Developer rescues music festival

One of Canterbury’s most popular music events has been rescued at the 11th hour after several sponsors pulled out.

The City Sound Project was in jeopardy until Quinn Estates stepped in to save it from possible cancellation.

The festival takes place over the weekend of April 29 and 30 and features more than 150 performers at 13 venues, including the Westgate Towers, the Greyfriars Chapel and the Dane John Gardens. It costs about £80,000 to put on but organisers faced having to scrap it after several offers of support failed to materialise.

Now developer Mark Quinn has bailed out the event with a generous donation that sponsors the main stage in the Dane John Gardens, where Coco and the Butterfields will headline.

One of the organisers of the festival, Stuart O’leary, said: “When some offers of sponsorship failed to come through, it really put the festival in jeopardy so we are extremely grateful to Mark for getting behind it and we have a fantastic programme over the weekend with some worldrenowned performers.”

Mr Quinn said: “The City Sound Project is an exemplary cultural and music event which really contributes to the city’s music and social scene and we are immensely proud to support it.”