Rainford couple launch new Sherdley Park music festival for St Helens

Sherdley Park in St Helens is set to host a new music festival this summer.

Their Picnic in the Park festival has become one of the go-to events for St Helens, if not the wider Merseyside area.

And now husband and wife team Phil and Tara Thomas have created a brand-new music event set to take place in Sherdley Park this summer.

Pulse Music Festival is set to attract up to 5,000 people with six acts on its main stage including local DJ Eric McKenna, Ben from Phats & Small, Ultra 90s, and the Oaces tribute band.

Headliners at Pulse on Saturday, July 13, will be hit band Scouting for Girls.

Phil, 53, says: “We’ve just got a passion for organising a music festival. Me and Tara get a real buzz from it, and while Picnic in the Park in Rainford is for charity, we thought we’d like to do another event; make a little business for ourselves and get it going.

“We have thought about it for a long time – but just never had the guts to do it.

“Picnic in the Park now speaks for itself. After eight years we get 3,000 people and some great acts.

“It’s a family event where people can bring the kids, and there’s always a really good atmosphere and people feel safe.

“Every year, we look out at those thousands of people with smiles on their faces and it’s the best feeling in the world. We wanted to grow that.”

Phil and Tara Thomas who’ve organised the new Pulse Music Festival

He adds: “Scouting for Girls was last year’s headline act at Rainford and we built up a great relationship with them, which is partly the reason why we decided to give Pulse a go this year. We have got so much faith in them and their performance, and how they connected with the audience.

“It was now or never.”

Owner of PT Kitchens in Rainford, Phil decided to create Picnic in the Park after visiting another local festival, Orrell Live: “It was great and I thought, we can do that.”

He liaised with other organisations in the village to establish the event, and it’s continued to raise cash for sports groups and organisations within the community.

“It’s just grown year after year, and so Tara and I wanted to do something else. We’ve always loved music.

“It’s daunting and it’s nerve-racking – it takes a lot of organising – but it’s the thrill of the chase that means it’s exciting too.”

Phil is hoping Pulse in the St Helens park will have the same family atmosphere as Rainford. As well as the music acts there will be a funfair and activities for kids, food stalls and, unlike Rainford where people bring their own drink, a bar.

“Many festivals are just for adults only, they don’t include children, but music should be for everybody.

“We want to create the same family-friendly feel with Pulse and as well as the headline act and the others already named, there’ll be another local act because we want it to be a platform for local musicians and give them the chance to perform on a big stage.

“This is a first with Pulse, but like Rainford and Picnic in the Park, we’re confident we can grow it into an annual event that will get bigger.

“And we guarantee people will have an unforgettable day filled with music, laughter, and memories.”