Organisers of this year’s Winterfest have hailed the event a tremendous success as plans get underway already for next year.
More than 2,400 tickets were sold for 15 different events at venues across the town.
They ranged from the Christmas lights switch-on soul stars The Screaming Beavers, a performance of Handel’s Messiah, Cinderella and an intimate gig by former Ultravox frontman Midge Ure.
Organiser Brad Snelling said: “It’s been a fantastic festival.
“We have built on the success of last year’s event and this one has been even bigger.
“We’ve had people come from a lot further afield this year. We’ve had a lot of people come from Manchester, Stoke, Sheffield and some from even further away, which has helped put Macclesfield on the map.
“And we’ve had pretty much all positive comments about every event. I think we’ve shown that if you put on the right events, people will come to them.” Brad said his highlight was Midge Ure’s performance at St Michael’s Church, where Brad himself stepped in as warm-up act.
“To get an artist as high-profile as Midge a real coup for us.
Brad revealed provisional plans already being made for next year and said: “Midge has said he would come back, as have a lot of the other artists, and we will be looking to get some big names on the bill next year.
“One of the things we’ve proved is that you can come and see something professional and of high quality on your doorstep and we’ll be aiming for even more big events next year to make it an even better festival.”
