Hello Fairporters,

I’m very sorry to have to inform you that we have finally run out of time to stage Fairport’s Cropredy Convention this year. We’re left with no other choice than to postpone our festival until 11-13 August 2022. We have reached the point where we’d need to spend BIG money without any certainty we could go ahead. 

Like the rest of the festival industry, we’ve tried everything we can to keep going but I’m afraid we would be placing Cropredy’s future in serious jeopardy if we were to wait any longer. The dilemma we are facing is very simple – go ahead and risk potentially going out of business or postpone for a year and live to fight another day.

So far, despite over six months of lobbying, the government has failed to support any form of Covid-related cancellation insurance scheme for the festival industry. Also, there has been no guidance on what mitigations might be required post Step 4. This has made it effectively impossible to plan this year’s event. 

I have spoken to all the acts booked for Cropredy this year. They (and their representatives) have provisionally agreed to transfer the bookings to the same days and times in 2022. This means we will carry forward the same great line-up into 2022. I am sincerely grateful to the acts, their managers and agents for their understanding and support.

All tickets purchased for the 2020 and 2021 festivals will automatically roll over to 2022. This will help us keep the festival going throughout the coming months while we prepare for next summer.  I want to thank you all for the understanding you’ve shown in this. Of course, if you can’t attend in 2022 you will be entitled to a refund*.

The traditional Warm-Up shows on the 9 & 10 August have also been postponed and these tickets will roll over to  8 & 9  August 2022. You can either keep the tickets or return them to the following address for a full refund.

Fairort Convetion Ltd

OO Box 263, Chipping Norton, OX7 9DF

I also want to thank everyone involved in the planning of the festival so far. They’ve worked through some of the most difficult challenges our industry has ever known. We are grateful for the Culture Recovery Fund grants we’ve received - as intended, the funds have filtered through to our suppliers and helped them keep going through these lean times. 

The last 15 months have been an incredibly frustrating time for all musicians and Fairport are no exception. We are obviously in regular contact and I know they were really looking forward seeing everyone at Cropredy next month. Having to postpone comes as a bitter blow to them.

This is a pretty emotional time in the Festival Office as you can imagine. It is the second festival I have had to postpone – on my watch! However, I promise that we will return and when we do it will be AMAZING!

Again, if you can hold on to your tickets, please do. Knowing you will be with us again next year means a great deal to us at this time.

We will see you in the field at Cropredy next year but until we do, on behalf of all at Team Cropredy, please look after yourselves and each other. 

Gareth Williams
Festival Director

*If you can’t roll your tickets over to 2022 and require a refund, please contact The Ticket Factory refund oage HERE. You can also contact the Customer Queries website HERE. Cropredy is not the only festival to postpone in the last few days so please be patient with The Ticket Factory staff who are all still working from home. Your funds are secure and they will deal with your claim as quickly as they can.