return to Whitehaven when it took part in a BBC film later in the year.
Jean de la Lune, a 100ft French brigantine
based on the west coast of Scotland, is coming for the festival
on her farewell voyage before being sold.
As part of the Festival, Cumbria marked the 60th Anniversary of
the End of World War 2, with a Veterans and Ex-Service Personnel
Parade on Sunday 26th June 2005.
2003 Maritime Festival (June 14-15) was a sell out success with an estimated 200,000 visitors and some £1 million injected into the local economy. The 2003 show enjoyed brilliant June sunshine. The next Fest will be on June 25th 2005.
See the action at the 2003 Maritime Festival
Tall ship the Zebu and the arrival of American warship the USS
Leyte Gulf were among the key attractions for the 2003 Fest. And
in complete contrast the British Jet Ski Display Team racing at
high speed around the harbour.
Other attractions for the 2003 Fest were HMS Biter from the Royal
Navy, and an air-sea rescue display by the RNLI. In the air, there
was a fly-past by the Battle of Britain squadron, featuring the
Lancaster, Hurricane and Spitfire, on Saturday, June 14, while
on the Sunday a spectacular display by the Red Arrows. On the
harbourside at the festival, on June 14 and 15, were stands offering
a wide range of attractions including the ever-popular Made in
Cumbria food and craft tents. There were two free open-air concerts
on Saturday evening: an Abba tribute band will be performing on
The Whitehaven News stage from 6pm, and then there will be a jazz
concert, on the Radio Cumbria stage, by Kenny Ball and his Jazz
Men. The concerts were followed by a fireworks spectacular over
the sea. Also there will be performances by the Central Band of
the Royal Air Force, while local schoolchildren will be delighting
the crowds on The Whitehaven News stage at the Hub. Steamer, Balmoral
will be running trips down the coast on both days, as well as
coming into the harbour on the Saturday evening. There will be
a yacht regatta outside the harbour.
Previous
Maritime Festival scenes
In July 2002 Whitehaven had a mini festival atmosphere as
three tall ships bid sailed into port for a highly succesful month
long visit.
The ships, Kaskalot, Earl Pembroke and Phoenix...were enjoyed
by thousands during the long stop over. On the evening of Friday
June 21 hundreds sang along to Land of Hope and Glory at the Whitehaven
"Proms" when the Royal Liverpool Philharmonic Orchestra
performed on Whitehaven harbourside. The concert was to mark both
the 150th anniversary of The Whitehaven
News, and the Queen's Golden Jubilee. The event, , in
conjunction with the Whitehaven Maritime Festival company, was
a resounding success complete with fireworks finale.
The Whitehaven Maritime Festival...weekend of June 23-24 2001
attracted an amazing 100,000 visitors.
On the menu were three square rigged sailing ships, Earl of Pembroke, the Phoenix and Prince William. There was a funfair, Cumbrian arts and crafts, Spitfire, Tornado and Air Sea Rescue fly pasts, sea shanties and live music, including the Band of the Royal Marines. The Saturday evening saw a dramatic fireworks display over the Irish Sea. On the Sunday there were be more fly pasts and theatrical events around the many visiting ships in the harbour. To see a page of
Typical of the new nautical interest in Whitehaven was the visit
in 2000 of the square rigger, and the visit in May of training
ship Tenacious.(click
and get your free tall ship printable image)
Estimates
of the crowd at the May 1999 event vary..40,000 up to 80,000 but
thanks to sunshine and a lot of hard work by a lot of people the
Whitehaven Rum Festival as it was billed had the town swamped
with visitors.
Highlights of that year's events(Seen below) included the Caribbean
parade and re-enactment of a rum smugglers' capture, complete
with a "gruesome" mock hanging in authentic 17th century
style!
The Festival brought to life much of the fascinating history behind the port of Whitehaven. In the 17th century Whitehaven built brigs dared the Atlantic storms to take part in the trade in rum, tobacco, limes and sugar from the early colonies in America and the Caribbean. There are even less mentionable instances of Whitehaven built ships taking a minor part in the grim slave trade at these times. To see more of the tall ships in Whitehaven.
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Go to a page of action pictures from the 1999 Whitehaven Maritime Festival |
The event was closely associated with the Rum Story, Whitehaven’s newest £3 million visitor attraction, which opened on Monday, May 22 2000.
Any local businesses interested in the Festival should contact:
Gerard Richardson at Richardsons Wines
This information provided as part of the Lakestay
web site.
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