The Boomtown Rats will lead Friday’s live music line-up at this summer’s ‘Rocking and Racing’ Silverstone Classic festival (29-31 July).
With a great line-up already confirmed for Saturday night with Reef and The Stranglers headlining – plus the world’s premier Elton John and Thin Lizzy tribute acts performing ahead of The Boomtown Rats on Friday – fans of seventies, eighties and nineties music are in for a memorable weekend at the Home of British Motor Racing. Even more so as public admittance to both concerts is totally free for all those with tickets to the world’s biggest classic motor racing festival.
The Boomtown Rats had stand-out number one hits in the late seventies with ‘Rat Trap’ and ‘I Don’t Like Mondays’ but disbanded in the mid-eighties while frontman Bob Geldof concentrated on his charity work and a solo career. The Irish new wave band, however, reformed in 2013 when in Geldof’s own words, he felt it was the right time to ‘re-Rat, go back to Boomtown and start doing all those great songs once again’. It’s a magical musical treat Silverstone Classic visitors can savour in July.
More changes for this years summer classic festival…
This summer’s Silverstone Classic will build on the record breaking success of the 2015 special Silver Jubilee extravaganza which attracted more than 100,000 visitors for the first time in the stand-out event’s 25-year history.
The number of big screens, which ensure everyone gets to view the thrilling action right around the full Grand Prix circuit, is being doubled from four to eight with the additional screens positioned to enhance viewing from the grandstands. Moreover, further grandstands (many offering covered seating) are being opened – including some at Becketts – and there will be improved access and viewing for disabled visitors at the Friday and Saturday evening concerts.
The quality and choice of catering is being enhanced, too, with more than 80 different options for families seeking the very best choice of sustenance and refreshment while lapping up the atmosphere at Silverstone. The famous Scarf and Goggles pub will also return having been successfully reintroduced last July in celebration of the 25th anniversary.
All these enhancements come by popular demand following an online survey offered to all last summer’s visitors. The event received a fantastic response, with more than nine out of ten giving the Classic a massive ‘thumbs up’ saying they’d recommend it to their friends and describing the circuit racing as ‘good or excellent’..
“The feedback re-affirmed what everyone loves about the Classic: the free paddock access; the ability to meet the drivers; the relaxed atmosphere and the unrivalled variety of the racing,” reported Nick Wigley, CEO of event organiser Goose Live Events. “It also showed what visitors would like even more of – an even wider choice of grandstands, more big screens, a greater selection of food and improved disabled facilities at our hugely popular concerts. I’m delighted to say we will be providing all of those – and lots more – this summer.”
The survey also revealed that more than half of those attending the Silverstone Classic now share this world class, three-day festival with their families – a result of the notable increase in sparkling entertainment now served up for people of all ages. In recognition of this, there is even an all-new Family ticket available this year, encouraging more parents to experience the non-stop ‘Rocking and Racing’ weekend with their children. The Family ticket includes camping for two adults and two children across the whole weekend and gives a discount of more than 20 per cent on advance tickets that are bought individually.
Further significant savings of up to 17 per cent are on offer for those booking all ticket categories before the end of March.
Full details of all tickets (which must be purchased in advance) – as well as hospitality packages and weekend festival camping – can be found on the event website at: www.silverstoneclassic.com
