Organisers ‘mind-blown’ as more than 3,000 tickets sold for Hartlepool tribute festival

The Open Jar Tribute Festival is set to take place at Seaton Reach on Saturday, September 9, with thousands of people expected to descend on Seaton Carew for the event.

Over 3,000 tickets have been sold in less than a month, exceeding organisers’ expectations.

Organiser and Open Jar owner Joe Franks has said the venue’s reputation for successful tribute events in the past has attracted people to the huge fest at the start of September.

Mr Franks said: "I think we have a good little following for that. People just trusted us, I think."

He added: “We have already sold more tickets than what we were hoping for. We are little bit blown away with how well it’s gone.”

Apart from tribute acts to ABBA, the Arctic Monkeys, Ed Sheeran, Queen and Taylor Swift, the fest will also feature a food village, fire breathers and a range of stalls.

The event is set to kick off at 1pm and finish at 11pm – with the fest potentially getting even bigger and better than already planned due to the positive response.

Mr Franks said: "We can make things even bigger and better than what we originally planned.

"Originally it was just going to be a good, well-presented show, but I think we have a lot more people turning up, we have more tickets sold, it’s giving us the freedom to make the show even bigger and better so we can add other things for people to be doing on the day.

He added: "We are all really excited. We are blown away with the response that it’s had. Everyone’s really excited about it. It just looks like it’s going to be a really, really fun day.”

The event will bring a busy Hartlepool summer to a close, with the Soundwave music festival, headlined by Bastille, also taking place in Seaton Carew at the end of July.

For more information about The Open Jar Tribute Festival and to get tickets, go to https://www.openjartributefest.co.uk/