Council say there's not enough demand and it wasn't 'value for money'
Ealing won't be hosting a Literary Festival this year because it hasn't proved popular enough.
The borough's annual Summer Festival Programme featuring comedy, jazz and blues festivals and local carnivals went over budget by £64k last year and the council is trying to make savings.
In total 150,000 people attended the programme in 2009 - a marginal decrease on the previous year. This is largely being blamed on the poor weather.
The Literary Festival, which would have been in its third year, was held in libraries and venues around Ealing and Acton. It attracted a variety of authors including Yasmin Alibhai-Brown, Will Self and Mick Inkpen.
Local resident and writer Toby Young also appeared at the Festival and is disappointed it won't be going ahead this year. He said, '' It feels a little early to pull the plug on the festival. These things take time to grow and become established and I'm confident that with the right support the Ealing Literary Festival could be a huge success.''
One literary festival enthusiast told us:
"I went to the Will Self reading and discussion last Summer and I thought it was brilliant and very well attended. I was amazed there was anyone there at all considering the tiny amount of publicity for the event.
"I certainly enjoyed it and was planning to attend all the literary events in Acton this year. What a shame. Ealing Council didn't give it much of a chance to become a success in its new incarnation."
The council had changed the format last year focusing events in the Acton area and moving them indoors, but it hasn't proved popular enough.
Figures show that attendances were down from 2000 in 2008/9 to just 250 last year and there was a £2,000 overspend.
A council spokesman said, ''Ealing Council is getting ready for another season of outstanding entertainment with Ealing Summer Festivals. All the favourites will be back including, comedy, jazz, blues, and Greenford and Acton Carnivals. However, the literary festival will not be back this year as attendance figures did not reflect a demand for the event and did not provide value for money.”
February 25th, 2010
|