A POPULAR music festival will go ahead again in 2005 despite making a loss this year.

A question mark had hung over the future of the Eastleigh Summer Music Festival after this year's event at the town's Fleming Park failed to break even.

The financial flop happened despite hundreds of people flocking to see headline acts including Pop Idol sensation Will Young and US soul legend Dionne Warwick.

Eastleigh Council chiefs have agreed to match the £25,000 they put in for the 2004 event but want it cut from ten days to a maximum of six.

A report recently went to the council's executive Cabinet reflecting on this year's festival and dealing with a call from the borough's resources scrutiny panel to consider approaching other potential event organisers.

But after thrashing out the matter in a behind-closed-doors session, the executive has agreed to have another festival in 2005.

The Cabinet stressed that the council should not run the event but voted to continue to support it to the tune of £25,000 - adding a rider that it would be aiming to raise a "substantial proportion" of that funding through sponsorship.

Executive councillors are also recommending that the festival organiser should consider cutting the event to between four and six days.

Although noting the success of the 2004 festival, they felt that because it made a loss it would not be an attractive proposition to try to test the market for other organisers.

As a result, Soundbass - which has organised the two festivals held so far - will be invited to stage the event again next year.

But the executive decided that if a festival was held in 2006, the market for event organisers should be tested.

Today, festival organiser, Peter Chegwyn, told the Daily Echo: "It is nice the council has faith in the festival, which has certainly put Eastleigh on the music map. We agree that ten days was too long - people were spoiled for choice."

Mr Chegwyn added: "We are looking to do a long weekend next year with a camping facility at Fleming Park to make it even more of a festival atmosphere."

Meanwhile, a debut single by singer Lucie Silvas has gone straight into the singles charts at number seven. Lucie was one of the support acts at Eastleigh for Will Young.

FESTIVAL HIGHLIGHTS:

THIS year's Eastleigh Summer Music Festival ran from July 23 to August 1 with stars ranging from Dionne Warwick to Bill Wyman and the Rhythm Kings.

It was a follow-up to a successful first event the previous year when the venues were spread over the Leigh Road recreation ground in Eastleigh town centre and the Manor Farm Country Park at Botley. This year the much-bigger stage of Fleming Park was used as a base.

About 20,000 people were said to have bopped in the big top on the Fleming Park recreation ground but thousands more visitors went along to workshops and activities, including a hugely-popular children's circus workshop.

Former Pop Idol winner Will Young sold more than 6,000 tickets for his appearance at Eastleigh.

Aussie favourite Rolf Harris closed the festival for the second year running with his Last Night of the Rock and Roll Proms and vowed he would be back again next year.

Tickets were sold around Europe for the event.

New chart sensation Lucie Silvas was one of the support acts for Will Young at Eastleigh.