Well, wasn’t Ceòl Cholasa 10 one of the best ever?! Cracking concert after cracking concert, sublime sessions in the bar and one of the all time great Grand Finales, of which this was a key component.

So, how to follow it? How about having the 2 key founders/organisers/impresarios/’CHIEFS!’ step aside? Replace then with a team of fresh faced, inexperienced and gung-ho youths? Have them led by a shopkeeper who’s musicality extends to 3 chords and inability to sing a single note with his eyes open? Well…. YES, that’s precisely the bold step we’ve taken.

So what does this mean for everyone’s favourite wee festival? A campsite the size of a small country? A huge outdoor stage in the shape of a pyramid? A special guest appearance by Jeremy Corbyn?!

Fear not. We’re going to stick to the ‘small is beautiful’ mantra. This festival works precisely because of it’s bijou, family friendly nature and we wouldn’t change that for the world. You can expect the odd wee tweak to the format, but they will be small improvements to a formula that works rather than wholesale changes.

One change we cannot avoid though is the price of a ticket. One of the (much) less glamorous sides to festival stewardship is the need to balance the books. So for 2018 the price of a weekend pass has risen £5 to £80. We still believe this represents fantastic value for money. Access to at least a dozen concerts by the best names in the business, a stomping late night ceilidh and workshops delivered by the artists themselves. So what are you waiting for?! Tickets are on sale now.

Maybe you’re waiting to find out when this year’s extravaganza will be. Well, that’s fair enough. I know many people, high on the euphoria of a great Ceòl 10, rushed into booking accommodation for the second week in September. Were they right to do so?… Well, we can exclusively reveal that Ceòl Cholasa 2018 will take place between:

Thursday 13th – Sunday 16th September 2018

Phew!

Still not snapped up those tickets yet? Perhaps you would like to know who will be appearing first? Well, check out the Line – Up page. We’ll update this as soon as acts are confirmed and also keep you informed via our new and improved social media channels, namely facebook, twitter and now instagram.

Last, but by no means least, the new team want to take the opportunity to thank the founders, Donald & Keith, for everything they have achieved and for trusting us with their beloved festival. It’s benefit to the island is huge and it has brought joy to many a punter and artist a like. Certainly something to be very proud of. We promise to look after it…

Here’s to the next 10 years!

Keir