T in the Park festival to 'take a break' in 2017
The T in the Park music festival will not be held in 2017.
The T in the Park music festival will not be held in 2017.
The event has been staged at the Strathallan Castle estate in Perthshire for the last two years after it was forced to move from its previous long-term base at nearby Balado.
The move was hit by issues around planning and transport to the site, which organiser DF Concerts has described as "a series of onerous site restrictions".
The festival is now to "take a break" while bosses try to resolve the issues, they said.
In a statement to fans, organisers said: "For over 23 years, T in the Park has been at the heart of Scotland's music scene - with you by our side. But for now, sadly, we need to take a break."
The statement by DF Concerts and partner Tennent's Lager added: "The last couple of years have had their challenges. Against our will, and despite a prolonged fight, we were forced to move from Balado, Kinross, in 2015.
"This move was a mammoth task for the event and one that was compounded by a series of onerous site restrictions placed upon us as preparations for the event in 2015 took place."
Planning permission was secured for the festival just months before it was first held at Strathallan, with some local residents and environmental groups objecting due to its proximity to a protected osprey nest.
Transport in and out of the new site also became an issue with long queues.
The statement continued: "As the build-up to the festival was well under way, we were informed by Scottish Government ministers that we would have to apply for full planning permission due to the presence of an unregistered, but protected in law, osprey's nest.
"The constraints - logistically and financially - that the resulting planning conditions put upon us are simply not workable.
"We tried our best to work with the pressures placed upon the site by bringing in an additional team and fixing the first year traffic issues, but ultimately we're not in control of the overall site layout and the continued restrictions means that the negative impact on our fans and the limitations placed on their experience is too great.
"We now need to take stock and take a year out to try to resolve the issues so that we can once again deliver the kind of camping festival you are used to and deserve."
Two people died at the event this summer before any acts took to the stage.
Peter McCallum and Megan Bell, both 17, died in the campsite in what were reportedly drug-related incidents.
Police also launched a rape investigation at the festival this year following an attack on an 18-year-old, while a cash machine containing a ''significant'' amount of cash was stolen from the main arena.
Some reports have suggested a new festival is being planned by T in the Park bosses for Glasgow Green in July 2017, but no details have been confirmed.
The first T in the Park festival was held at Strathclyde Park in the outskirts of Glasgow in 1994.