Two Geordie legends will unite next Sunday to give music and bus fans a great day out.
A once regular sight on Tyneside’s roads will team up with some of the region’s best-loved musical heroes as Lindisfarne travels to Lindisfarne.
Ray Laidlaw and Billy Mitchell are taking their critically acclaimed Lindisfarne Story show to the place where the legendary band took its name. It’s the very first time that Ray and Billy have played there with The Lindisfarne Story and to get fans safely onto Holy Island and back, Tyne Idols are providing a special ‘Festival Express’ return bus service. Passengers will be transported on a beautifully restored vintage Atlantean Double Decker bus and it is believed that this is the first time that a double decker has been across the famous causeway in many years.
To celebrate the bus’s journey and to make sure it gets there and back safely, Lindisfarne Festival organiser and vicar of St Mary’s Church on Holy Island, Reverend Dr Paul Collins met with Billy Mitchell to bless the bus.
“I’m sure that the bus will be a very safe and enjoyable way of getting to the festival on Sunday,” he said. “We’ve lots going on at the Festival this weekend including The Alpacazz, Martin Stephenson, Five Ring Circus and of course The Lindisfarne Story.”
The classic bus will leave Tyneside at 12.50 on Sunday 28th June and arrive on Holy Island at 15.15. Passengers will have time to stretch their legs, enjoy the many sights and events of the Holy Island Festival for a few hours before the show begins at 18.30.
The bus will leave 30 minutes after the concert ends allowing plenty of time to cross the causeway back to the mainland for the journey back to Tyneside returning around 23.30.
Billy Mitchell is looking forward to playing Lindisfarne and welcoming fans to the gig.
“It’s a very special place, cut off by the tide and a great place to get away from it all. It has a really peaceful quality and our music seems to belong there. It’s going to be a great gig and I’m sure all those travelling on the Tyne Idols bus will arrive in the right mood as the bus has a great sound system on board. I wonder if they’ll play any Lindisfarne tracks on the way up?”