The People Behind the Return of Fleetwood Contest

How Red Admiral are Reviving the Fleetwood Contest 

The Fleetwood Contest was once a firm staple for many bands in the North West. Sadly, it was forced to close its doors over a decade ago and it looked like Fleetwood was another name to add to the growing list of smaller, local contests that had been dissolved.

However, thanks to the dedication and commitment displayed by the Red Admiral Music Academy and the Leyland Band, the beloved seaside contest is back at the end of April and boasts a full complement of brass bands across five sections 

I caught up with one of the organisers, Stuart Barton, to find out what the day has in store for both the bands and audience members, as well as their story of bringing Fleetwood back into the UK brass band calendar. 

What is the Red Admiral Music Academy?

The Red Admiral Music Academy is an independent organisation based in Mawdesley, Lancashire. Their primary focus is the provision and promotion of brass music and teaching through their Academy Bands (Beginner and Training) and the organisation’s contesting band, Red Admiral Brass. Through their Wider Opportunities initiatives, the organisation delivers sessions to over 150 youngsters every week and their Academy age profile ranges from 8 to 80. Now celebrating their 10th year, the organisation is going from strength to strength with Red Admiral Brass qualifying for the National Finals in 2025 and the organisation seeking opportunities to perform to a range of audiences  

Alongside their tuition and performance opportunities, Red Admiral has achieved great success in creating new contest opportunities with both their entertainment and march & hymn contests being well supported by both competing bands and audiences. Now with support from the Leyland Band, Red Admiral has managed to add the Fleetwood Contest to their roster of competitive events. 

A Chance Conversation

So, what brought about the revival of Fleetwood Contest?

Speaking to Stuart to find out more about the revival’s origin story, he said:

“The decision to ‘bite the bullet’ as such, came during a chance discussion in the pub - as many banding decisions do! Less than a week before the 2025 Entertainment Contest, Danny Brooks uttered the inevitable words ‘what’s next?’ and it just happened to be uttered within earshot of Dan Moore (Second Euphonium at Leyland Band), who asked ‘what about bringing Fleetwood Contest back?’

In addition to this suggestion, the choice of bringing back Fleetwood fitted in nicely with the band’s existing suite of contests, as Stuart outlined:

“It seemed logical that to complete the ‘contesting trinity’ we should look at a traditional contest - test piece focused. Our mantra, ‘Making Music Fun…Making Music Together’ had already been realised through the Entertainment Contest and bands loved putting together music they enjoyed playing and that entertained. So, back to the roots and the heart of brass banding - the own choice contest.”

The decision was made when nostalgic stories shared by those in the pub were echoed online, when a social post was created to try and understand how banders would feel about bringing the contest back. The seeds of the contest’s revival were planted. 

“Mention Fleetwood Contest and a tsunami of banders reminisced, so we knew playing on the nostalgia angle would start people talking about it again. Bringing back a ‘lost’ contest that was ‘much-loved’ also felt like were were giving bands something back.”

A Musical Partnership

This revival has been supported by the partnership between Red Admiral and the Leyland Band, which was first established through player association and Danny Brooks (Academy Leader) being appointed as Leyland Band’s MD in December 2023. As Stuart explained, the partnership: ‘"seemed a logical step to strengthen such ties and associations, particularly as a core element of Leyland’s charity status is to seek opportunities to support other organisations within the movement."

Although Leyland Band have supported Red Admiral’s existing contest ventures in some form, this is the first that has been organised as a joint venture between the two. Summing up the value of this support from Leyland, Stuart said:

“There’s no doubt that the Leyland brand has given weight to the project - Leyland are an elite band, have a reputation for great music-making and key personnel also bring an experienced and creative skillset that is having a significant impact on engagement and social interaction with the banding world.”

This reputation and expertise coupled with the Red Admiral’s powerhouse organisational skills, proven track record for logistical and organisational management for large scale events, and army of dedicated, enthusiastic Red Admiral volunteers, it's a recipe for a fantastic event

A Change in Date

Originally Fleetwood Contest took place during the first Sunday of October (except the very last contest, which was the end of September). One of the first key decisions made about the revival was to move the date. The team of Stuart Barton, Danny Brooks and Dan Moore considered that the early months of the year would be focused on Regionals for many bands and if a healthy cohort of competitors was to be achieved, any dates before March would have to be ruled out.

