CLOUDSPOTTING, one of Lancashire’s best loved music and arts festivals, celebrates its tenth birthday party next month with London’s Snapped Ankles at the top of the bill.

Staged in the beautiful Gisburn Forest, near Clitheroe, Cloudspotting runs from July 23-25.

“Cloudspotting 2021 promises to deliver on the formula that has steadily built us a growing audience and the music will celebrate the diversity of the UK music scene,” said co-director Matt Evans.

“We are pulling all the stops out. It’s been such a difficult time for communities, and we are determined to bring some light to the end of a very long and dark tunnel.”

Lining up BBC Radio 6 favourites Snapped Ankles is a real coup for Cloudspotting who have forged an enviable reputation for attracting brilliant up and coming bands over the last decade.

Snapped Ankles release their new album on July 2, and Matt added: "They were riding a wave of success with their biggest shows to date before the pandemic hit – so we are really looking forward to seeing them play at Cloudspotting."

Wigan folk devils Drop the Floor will provide Sunday’s headline slot while British-Asian percussionist Sarathy Korwar and North-West singer-songwriter Keeley Forsyth are also confirmed.

Cloudspotting, like most festivals last year, was called off due to the Covid-19 health emergency

“We are doing everything we can to deliver a safe, Covid-free festival to this remote pocket of rural Lancashire,” added Matt who saw Cloudspotting’s mix of family entertainment and creative music carry off the ‘Best Small Event’ prize at the Lancashire Tourism awards.

“Running a 600-capacity festival can be challenging budget-wise, but the advantages in the current climate is that we are pretty much an entirely outdoor event, with plenty of space to camp and without too many bottlenecks.

“We are confident that all the measures are in place to give our attendees the great weekend they have long been waiting for.”

For more information and to buy tickets visit www.cloudspotting-festival.co.uk