Inverness to host its first international blues festival

Inverness is to hold its first international blues festival.

The 8,000-capacity event will see acts performing in a big top-style tent at the city's recently refurbished Northern Meeting Park on 28 March.

The programme includes blues artists and bands from across the world, including Grammy Award-nominated, Memphis-based Southern Avenue as well as UK award-winning singer Alice Armstrong and Chicago's West Weston's Bluesonics.

The festival is being supported by the Inverness Common Good Fund and could become an annual event.

Festival artistic director Kevin Hillier told BBC Scotland: "This will be the finest international one-day blues line-up seen in the UK for many years.

"I am excited to support this new festival which has aims to promote Inverness whilst also supporting the blues."

Provost of Inverness, Glynis Campbell Sinclair, said it was also good news for the local hospitality and business sector.

She added: "We aim to ensure that this ambitious new venture runs smoothly in the shoulder seasonal month of March."

Other acts to appear include The Future Shape of Sound and Alvin Youngblood Hart.