Wentworth Festival to move from grand stately home as organisers look to two-day event with camping instead

Such a setting - as one of Britain's grandest country houses - can cost a "stately" sum, said organisers, while all they need is a "patch of grass". With a move, they added, the hope is to make the festival a two-day event with camping.

Toby Foster, one of the founders, said: "We have decided this will be our last year at Wentworth. And really it's for positive reasons. The festival needs to move on. It needs to become two nights.

"The problem with being at a posh stately home is that it costs stately money," he added. "There doesn't seem much point to doing that, when within three miles we have grounds with a campsite already there."

Wentworth Festival, first born as a madcap idea between two friends in a pub beer garden, has grown over the years to become a major family event. Kim Wilde is to headline next Saturday, September 16, with familiar names like Sleeper, Toploader and Lemar on the bill.

Mr Foster, a stand-up comedian, likens it now to a garden party of sorts. With music, and dancing and beer, and fire breathing acts.

"It just gives us something to look forward to, a big old party," he said. "A big old celebration. It has a bit of 'village-ness' to it. Like a garden party. All the best bits anyway.”

The idea for the event bloomed between Mr Foster and fellow BBC Radio Sheffield presenter Steve White, discussing festivals in the pub beer garden one afternoon.

"By the time we'd finished that evening we'd decided to run one," said Mr Foster. "We just booked it, without really knowing what we were doing. It worked really well. We decided to keep it going."

In the early years there was Tony Christie, Heaven 17. This year, along with headline acts on the main stage, there's a new music stage, fairground stage, comedy zone, disco house and Northern soul tents.

It's self-funded, which can also mean self-loss. Tickets are £50 for the day and £10 for under 14s. Sales are progressing at pace. But for next year the hope is to host bands on a Friday night as well as Saturday, and to have a campsite so that guests can stay overnight.

Organisers are looking at two possible venues, they confirmed, both within a 10-minute drive.

Mr Foster insisted the move was amicable: "All we need is a patch of grass. We are paying for something that's not really of use to us. By moving the festival to somewhere more affordable, it makes sure it's there for years to come.”

Tickets for next week’s event are on sale now, online and at Wentworth Village Shop, The Horseshoe Pub.