Ramblin' Man Fair 2021 cancelled

Ramblin’ Man Fair organisers have released a statement this afternoon concerning the 2021 event.

Is Ramblin Man Fair 2021 going ahead?

Scheduled to take place from Friday 16th to Sunday 18th July 2021 at Mote Park in Kent, Ramblin’ Man Fair has blamed a number of Covid-19 related ‘complications’ for the event being axed including no available government backed insurance.

Clutch, Europe, Foghat, Monster Magnet, Those Damn Crows, Massive Wagons, The Quireboys, Eric Gales, Samantha Fish, The New Roses, The Dust Coda and Big Big Train were among the many artists scheduled to play the three-day rock extravaganza this summer.

It’s the second consecutive year Ramblin Man’ Fair has been cancelled due to the coronavirus pandemic. The new dates for 2022 are yet to be announced.

Ramblin’ Man Fair’s full statement reads:

‘With great regret Ramblin Man Fair 2021 will not happen. We thank everyone for their patience while we held our line until the last possible moment to make an informed decision.

‘The reasons are many but all - unsurprisingly - are linked to the ongoing Covid related complications that challenge events in the early summer of this year, whether it’s the lack of government backed insurance scheme, no support from government funds that we applied for, ongoing travel restrictions on major artists, increased costs for crowd safety and potential testing - the list goes on.

‘Ramblin Man would like to thank all the bands who did put themselves forward and we know that they all share our regret and frustration at the situation. We would also like to thank the Event team at Maidstone council and Mote Park for their patience and understanding through this difficult time. But most of all RMF would like to thank the loyal ticket holders who make the event as special as it is.

‘Refunds can be accessed via point of purchase on Eventbrite.co.uk and details of potential rollover and dates for 2022 will be released in due course.”

According to research from the Association of Independent Festivals (AIF) released last week, a quarter of UK music festivals due to take place this summer have already been axed because of a lack government action on event insurance.

Paul Reed, the chief executive of AIF, said: “For months now, we have been warning government that the UK’s 2021 festival season would be quickly eroded if they failed to back their own roadmap out of lockdown and act on Covid-related cancellation insurance. That danger is now coming to pass, with over a quarter of festivals having cancelled already this year.

“Without a safety net, independent promoters cannot begin to confidently invest in their events. They currently have no protection should a Covid-related issue result in the cancellation of their festival. If government-backed insurance is off the table, festival organisers deserve to know what government proposes as an alternative to prevent the widespread collapse of the festival season.”

A spokesperson from the Department for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport told The Guardian: “More than £34m from our unprecedented culture recovery fund has supported festivals including Glastonbury, Bath international comedy festival, Boomtown and Shambala.

“As part of our roadmap for reopening all sectors in a phased and safe way, we held an outdoor test event for live music at Sefton Park in Liverpool last week to explore how we can reopen festivals.

“We are aware of the wider concerns about securing indemnity for live events and are exploring what further support we may provide.”

Sunday at Ramblin' Man Fair 2019:

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