Thousands of fans make Boyzone gig profitable

It was the third concert put on by Telford & Wrekin Council, and the first not to make a loss.

The event at Telford Town Park saw the Irish group supported by singer Alesha Dixon and local band The Rooz, made a profit of just over £11,000.

The authority last year scrapped T-Live, a live music extravaganza which saw bands and artists such as McFly, Union J and Rick Astley play at Telford Town Park at two events in previous years.

Putting on the two festivals made a total loss for the cash-strapped authority of £68,748.

But council chiefs denied the events were a flop and said the reason for the decision was because the opportunity to host Boyzone this year was too good to miss and hosting two large-scale live music events was "simply not feasible".

Russell Griffin, spokesman for Telford & Wrekin Council - which promoted the Boyzone gig - said T-Live paved the way for the Irish boyband to perform at Telford Town Park on June 27 as part of its UK tour.

Figures released under the Freedom of Information Act found that £211,149 was spent on artist fees and promotion expenses at the recent concert, while £32,725 was spent on marketing and publicity.

Sponsorship cost £56,900, fees and charges £198,090 and total income totalled at £254,990.

The figures also revealed that the show made a small profit of £11,000, with 5,930 tickets sold and 1,177 given away.

Kuldip Sahota, leader of Telford & Wrekin Council, said he welcomed the news that the concert had made a profit and put the town on the map.

He said: "We had 8,000 plus people there on that day, including me, and we had a fantastic time.

"It was a people's party, a people's concert and the fact that we made an £11,000 profit is fine with me, but what's most important is that everyone was there to put Telford on the map.

"Telford is on the up and is growing, it was a success."

Telford's first major music and family festival – called T-Live – was held in the summer of 2013.

A concert was put on, headlined by pop band McFly and featuring a number of smaller names, and there was also a Children's Festival.

But the events made a combined loss of £40,000.

Last year T-Live returned with a Friday concert by 80s acts Rick Astley, ABC and Go West, followed by a Saturday concert second featuring bands including Lawson and Union J. The event cost £280,191 to stage and brought in income of £251,443 – incurring a £28,748 loss.