ORGANISERS of the Forthside Festival have confirmed the event has been cancelled due to lack of "financial backing".

The two-day festival – set for Friday and Saturday this week – had been due to feature headliners Stevie McCrorie and Mark Morriss, with dozens of other acts on board.

It was moved from Springkerse to Whins of Milton in a bid to save the event, but the team were unable to secured the support needed.

Organiser James Lafferty said: "The Forthside committee would like to confirm that the event will not go ahead as planned.

"This was a decision which was not taken lightly and has already exacted a considerable cost upon the team on a personal level.

"In the end, we were unable to secure the financial backing needed to sustain the festival site, and the resources needed to ensure the smooth running of the event. Time was against us and had we had a few more months things may have worked out differently.

"We realise this will be a huge disappointment to all those who bought tickets and were looking forward to the event.

"Indeed, the support we received for the event was palpable. We had every confidence that it would work and be a success. Sadly, it was not to be.

"But Forthside is an idea and ideas cannot die unless we allow it. There is some hope still that there is a future for this festival and we are keen to make sure it comes to fruition for the city and all those who wish to see its music scene thrive.

"We would like to thank all those who tried to make Forthside possible, from the media, the council and the emergency services. We hope they will work with us again in the future."

Anyone who purchased their ticket through the online site Skiddle will have their booking refunded in due course and should look out for an email to that effect.

Those who bought through Europa Music can get their money back after May 10.

Further announcements will be made via the Forthside Facebook page.

In addition, Kilted Kangaroo will hold an event called Forthside Lives, with a handful of the FF acts performing. The original FF ticket is not valid for this event.