The popular Feel Good Festival will not go ahead this year, cash-strapped Rochdale Council has announced.
The weekend of entertainment, food and culture which was first staged in 2008 usually takes place in Rochdale town centre, attracting thousands of visitors.
But the event, which saw Ocean Colour Scene, Lottery Winners and Heather Small take to the main stage last year, is not going for good, as it is set to become bi-annual and will take place in 2026.
Now the festival will be alternated with the Feel Good Family Picnic – the free event for families including performances, music, sports, dance, theatre and shows for children of all ages in local parks – which returns this July and August.
Councillor Sue Smith said: “Our new events strategy will see a broader range of events delivered with new additions as well as our established ones.
“We also want to deliver the best experience within our budget and resources, so it isn’t feasible to stage the Feel Good Festival and the Feel Good Family Picnic back to back every summer, but they are both fantastic and very popular events that we very much want to retain, so moving our biggest two events to bi-annual means we can continue to deliver them as well as enhancing our events programme.
“This year, on top of the Feel Good Family Picnic there will be an exciting new urban arts festival, the Street Eat food and drink festival, Ignite Fire Festival and much more to be announced. We have commenced the planning for Rochdale Feel Good Festival in 2026, with tickets going on sale later this year.”
