This year’s Rochdale Literature and Ideas Festival is being hailed as the best yet with record ticket sales of 1,688 and a £50,000 boost for local businesses.
Ticket sales were the highest in the Rochdale Borough Council festival’s three-year history, with hundreds more attending un-ticketed events throughout the weekend and preview shows earlier in October. Revenue from ticket sales was £8,800 compared to £3,500 in 2014 and spending by festival-goers in the town is estimated at £48,280.
A new ‘early bird’ ticket offer, which knocked 40% off all tickets purchased in August, was a big hit and accounted for 38% of sales.
Four shows sold out and the festival also helped to bring the arts to new audiences, with 27% of visitors questioned saying they hadn’t attended a literature-related event before. It also helped to bring new visitors to Rochdale as 37% said they were not regular visitors to the town centre. The festival attracted visitors from across the north west region and beyond, with people coming from as far as Cambridge.
This year’s programme included talks by actress Helen Lederer, playwright Bonnie Greer OBE, comedian Dom Joly, historian David Starkey and author Jonathan Harvey. The Flying Horse Hotel hosted Andy Kershaw’s acclaimed one-man live show and other highlights included ‘Emmerdale’ star and photographer Bill Ward, the Poet Laureate Dame Carol Ann Duffy and poet Lemn Sissay.
Councillor Janet Emsley, Cabinet Member for Culture, Health and Wellbeing at festival organisers Rochdale Borough Council, said there was great support from the public: “This year really reflected the hard work that the festival team put in to this event. Now we’re in our third year we’re building our database, our presence on social media and we distributed our programmes to a wider audience. Despite the challenging economic climate the festival had an excellent year.”
Dwayne Wells, Commercial Development Manager from First Manchester, sponsor of the popular Around the World in 80 Days children’s theatre show staged at Touchstones said: “This really was a fabulous festival and we were pleased to be part of one of Rochdale’s most prestigious events. First Bus likes to support our local communities and this encourages reading and learning so was fantastic. The performances of Around the World in 80 Days were superb and provided enjoyment for hundreds of families.”
The festival celebrates and promotes the Maskew Collection of classic literature and philosophy at Rochdale Central Library, encouraging people to engage in thought and philosophy. It is due to the generosity of Annie and Frank Maskew, a Rochdale couple who shared a passion for reading and thinking, who originally met in Rochdale Library. They left a sum of money to be used on resources and events related to literature, and philosophy, to ensure classic works are available for future generations.
For more on the event, photos and video highlights visit www.rochdaleliteraturefestival.co.uk
10 Dec 2015