Newbury Racecourse confirms Great Christmas Carnival losses

IT was supposed to bring in £3 million in hotel bookings alone.

But now Newbury Racecourse management has confirmed what many suspected – that the Great Christmas Carnival was a financial flop.

The event, which ran from November 25 last year to Monday, January 2, provoked controversy among local residents.

Racegoers, meanwhile, found their view at race meetings, including the prestigious Coral Gold Cup fixture in November, partially obscured.

The carnival was a joint venture between the racecourse and Underbelly, which describes itself as a "world leading, live entertainment company" with bases in London, Edinburgh and Hong Kong.

It was expected to be a moneyspinner for both companies and the Newbury BID hoped the carnival would indirectly boost the local economy by attracting crowds to the town.

There were hopes it could become an annual event.

But, as the Newbury Weekly News reported last week, the carnival left many visitors disappointed, with one punter posting on the event's social media site: "I’ve seen more Christmas spirit in a mortuary.

"Half the place was shut and a mortgage was required for the rest."

Others criticised the entry price, the cost of food stalls and the rides.

District councillor Phil Barnett (Lib Dem, Newbury Greenham) said: "It was noticeable that the car parks were never full, some nights things closed down early and the big wheel was regularly not turning."

"Will it be a financial loss to the racecourse?

"I expect so."

Now his prediction has been borne out by a stock market update posted by Newbury Racecourse.

It stated: "The Great Christmas Carnival...was expected to create an important new revenue stream for the company in the future.

"Following the Great Christmas Carnival finishing it has become apparent that due to a number of factors the event was not as well attended as expected, resulting in a material loss for both the company and Underbelly.

"The final quantum of the company's loss is currently being finalised with Underbelly and is subject to audit."

The statement added: "Notwithstanding other factors the company's other core revenue streams during the year ended December 31 2022 have performed in line with the board's expectations and pre-Covid levels.

"As a result, the company's board now expect that the company will break even or make a small profit for the year ended December 31 2022."

The company has said it expects to announce its results for 2022 in May, at which point, it said, a further update will be made.