Coronavirus: Portsmouth Festivities cancelled due to outbreak

Portsmouth Festivities was due to take place across the city in June – celebrating its 21st year of events, shows, and exhibits.

Festivals director Erica Smith said she was ‘extremely disappointed’ that the event would not be able to go ahead.

She said: ‘Ensuring the safety of our artists, audience members and staff is our priority.

‘We are extremely disappointed that we can’t bring to you our fantastic line-up for 2020.

‘We want to thank our festival supporters, creative partners, community organisations and our terrific sponsors, and we just hope that everyone stays safe and well and we look forward to seeing you in 2021.

‘With multiple events across the world cancelling it is no surprise that many festivals are having to make these difficult decisions. 2020 would have been the festival’s 21st year with a remarkable line-up.

Portsmouth Festivities organises film screenings, music performances, and art exhibitions across Portsmouth every year.

Last year saw the festival work with Portsmouth Poetry, Gregg Mosse, The Urban Vocal Group, and Egg & Spoon Films, with 70 per cent of events free to attend.

The team behind the festival said it is looking at staging events later in the year.