Coronavirus: Norfolk and Norwich festival cancelled

Chris Bullzini wowed audiences at last year's festival

The Norfolk and Norwich festival has been cancelled due to coronavirus.

Organisers said they had made the "deeply regrettable but inevitable decision" after listening to government advice.

The arts festival was due to take place between 8-24 May and usually attracts more that 85,000 visitors to theatres and galleries across the county.

The festival trust said the cancellation was "to protect the safety of audiences, artists and workforce".

The festival’s artistic director and chief executive, Daniel Brine, said: “It is with great sadness and disappointment that we will not proceed with this year’s Norwich & Norfolk Festival.

"We wholeheartedly thank all staff, artists and volunteers for the hard work already put in to this year’s festival.

"We deeply value our place in both the local and artistic communities and during this difficult period, we will unreservedly play our part in supporting the artistic sector."

In a statement, organisers said those who had already bought tickets would be contacted regarding refunds.