Established on 5th September 2021 Market Fest was the daytime festival, that was a part of the Celebrate Halton Music three-day event for Halton’s first ‘Borough Of Culture’ within the Liverpool City Region. Co-produced by Halton Borough Council, Widnes Market, LOOSE and ArtReach with Sashwati Sengupta, the festival brought together 11 venues and 50 acts across the three days. Now an annual highlight event in the calendar, Market Fest is one of the lasting legacies of Celebrate Halton.

The very first Market Fest got off to a rowdy and energetic start with The Racket, a 4-piece Indie-Rock band from Widnes. Since this iconic performance the band are no longer together, but that has not stopped singer Callum Codd who went on to play the Isle of Wight Festival in 2025. Following such an amazing start to the festival, HENGE were set to headline later on that day however due to a band member contracting the still heavily present Covid they had to reschedule their appearance to the festival. Luckily Zen Baseballbat who had been due to play another festival on the same day became available to step into the headline slot after the other festival fell victim to the pandemic. Make sure to go to stop 13 to find out more about Zen Baseballbat. Joining both The Racket and Zen Baseballbat on the inaugural line up was an acoustic set from Pete Bentham and The Dinnerladies, Oneda, Kimmybeatbox, Karma Cavelli, The Spliters Ensemble, Gazelleband as well as Howl at The Moon Sound System.

Slightly Off The Beaten Track

The wider music event kicked off at Culture HQ in Runcorn Shopping City on the 3rd September with local singer, songwriter & multi-instrumentalist Natalie McCool, who is now a major player in the UK indie scene. Raised in Widnes Natalie is known for her truly innovative take on pop music.

The other venues that featured in the full festival included the likes of The Studio, Culture HQ, Runcorn Hill Park, Victoria Park Widnes, The Castle, Norton Arms, The Lockdown Pub, Society Tap Room, The Mersey Hotel (The Snig) and The Tavern.

A well remeed highlight in the Runcorn Hill Park Bandstand was Ukulele Uff Trio, specialising in wonderful 1920s/30’s style jazz who’s high energy, skilled playing and stage presence has earned them a reputation as top entertainers around the World and include Runcorn multi-instrumentalist, respected guitar tutor and sound engineer Bill Leach.