Council makes a loss on ‘Tina Turner’ gig

Welshpool Town Council has revealed a loss on its Tina Turner tribute night that was held last month at the Town Hall.

Buoyed by previous sold out nights by the likes of the Jersey Boys at the Town Hall, the Town Council was hoping that a series a tribute acts would prove popular and by organising themselves would bring in vital revenue for the cash-strapped council.

But after declining the opportunity to advertise their events with MyWelshpool, it appears that the event failed to capture the imagination of the town with ticket sales and a raffle coming up well short.

The draft minutes from last night’s Events & Planning Committee meeting, which we were unable to cover last night due to staff unavailability, show that the cost of the artist alone was £1,160 (excluding VAT), and with ticket sales and the raffle only bringing in £931, the local authority was £229 out of pocket. That figure doubles with the VAT added.

Some who attended last month told us the event was a “really good night out” but it appears the council is continuing to struggle to communicate with their audience on promoting events after the recent carnival was also poorly attended.

The draft minutes show that “Cllr Morag Bailey highlighted that this was the first time the Committee had tried to hold such an event, and lessons have been learned”.

They add that “Cllr Phil Owen explained that the Council will hopefully be reintroducing the Newsletter, which is sent to every household in the Town. This should help promote the Council's events even more”.