Performances will be under the rainbow

Bandstand makeover leaves space for graffiti artists too

A7 0 - Y E AR- O L D bandstand has been transformed into an outdoor theatre, where graffiti artists have been told they are welcome to daub their artwork.

The bandstand at Queens Park in Heywood has been rebranded and is now adorned with a rainbow and hand-painted flowers across bottom of the backdrop of the stage.

Its design is the work of two local artists, Toni Lane and Victoria Ash - but the makeover is not quite complete.

Space has also been made for children, teenagers and parents to paint their own graffiti in a bid to encourage people not to vandalise the new artwork.

Volunteers behind the

Friends of Queens Park raised £1,350 on a Gofundme page to carry out the rebrand.

They were helped by local construction company Farrel Ltd, which painted the blue background before artists Toni and Victoria went to work.

Chair of the Friends of Queens Park, Ellen Wintle-yates said: “The bandstand was a horrible colour before and had been daubed with graffiti.

“But it has been wellloved by people who use the park.

“There have been lots of shows put on there. We’ve had rock bands, brass bands and all sorts of events there.

“We were going to do this last summer, but of course the pandemic and the lockdown prevented anything from happening.

“So we thought it would be nice to get it done before everything opens up again.”

And she described the response from park users to the new-look outdoor

Artists Toni Lane (left) and Victoria Ash (right) with Ellen Wintle-yates (chair of Friends of Queens Park) at the newly painted bandstand theatre as ‘overwhelming’.

The launch event takes place on Saturday, July 25, with the line-up of bands yet to be confirmed.

Artist Toni, who has a background in childcare, said more than 60 children were involved in getting the graffiti part of the stage started. “Rochdale Youth Team was heavily involved, but other kids and parents who were in the park also joined in,” she said.

“We wanted to create something akin to the John Lennon Wall.

“The idea is to be as inclusive as possible and give people a chance to be creative with their own graffiti, a bit like Banksy.”

The John Lennon Wall is in the Czech Republic capital Prague where, since the 1980s, people have left Beatles-inspired graffiti.

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