Lighthouse Family apologise after split leaves festival with empty headline slot
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The Lighthouse Family have said sorry after their split left a July music festival short of a headliner.
The easy listening act – comprised of singer-songwriter Tunde Baiyewu and keyboardist Paul Tucker - was due to perform on the Saturday of next month’s Mouth Of The Tyne festival.
But they announced in a message on Instagram that after almost 30 years they had “reached the end of our Lighthouse Family journey”.
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The message, signed by Tucker, said: “I’m so sorry that this means that our headline show at Mouth Of The Tyne Festival on 9th July is now cancelled. I have tried everything with our agents and promoters over the last few weeks to make this work but we just couldn’t get it over the line.”
He said his bandmate wanted to focus on his solo career and that he wished him the best.
“I would like to say sorry to the promoters and to all of you who have tickets for this show and have waited through the last two years,” Tucker went on.
“I was really looking forward to this hometown show and playing our songs in this amazing place close to the lighthouses that gave us our name."
"I am as disappointed as you are," he added. "It breaks my heart to let you down.”
The festival runs from 8 July to 10 July, and has stars like Keane and Sophie Ellis-Bextor on the bill.
According to the BBC, North Tyneside deputy mayor Carl Johnson said North Tyneside Council – which organises the event - was looking for a new headliner.
He said he was “extremely disappointed” about the whole thing.
"A sell-out audience have held on to their tickets throughout the pandemic, and like us, they were looking forward to the performance,” he said.
Read more: Lighthouse Family announce split
"However, the decision to pull out of the show has been made by the band leaving us all bitterly disappointed."
Lighthouse Family formed in Newcastle Upon Tyne in 1993 and had hits such as ‘Ocean Drive’, ‘Lost In Space’ and ‘High’.
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