Manager Leigh Conley shares the latest news from Axminster Guildhall – the town's premier arts and community venue.

We wanted to give Nub News readers a little insight into why some of the shows that are booked for the Axminster Guildhall, end up getting cancelled.

First of all, it is important to remember that we book shows one year in advance - which means that shows on now would have been booked early 2022. 

If you remember the Guildhall came under new management very late in 2021 - which means all the shows booked for 2022 and 2023 were arranged within the first few months of myself taking over - before we had any data to show what sells well and what doesn't.

I believe in trying everything - to get a picture of what sells well and what doesn't. This approach has made for a very mixed programme of events for 22 and 23, which has helped to produce a real picture of what is wanted at the Guildhall and that seems to be comedy, rock, pop and big names.

If you look at the Guildhall calendar for 2024, you will see a real focus on these types of events, but what does this mean for the rest of 2023? Well, it means that sadly we may well have some more cancellations. 

To be clear, cancellations come from the artist or acts themselves, if they feel there isn't enough pre-ticket sales to guarantee that the show is commercially viable. 

The Guildhall works hard with all shows to try and work out suitable options, should sales be low, but sometimes there is just nothing that can be done.

What can you do to help? Well if there is a show that you really want to watch, please book your tickets as soon as possible. 

Often a show is cancelled and then suddenly lots of people come in to try and buy tickets, those tickets, if purchased earlier, may have been enough to secure the booking. 

Plus, should the show end up being cancelled, then all audience members would receive a full refund - regardless if they have or haven't purchased Refund Protection - so feel free to book with confidence.

We just felt that we have had so much support from the local community that we wanted to let you know how and why these decisions are made, as we understand that cancelling a show is incredibly disappointing.

Please be assured that we will continue to try the occasional different shows, but these will be fewer than currently - to hopefully minimise cancellations.  

To find out what's coming up at Axminster Guildhall, visit https://www.axminster-guildhall.co.uk/