Ironbridge Gorge Brass Band Festival

Now in its sixth year, the Ironbridge Gorge Brass Band Festival will once again be held on the Green at the Coalbrookdale Museum of Iron and Enginuity.

The free family event on Saturday 10th and Sunday 11th July will showcase some of the finest brass bands from Shropshire and surrounding counties. Plus, a ticketed ‘Last Night of the Proms’ concert will also take place on the Saturday evening in the nearby Engine Shop in support of the Severn Hospice, which has been caring for patients with terminal illnesses in Shropshire, Telford and Mid Wales for 20 years.

One of ten award-winning museums within the Ironbridge Gorge, the Coalbrookdale Museum of Iron site provides a fantastic venue combining plenty of space for the festival to grow, while retaining the intimacy and atmosphere which has made the event such a success since it first began in 2005.

Saturday’s entertainment runs from 11am until 5.30pm starting with the Abraham Darby Band, while on Sunday events begin at 12 noon with the Highley Colliery Band and finish with a Grand Finale from the award-winning Jackfield Elcock Reisen Band at 5pm until 6pm. Other performers include the Porthywaen Silver Band, the Wellington (Telford) Brass Band and the Newport Town Band and many other bands. There will also be a bar and refreshments available to purchase.

The bands will perform in front of the Old Furnace where Abraham Darby first smelted iron with coke, an innovation that led to iron making on a massive scale changing the lives of millions of people.

A shuttle bus service will be in operation from Ironbridge to the Coalbrookdale Museum of Iron since there is no parking at the museum for festival goers during the day time, apart from Blue Badge holders.

The ‘Last Night of the Proms’ concert will begin at 7.30pm; parking will be available at the museum and tickets are priced at £8.50 per person. For more details visit: ironbridgebandfestival.co.uk