Lily Allen to headline Edinburgh’s Hogmanay celebrations
ORGANISERS of Edinburgh’s Hogmanay celebrations have unveiled their headline act earlier than ever under a new drive to boost advance ticket sales and raise the profile of the event during the Fringe.
Singer Lily Allen will be topping the bill in Scotland’s capital over the bells to round off her extended comeback to the music business this year.
The singer-songwriter, who was one of the star attractions at Radio One’s Big Weekend in Glasgow earlier this year, will be following in the footsteps of the Pet Shop Boys, last year’s star attractions in Edinburgh, when she takes to the stage in Princes Street Gardens.
She is the first Hogmanay headliner to be revealed during the Edinburgh Festival Fringe. Previously, bands topping the bill have been named as late as November, although the appearance by the Pet Shop Boys was confirmed at the end of August last year.
Organisers hope to capitalise on the global spotlight on Edinburgh at the height of its festivals season. They also wanted to confirm their headline act to coincide with the announcement of an autumn tour by Allen, who has appeared at a number of major UK festivals this year.
Last year’s Christmas and Hogmanay festivities were the first to be run under a major new contract between long-time Edinburgh-based producers Unique Events and Londonbased Fringe promoters Underbelly. However, it was reported earlier this month that the six-week programme of events made a loss of around £180,000.
Unique Events, who are in charge of the Hogmanay festivities, say five of the six ticketed events in last year’s festival were completely sold out, with 130,000 attending the various events.
Tickets for the forthcoming Hogmanay street party went on sale in January for the first time this year, after almost 5,000 for 2013-14 went unsold.
Allen joins the roll call of previous Hogmanay headliners during the 22-year history of the event, including Calvin Harris, Texas, The Proclaimers, Biffy Clyro, Simple Minds, Blondie, Madness and Primal Scream.
The 29-year-old, shot to fame with the No1 single Smile eight years ago, but quit the music business just three years later, despite huge commercial success, only to return with a third album earlier this year.
She appeared at Glastonbury in June, is performing at the V festivals in England this weekend and will appear in eight shows across the UK, including an opening night at the O2 Academy in Glasgow, before her headline slot in Edinburgh.
Allen said: “I’ve always wanted to spend Hogmanay in Scotland so the fact that I get to do it this year, but performing on stage in front of a whole load of people up for the best time, makes it extra special.”
Tickets for the Hogmanay concert go on sale on Friday.