Mersey River Festival
THE Mersey River Festival will return next year after a gap of six years, it was revealed yesterday.
City leaders are putting together a programme for the waterfront spectacular which will include a visit by the Royal Navy and the Cunard cruise liners Queen Elizabeth and the Queen Mary 2.
The last time the city organised a river festival was in 2005, but the event was scrapped after a 25-year run. Its last outing saw 300,000 people flock to the city’s historic riverside. Liverpool city council leader Joe Anderson vowed to revive it when he was running for office in May.
Last night, he said: “The Mersey River Festival was always hugely popular, and attracted hundreds of thousands of people every year. That’s why I made it a priority to bring it back.
“Events like this are vital for our economy, generating millions as visitors flock to the city spending money in our restaurants, cafes, shops and hotels. Since the last festival took place, our iconic waterfront has been transformed and is now looking more majestic than ever and I’ll be proud to showcase it to visitors from all over the world.
