Seafeast: Weymouth seafood festival cancelled amid rising costs

Dorset Seafood Festival attracted 10,000 people in 2023

Organisers of a seafood festival in Dorset have announced the event will not be taking place this year.

Seafeast, held in Weymouth, was founded in 2008 and last year attracted 10,000 visitors.

But costs have spiralled, sponsorship has fallen and pressure has mounted on the small team of organisers.

Festival director Laura Avant said the event had been a "labour of love" and thanked everyone involved for their support.

Seafeast was originally held around the town's harbour but was relocated to the less-crowded peninsula in 2021 due to Covid restrictions.

In 2022, the event was ticketed for the first time to help cover costs and last year it attracted record numbers of visitors.

Organisers said one factor in the decision to cancel had been the site fee to Dorset Council, which they said had surpassed £15,000.

Ms Avant said ticketing had "just about" covered costs to keep the event going.

'Incredibly proud'

"The festival has always been a labour of love, everyone who gets involved ends up putting in more time than they really should," she said.

"The reward for our small team has always been more about a sense of achievement than anything else, however, the recent cost increases are such that we must now go with our heads and not our hearts."

A statement on the festival website said: "A study on the economic impact of the 2022 festival showed an impressive £3.1m benefit, locally, which is something the organisers are incredibly proud of.

"However for the small local team who run the event, justifying the time and colossal effort involved in the organisation has become increasingly difficult."

Seafeast also raised more than £90,000 for the Fishermen's Mission charity, it added.

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