Common People Oxford has been cancelled for 2019 due to debt of over £250,000

Common People festival has been cancelled after going into administration due to the debts of more than £250,000.

The two-day event has taken place in South Park in May for the past three years, attracting roughly 10,000 people each day. Headliners have included Sean Paul, The Jacksons, and Pete Tong.

Common People have not commented on their financial situation, but the company is in debt with their contractors, suppliers and possibly some of the artists. Oxford City Council is one of the businesses in debt, and is owed roughly £5,000 for the hire of South Park. As well as Oxford Story Museum being owed £1,000 and the company Direct Services, is owed another £2,000.

Rob da Bank, co-founder of Bestival and Camp Bestival staged the event. His company, Bestival Ltd, struggled financially last year due to the early closure of Camp Bestival, and refunds owed to customers and artists.

Bestival and Camp Bestival will now be run by LiveNation and promoter SJM.

Ronan Munro from Oxford music magazine Nightshift, is owed £475 from organising the local band stage. Ronan told the Oxford Mail: "The whole festival was really pro-Oxford and really good. We had the local band stage but also the Disco Shed, Cowley Road Carnival and others."

Oxford City Council's executive board member for culture, Mary Clarkson, told the Oxford Mail: "Everyone at Oxford City Council is absolutely gutted that Common People Oxford will not be returning.

"We spent many years building the relationships that enabled us to bring the organisers of Bestival to Oxford and we have been proud to host them in South Park over the last three years.

"Not only did Common People bring world-famous acts to Oxford, they made a real effort to make the festival feel part of the Oxford community by providing low-cost tickets for Oxford residents, working with local artists, DJs and bands, and collaborating with local cultural organisations.

“The city council is committed to bringing another annual festival that celebrates Oxford’s culture and diverse communities to South Park as soon as possible, and we’re in discussions with other festival organisers about this.”