WITH the World Cup starting later this month, the organisers of the Forest of Galtres Festival look like they’ve scored a winner with their headline act.

Organisers of the event in Crayke, near Easingwold, have booked the Lightning Seeds for Saturday, August 28 – the same band that recorded the perennial footballing favourite Three Lions.

Festival-goers and football fans will be hoping that by the time the band appears on stage football really will have come home, with England winning the World Cup final in South Africa.

But it’s not just the Lightning Seeds who will be pulling in the crowds. Other acts booked for the two-day festival over the Bank Holiday weekend of August 28 and 29 include Miles Hunt and Erica Brockalls from The Wonder Stuff and also York’s very own Chris Helme of the The Seahorses and The Yards.

On Sunday ska-reggae legends The Beat will be getting everyone dancing to Mirror In The Bathroom and all their classic hits, supported by Dodgy, playing hits Good Enough and Staying Out for the Summer.

Festival director James Houston said: “It’s a fantastic line-up, and we’re really excited to have such high-profile bands performing this year.

“But that’s really just the tip of the iceberg – we’ve been working really hard to dig out the most talented artists and emerging bands from throughout York and Yorkshire and have an amazing line-up already in place, with more to follow.”

PaperPlanes, The Federals, Trophy Club, Alvin Purple, and Arthur Rigby and the Baskervylles are just some of the new names to be playing this year.

They will be alongside old favourites Dave Smith, Holly Taymar and JiggaWatt’s Sarah Horn.

A new cabaret stage is being planned for this year too, a youth stage, and an open-mic stage in the beer tent. In all there will be more than 100 bands performing, and bars serving more than 100 different types of beer and cider.

Last year’s festival, headlined by The Bluetones, was a sell-out.