In addition, Fleetwood struggled for a number of years in attracting a healthy number of ‘Top Section’ bands. So, the notion of running Fleetwood contest a week before the Spring Festival gathered momentum , as it would offer bands competing in Birmingham an opportunity to run out their Spring Festival piece.

Stuart and the team also admire what ConsTest organiser, Mikey Foley has achieved with his new contest and didn’t want to reduce potential competing bands for this event, and instead offer bands another opportunity to compete a few weeks later. In Stuarts words: “

"The end of April gave us our ‘hooks’ - nostalgia, better weather, no diary conflict and a run out opportunity for the Championship section.”

An Overwhelming Response

The banding world jumped at the opportunity to compete, with the contest reaching capacity within a matter of weeks. In addition to an opportunity to ‘run out’ the Spring Festival piece, the contest’s organisers wanted to offer the top section a further incentive. After contacting Karyn Mortimer and pitching the contest, Fleetwood received support from The British Open and the status of being a Spring Festival qualifying contest with an invitation for the 2027 on offer in the Championship section. 

During the course of the day, Fleetwood Contest will host 35 bands competing across 5 sections, with 15 bands competing in the top section and a youth section. Considering the contest previously attracted around 3 or 4 bands in the top section, this is a massive achievement and incentive of a Spring Festival invitation has attracted bands from around the country, including the Isle of Man and Scotland. 

A Showcase of Everything that is Great About Banding

The contest has a lot to offer competing bands, but equally it promises to be a fantastic day for spectators, with a wide range of varied musical offerings from 9:30am until 9:30pm. When I asked what’s in store for spectators, Stuart said:

“Fleetwood Contest 2026 is a must-see, because it’s going to showcase everything that is great about banding; contesting at its best, a whole day of live music-making, great music from bands across all sections, a focus on the future of our movement and bands enjoying themselves.”

The Youth section, which is all about ‘Making Music Fun…Making Music Together’ will showcase bands of young musicians performing a 12-minute entertainment programme. This is followed by the own-choice contest across four sections, which will feature a wide variety of incredible pieces including: 

• Elgar Variations

• Ballet for Band

• I, Daedalus

• Of Distant Memories

• Paegentry

• The Torchbearer

• Three Haworth Impressions

• Olympus

This is such a fantastic event that has been organised with great care, commitment and a passion for banding and music-making. When I asked what it would mean to Stuart and the team to see the Marine Hall filled with supporters, he said:

“Bringing back Fleetwood Contest is being made possible by banders for banders. We want bands to support other bands across all competing sections and create a ‘feel-good’ factor. If bands aren’t competing, we’d love to see them in the hall supporting the revival of this ‘much-missed’ contest. No one wants to be giving it their all at 9:30am to 6 people scattered about Marine Hall. We want to encourage good numbers of supporters and spectators from the first to the last band!”

Get Your Tickets

Date: Sunday 26th April

Time: 9:30am - 9:30pm

Venue: Marine Hall, Fleetwood

Tickets can be purchased at a discounted price in advance from The Marine Hall:

https://marinehall.ticketsolve.com/ticketbooth/shows/1173675214. They can also be bought on the day and one ticket grants access to all 35 bands - that’s 12 hours of banding!

Can’t get there in person? The whole event is being livestreamed by NXTOD, so subscribe today to catch all the action, as well as a wealth of other brilliant performances on demand. 

A Note from the Author

Having had the pleasure of speaking to the organisers and previously competed in Red Admiral’s contests, I can say with the utmost certainty that you will be hard-pushed to find an event that is run with as much passion, as well as efficiency as a Red Admiral contest. Their events are a brilliant day out for both banders and spectators, with so much on offer. With the added support of the Leyland Band, I know that this is going to be an event to remember. 

I’m proud to be taking part in a competing band on the day, but even more proud and grateful to see members of this community working so hard to create so many opportunities purely for the love and progression of banding. We need more of it.

So, if you’re free on Sunday 26th April, get your tickets now and support this fantastic event, the competing bands and the fantastic organisers who have made this revival a reality. 

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