Beachdown and out as festival cancelled

Directors' statement on Beachdown website

The bank holiday is looking gloomy for festival fans who fancied a nice weekend by the sea and bought tickets to Beachdown.

The Brighton-based festival, which was to be held for the second year at Devil’s Dyke on the South Downs near the town, has been cancelled at the last minute due to lack of ticket sales.

Organisers have replaced the festival website with a bald statement citing poor ticket sales and “lack of support at a critical time from our bank and certain suppliers” for the last-minute cancellation. They have so far not offered anyone any money back, instead advising tickholders to contact their credit card companies for refunds.

The festival was due to feature sets from the Zutons, Grace Jones and Super Furry Animals, and locals say the site is already set up and looking like a festival site.

Correspondents have posted more than 100 comments on the Brighton Argus website, with angry locals claiming that suppliers from the 2008 event were never paid and the festival should have been cancelled months ago.

The Beachdown cancellation is a double whammy for Bloom Festival ticketholders. When the Welsh boutique festival was cancelled two weeks before it was due to take place earlier in August, they were offered part-exchange for Beachdown weekend tickets for an extra £30 – money that would now appear to have gone down the proverbial drain.

Another festival has now stepped in on the part-exchange front for Beachdown tickets. Virtual Festivals is reporting that ticket holders can now purchase Offest Festival tickets for a discount rate. Let’s hope the chain of bad luck doesn’t reach as far as Offset….

What should ticketholders do now?

• Consumer guide Which has some advice on ticket refunds.
• Ticket holders should contact the issuing agent to enquire about refunds.
• If you bought you ticket with a credit card, contact your credit card company – you should be covered.
• Keep checking the Beachdown website, organisers have promised an update soon.