After two years with no Leek Arts Festival - due to the dreaded Covid-19 - it's great to be able to announce that, subject to no fresh disasters between now and next May, we will be back in 2022.

LAF 2020 had to be scrapped just a few weeks ahead of the planned start date - and just days before 30,000 copies of the printed programme were due to be distributed across Leek and the surrounding area.

LAF 2021 never even got off the ground because of the Covid-19 crisis. But after a frustrating 18 months or so of inaction, Leek Arts Festival committee can confirm that LAF 2022 will be going ahead and that planning for six weeks of events - including major international stars - is now under way.

LAF chairman Phil Edmeades said: "Our small group of volunteers got together in the light of plans to relax the Covid-19 restrictions and unanimously agreed that we should start work on planning for a Festival next May.

"It's been a long wait, but we are now reasonably confident that we will be back to some sort of normality for live music and arts events by May 2022.

"Our volunteers have now begun contacting major artists - including some who had been booked to perform as part of the 2020 LAF programme - to agree new contracts."

Acts who had been due to perform as LAF 2020 included Eddi Reader, Boothby Graffoe, Ian McMillan, The Urban Folk Quartet, Fairport Convention and The Steve Gibbons Band; together with many local artists.

More details of plans for Leek Arts Festival 2022 will be released as soon as possible.