Liverpool’s waterfront to host free family festival ‘The Last Days of Summer’

Liverpool’s iconic waterfront is gearing up for a day of fun-filled activities as The Last Days of Summer festival rolls into town on Saturday 31 August.

Organised by Liverpool BID Company, Royal Albert Dock Liverpool, Peel Waters, and Culture Liverpool, The Last Days of Summer is a free, family-friendly spanning across four locations in the city centre from Princes Dock to Pier Head, Mann Island, and Royal Albert Dock.

The festival will start at 11.00am and finish at 5.00pm on 31 August.

For those who want to get the blood pumping, or learn a new skill there is a programme throughout the day of watersports and activity. In the Mann Island Basin there will be canoe taster sessions from Canal and River Trust with outdoor swims* further along at Princes Dock and Mega Paddle Boarding* at Salthouse Dock.

TOWN Summer 2024. Credit: Liverpool BID Company

Bike sessions will take place at the Pier Head and a Yoga class* will take place at Princes Dock alongside mindfulness sessions and sound bath workshops*. Four Swan pedalos will be available at Royal Albert Dock to use for free of charge.

Creative craft activity will take place all day including family friendly Parentfolk activity at Mann Island, including Lush bath fizz workshops, circus skills, craft and code workshops, postcard making and much more! Tote Bag painting will take place at Royal Albert Dock, and a dot-art landscape drawing session. And a doodle wall at Princes Dock.

Performances will take place in the public realm throughout the day. The latin zone at Martin Luther King building at Royal Albert Dock will see a DJ, dancers and games. Parentfolk’s ‘Gulls’ will host walkabouts. Silent Adventures will host tours starting at Pier Head with all day silent disco tours.

The Mermaids street performers will make special appearances as will Lollipop Ladies. Samba Livre will perform at the MLK Plateau and Dizzee Brascals will be live at Royal Albert Dock. Batala Mersey will perform from 3:30 pm at the Pier Head.

Bill Addy, CEO of Liverpool BID Company, said:

“This is a free, family friendly festival to bring our community together. This is an iconic location in our city and one that belongs to all of us as part of our Liverpool culture.

“Our waterfront is a focal point and it’s a place for all of us. We want this day to be a celebration of our city and the people within it. Free activity really does make people feel a sense of ownership and community in the city, as the summer comes to a close, we want to celebrate that with everyone.

“We were unable to go ahead with Celebrating Bold Street and Castle Street but we are working with businesses along both streets to develop a way to share their stories and celebrate the spirit of both streets in some form in the Autumn. They are unlikely to be large scale events as they would have been but it will still give us an opportunity to cast a spotlight on the brilliant communities and character of the streets.”