The King’s Award for Voluntary Service will be presented to a now 22-year old Merseyside festival this June, amidst a wide range of outstanding arts events and concerts.
Clock Face Miners Heritage Brass Band from St. Helens open the 10-day Prescot Festival programme in style on Friday 19 June, with the sublime a capella vocal ensemble ‘The Hope Street Consort’ performing the following evening.
The week continues with events that include a screening on Tuesday 23 June of the fascinating local documentary ‘Road to Letter to Brezhnev’, based on the iconic 1985 Merseyside film, that features a host of local locations. The sensational swing ensemble Easy Street Big Band from St. Helens perform a very special concert Friday 26 June, when the Lord Lieutenant of Merseyside will present The King’s Award for Voluntary Service to the Festival. The Award is recognised as the highest accolade to be bestowed upon a volunteer group, and is equivalent to an MBE.
To mark the fourth birthday of Prescot’s Shakespeare North Playhouse, the festival presents an afternoon of opera highlights with local professional soloists on Wednesday 24 June in the venue’s own Sir Ken Dodd Performance Garden. The hit comedy play ‘Out the Woodwork’ by Lee Clotworthy receives two performances in the Studio Theatre on Tuesday 23 and Wednesday 24 June. Festival proceedings come to a close with an eagerly awaited return appearance from South Liverpool Orchestra, in their 50th anniversary year, in a Last Night of the Proms-style finale on Sunday 28 June.
Liverpool Bach Collective, Liverpool Metropolitan Cathedral organist Richard Lea, local historian Ken Pye, barn dance band Two Left Feet, and Wirral-based musical theatre company BOST are all on this year’s lineup, along with musical showcases for the choral and instrumental talents of local primary school students.
‘With over two decades of the Prescot Festival, it remains an incredible joy and an honour to be able to offer this annual celebration of community music-making and local artistic talent,’ said artistic director Dr Robert Howard.
Festival-goers also have the opportunity to play a part themselves, by joining a Come-&-Sing choir for a performance of 80-year old John Rutter’s Magnificat on 20 June, competing in the Adult or Junior sections of the 2026 Prescot Festival Short Story Competition, having fun at the town’s carnival on 28 June, or by joining in the barn dance on 25 June.
The 22nd Annual Prescot Festival of Music & the Arts runs from Friday 19 to Sunday 28 June. Tickets are on sale from Poco Bar & Cafe at 30 Eccleston Street, L34 5QJ (cash only) or online at prescotfestival.co.uk. Please note that tickets for Shakespeare North Playhouse events are available exclusively from the theatre itself, in person or online at shakespearenorthplayhouse.co.uk.
Full programme details are also online at prescotfestival.co.uk.
ENDS
Photo: BOST at the 2023 Prescot Festival (Alan Humphreys Photography)
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