SIR Tom Jones and the Red Devils Army Parachute Display Team are preparing to drop into Eastnor Castle’s Lakefest next week.

 

The popular festival, which was cancelled last year due to the pandemic, is set to run from Thursday, August 12, until Sunday.

 

Festival director Lee Martin is looking forward to welcoming the 81-year-old superstar to the event. "I feel doubly blessed,” he said.

 

"After the extraordinary and uncertain year that we have all had to live through, to be returning to our field of dreams with such a timeless artist — someone who embodies integrity and has never been anything other than cool is something truly special.

 

"A just reward, for the patience of all those lovely Lakefest customers who rolled over their 2020 tickets and kept us alive.”

 

Other musical highlights of the four-day event include Scouting for Girls, T’Pau, New Model Army, Razorlight and Seasick Steve. There will also be a "Talking Tent" featuring comedy, poetry, debate and iterviews.

 

Mr Martin also said he was delighted to have secured the Red Devils for one of their very few displays this year.

 

He said: "It was so important to me to add something a little bit special to this year’s celebrations: and as one of my team is a former paratrooper, we put this plan together, and it's incredibly rewarding to see it realised.

 

"No other freefall team in the world come in quite as fast or hard, and this is in part due to the fact that every one of the Devils is a serving soldier with Britain's elite Parachute Regiment.”

 

Festival organisers have said the family-friendly event will exercise "every sensible precaution to create space” and help ensure covid safety. Other measures include extra toilets throughout the site, numerous hand sanitising stations and an enhanced cleaning programme.

 

The event will also be entirely cash-free, with festival-goers making payments via pre-loaded wristbands. These can be easily topped up on site to ensure that nobody need ever run out of spending money.

 

For more information about the event, or to book last-minute tickets, visit lakefest.co.uk.