8:00pm Monday 30th August 2010
By Lorraine Price
THE company behind the Harwich Powerboat Festival is call in the liquidators.
Ensign Craft was formed to organise the European powerboat racing competition and a series of other events in July.
But it is understood disappointing ticket sales for concerts staged in Cliff Park on the Friday and Saturday nights left the company unable to pay bills, and forced directors Barbara and Chris Spraggons to pull the plug.
The couple had hoped to attract more than 10,000 people to the shows to see X Factor runner-up Olly Murs, rapper Tinchy Stryder and other performers.
It is believed only a fifth of that number bought tickets for the shows, part of a wider festival marred by the death of racer Ian Stirling in an accident on the water.
As a result, Sunday’s races were called off, though that day’s concert did go ahead, and a fun fair which came to town for the event was also open.
Now, weeks after the festival, the couple are facing putting Ensign into liquidation.
A letter from Mrs Spraggons to one of Ensign Craft’s creditors, who was owed less than £50 reads: “The board has resolved to place the company into a creditors’ voluntary liquidation and have instructed Bridge Business Recovery in this regard.”
Mrs Spraggons declined to comment until she had met liquidator Bridge Business Recovery next month, but the details in the letter were correct.
A spokesman for the liquidator said the financial information would be made public if the company was wound up.
Harwich mayor Stephanie Tyrer said the prospect of losing the powerboat festival in its initial year was sad news for the town.
She added: “The organisers put in such a lot of hard work. I feel so sorry for them.
“It’s not easy – especially not in this day and age.
“Local organisations said they had benefited from the one day of the event which went ahead as planned. It was an event which was going to put this town on the map.”
Martyn Donn, owner of Leam’s Laces in Dovercourt, was full of praise for the couple who organised the festival.
He said: “They put their necks on the block to try to achieve something in Harwich and Dovercourt which had never been done before.
“I admire them for doing what they did. You can’t say they didn’t achieve something, because they did. The weekend happened.
“I feel a bit sorry for them, They didn’t have the support from visitors – we just didn’t have the volumes of people we expected.”
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