Livewire Festival has announced that the Sunday evening slot will be a musical extravaganza, titled ‘From Movies To Musicals’ bringing some of the UK’s most beloved musical stars to the famous seaside resort for the August bank holiday in 2019. Ben Forster, John Owen-Jones, Kerry Ellis, Ruthie Henshall, and more yet to be announced will be accompanied by the Royal Philharmonic Concert Orchestra.

A representative from the Livewire team stated that “Blackpool has always been famous for being a hub of entertainment in the North West, and we couldn’t be more excited to be bringing some of the most iconic stars from musicals and movies to the prom! We’ve got a stellar list of performers announced and some exciting names to come. We think it’s going to be an incredible close to this year’s festival.”

Ben Forster, who played Jesus in rock arena musical ‘Jesus Christ Superstar’ after winning ITV1 show, ‘Superstar’ is “so excited to be a part of this incredible show with such a fabulous orchestra and to be part of an amazing line-up. What a day this is going to be!” He’ll be joined by the chart topping Kerry Ellis who’s already built a relationship with Blackpool, ‘I used to visit as a child with my family and have loved performing there ever since,” she says. “This will be a night to remember”.

For record-breaking West End and Broadway actor and singer John-Owen Jones, this will be his first performance in the city and he’s “delighted to be performing in Blackpool for the first time. I’ve visited the town a lot and every visit has been unforgettable and loads of fun – I can’t wait to come back and sing there!” Also performing will be West End and Broadway performer Ruthie Henshall, an unquestionable legend in musical theatre with a glittering, multi-award winning career, including leading roles in ‘Les Miserable’, ‘Miss Saigon’, ‘Cats’, ‘Oliver!’  and many more. The Olivier-award winner is “really looking forward to performing at Livewire Festival,” adding “Blackpool is such a beautiful place and I can’t wait to see everyone there!”

With such a talented roster, fans can expect the highest quality of recognisable songs from the world’s most famous movies and musicals, accompanied by one of the most prestigious orchestras working at the moment. The Royal Philharmonic Concert Orchestra (RPCO) has built up an international reputation in its 30-year history, performing in the major concert venues across the UK and around the world. The RPCO is known for its versatile programming of classical, light classical and popular music and has a worldwide reputation for working with internationally renowned artists.

After last year’s festival was cancelled due to the ill-health of key personnel a spokesperson for Blackpool Council said: “we are delighted to see the return of Livewire. It promises to deliver a feast of live entertainment to the Tower Festival Headland and adds yet another dimension to a brilliant programme of events lined up for Blackpool this summer.”

Anyone that purchased tickets to last year’s festival can email info@livewirefestival.co.uk with their booking reference, name and address to receive a code that will remove all booking fees for this year’s festival. This will only be available for a limited time.