Music festival in Liverpool cancelled after complaints over delays

A music festival has been cancelled after complaints about delays on its opening day.

The Hope and Glory Festival was being held for the first time in Liverpool this weekend but festival-goers complained of large queues on Saturday and singer Charlotte Church was pulled from the line-up following a two-hour delay.

On Sunday morning a message posted on the festival’s social media accounts said: “No festival today.”

A statement on the Merseyside Police City Centre Twitter account confirmed the event had been cancelled.

Acts including Lightning Seeds, Hacienda Classical and Reverend And The Makers were due to perform at the event in Liverpool city centre on Sunday.

Police assisted stewards on Saturday afternoon after large queues formed outside.

Tim Booth, lead singer of band James, tweeted after the group’s performance on Saturday night saying: “Well that was f***ed up. Sorry everyone was messed around so badly.

“Hope you managed to find some pleasure amongst the chaos.”

Church, who performed at another venue in the city after her set was cancelled, wrote on social media: “Just to let you know we have been pulled from the hope and glory line-up due to them running 2 hours behind.

“We’re gutted!”

Before the cancellation was announced, a message was posted on the festival’s Facebook page blaming delays on the event’s production manager.

The post, which included his name and email address, said he had not completed the site on time or provided planned bridged walkways.

Acts Lightning Seeds and Clean Cut Kid found an alternative venue in Liverpool to perform at after the cancellation.

The groups arranged to play at venue The Zanzibar on Sunday evening, with free entry offered to those with festival tickets.

In a message posted on its Twitter page, Clean Cut Kid said: “So ‘Hope And Glory’ festival has been cancelled today. Gutted we won’t be playing to our fave hometown crowd.”

The band said there was a “bigger casualty”, as organisers had reportedly pledged to donate all profits from the event to victims of the Manchester bombing.

Festival organisers later said the decision had been made with “great regret”.

A message on their Facebook page said: “It was with great regret that we felt it was necessary to cancel today’s Hope & Glory festival. We will make another announcement by noon tomorrow.”

Responding to James frontman Booth’s description of the event, a Twitter post on the festival’s page said: “Oh sit down Tim. Go back to your yoga.”

Another tweet from the festival’s account said: “It’s open house to attack the people that care it seems.

“The threats of violence etc. The truth anyone? No? Carry on being vile then.”