Fresh from a 4th successive sell-out event, the Tiree Music Festival (TMF) has once again been crowned the Best Small Festival in Scotland at the prestigious Scottish Event Awards. It is the second consecutive year that the festival has been awarded the accolade, highlighting an incredible achievement for a festival that was only formed four years ago. Since that first festival back in July 2010, TMF has continued to develop both in size and success to become a landmark event of the Scottish festival scene. This year saw 1500 festival-goers make the journey west to the island dubbed “the Hawaii of the North” with 76% of them travelling from out with the event region. It was this growth and tourism boost to the local region that was highlighted by the judges on announcement of the award.
An ecstatic TMF Community Director Stewart MacLennan said:
“The development of TMF over the past 4 years has been an incredible journey and when planning for the first festival in 2010 we could have only dreamed of being awarded the Best Small Festival in Scotland once never mind in consecutive years. We are very proud of Tiree and are delighted that the festival is a platform for introducing new visitors to our magical island.”
Co-founder and Artistic Director Daniel Gillespie paid tribute to the festival team, sponsors and Tiree’s locals:
“This award is testament to the phenomenal efforts of a team that have shown a commitment and drive to improve year on year. Many have no family connection to the island yet have embraced the culture, community and atmosphere – we are very proud to have them as part of our team. Thanks to all our sponsors and funders who, without their support TMF would not be possible. A special mention to Tiree’s local community who are the heart and soul of the festival’s atmosphere, we are delighted to be bringing this award back home to Tiree for a second year.”
Planning is already under way for TMF2014 which will be the first 3 day event in the festival’s history and will be held from the 18th – 20th July.