A MAJOR new music festival could be starting at Okehampton Showground next year, as the organisers of the town’s Battle of the Bands (BOTB) looks to expand the competition into a bigger event for the area.

Planning for this year’s Party in the Park, the finale of the Okehampton BOTB contest, is well underway with the event due to take place in Simmons Park on August 6. Now, organisers have revealed big ambitions to grow the event even further.

Competition organiser Jay Hadland said: ‘2016 may be the last Party in The Park because in 2017 we are hoping to incorporate BOTB into Okehampton’s first full weekend music festival at the showground. We are in talks at the moment with the relevant councils and the Okehampton and District Agricultural Association to make this happen.

‘We are already in the planning stages and if we get the go ahead we will have on-site camping, free local transport to the showground and around 25 bands playing over the weekend, including some very special guests. We will be releasing news as it happens and a new website will be up and running after the summer for ticket sales and updates.’

As far as this year’s event goes, six bands have been announced — Hi-On Maiden, the UK’s best Iron Maiden tribute act; Motorhead tribute act MotorKill; psychedelic blues rockers BB Blackdog; Okehampton’s own steampunk band Copperfield Ensemble; Black Static and last year’s Battle of the Bands winners, Pseudomorph.

Local community groups will also perform through the day, including The Turning Tides Project, the ROC Samba Band, the Footsteps School of Dance and Get Changed Theatre Company.

Jay Hadland told the Times: ‘For 2016 we will start the event at 2pm instead of 6pm. We aim this year to be more inclusive and provide a real family day out. We have two stages, five finalists, four guest bands and two headliners to end the evening.

‘We still have spaces left for local non food traders at the Party in the Park. We are also looking for a few more sponsors and volunteers for the day.’

The following day on August 7, there will be an afternoon picnic in the park from noon until 4pm with music from the flute group Flutastic and the LIV Choir from South Africa.

Mr Hadland added: ‘The LIV Project provides holistic residential care for orphaned and vulnerable children with a trained foster mother to love them, a school to educate them and where all their physical needs are met. The choir is coming to the UK to promote awareness and to strengthen links with Okehampton.’

On April 30 organisers are holding an open mic fundraiser at the Plymouth Inn from 7.30pm. Drums and back line are provided, so musicians just need to bring an instrument, a backing track or themselves.

Applications for this year’s competition are now being accepted. The heats will be held in the Charter Hall on June 23, June 30 and July 7.

For more information on the competition visit www.okehamptonbattleofthebands.org.uk

For any inquiries about the event, e-mail Jay Hadland on [email protected]