THE organisers of a popular beer festival held in Basingstoke have decided to cancel this year’s event because of Covid-19.

Destination Basingstoke, which organises Hampshire Octoberfest, said it was with “great sadness” that the 2021 event will not take place because the risk of having to cancel at the last minute could be “catastrophic”.

A statement from Destination Basingstoke said: “Although the roadmap currently indicates that there will be an end to social distancing and live events will be able to take place, there is still a huge amount of uncertainty and the possibility of last-minute changes are very real, and the risks are too great for a small not-for-profit like Destination Basingstoke.”

It added that it had “ridden the storm over the last 16 months” during the pandemic, postponing, cancelling, and changing plans for the event.

The 2020 event, which was due to be held at Basingstoke cricket ground, was cancelled because of Covid-19, with plans to hold it this year instead.

The festival offers a weekend of locally produced real ales and ciders along with a wine bar and other drinks, with a wide choice of street food, all accompanied by live music in a lively, fun, festival atmosphere.

Destination Basingstoke said it would be too risky to plan the event for this October, explaining: “Even if events of this nature are allowed to take place after the next government announcement, without any insurance or government backed insurance scheme available, any last-minute cancellations or changes due to Covid could be catastrophic for our organisation and for other suppliers we work with.”

It added: “We appreciate your support and understanding, this has not been an easy decision to make and we look forward to bringing great events back to Basingstoke.”