Outlines music festival in Sheffield cancelled and unlikely to return

The sister event to Sheffield's Tramlines music festival has been called off this year and is unlikely to return in future, organisers have confirmed.
The Outlines festival in 2016 at the O2 AcademyThe Outlines festival in 2016 at the O2 Academy
The Outlines festival in 2016 at the O2 Academy

Outlines - held since 2016 at indoor venues in the city centre and described in the past as a 'junior Tramlines for the winter' - was to take place on the first weekend in March.

But the management team has cancelled the 2018 event, saying the festival was no longer viable and that full refunds are being given to those who bought advance tickets.

Hide Ad
Hide Ad

"Despite a great atmosphere and line up, last year's event lost money and we realised that we would not be able to afford to run it again," they said in a statement.

"We have been looking for a business partner to take the event on - not least because so many seemed keen to come back. However, we have had no success and so reluctantly have had to pull the plug.

"We do not expect to see Outlines festival return and want to thank people one last time for helping us make it the great event that it was, while it was."

A line-up had not been announced for this year. Last year's bill included Jagwar Ma, The Selecter, Slow Club and The Crookes.

Hide Ad
Hide Ad

Organisers are also likely to want to focus their efforts on the 10th edition of Tramlines in July. Having outgrown the city centre, the main stages have moved to Hillsborough Park, more than doubling the capacity to around 40,000 people and meaning acts of sufficiently high stature need to be booked. Among the biggest artists at 2017's festival were The Libertines, Primal Scream and Metronomy. An announcement about 2018 is expected soon, with Sheffield band Arctic Monkeys mooted as a possible headliner.

Some activities will still be happening in the city centre this summer. These are understood to include a buskers' stage near the railway station, a food festival in the Peace Gardens and a world music stage on Devonshire Green.

Sarah Nulty, festival director, previously said this year's Tramlines would be 'the biggest and best to date'.