Abra-abracadabra! Slim Shady show is pure magic

The day of family fun saw a main stage set up in front of Ilkeston Town Hall – as nearby pubs showcased talented local musicians.

Deputy Mayor Greg Maskalick kicked off the revels by presenting a town hall cheque to the event’s thrilled organiser Paul Opiah.

The annual Glow Music and Art festival has gone from strength to strength since Paul, who runs the local Ilkeston Life newspaper, first launched it with council support three years ago.

This year’s headline act went down a storm with crowds who danced on the Market Place to Eminem hits including the Slim Shady star’s remix of Abracadabra by The Steve Miller band. The festival boasted a fairground ride in front of the library plus stalls selling refreshments and merchandise.

Deputy Mayor Greg is no stranger to the music scene. He used to work as a professional pianist – even tinkling the ivories for Bruce Willis when the Hollywood superstar released his album The Return of Bruno.

The keyboard maestro also worked with the late Marvin Hamlisch – who is famed for film scores including The Sting, which starred Robert Redford and Paul Newman.

Fellow councillor Kate Fennelly took to the stage as the Glow fest came to a close – and paid tribute to organiser Paul. She told cheering crowds: “This is the man you can thank.”

This year’s event secured what is known as a Member Grant – thanks to the support of Cllr Harrison Broadhurst. It is a new pot of funding to boost community initiatives and the council is keen for more volunteer groups and public-spirited organisations to apply.

The scheme supplements the authority’s previous “fast funding grants” – which use money secured from the government via the East Midlands Mayor. More details are on the community grants page.

Deputy Leader Becca Everett, who is the council’s Lead Member for Community Engagement, said: “We are grateful to all the fantastic musicians who took part in Sunday’s fun-filled spectacular. I was in the crowd – and it was tremendous to see so many people having such a great time. Our thanks go to Paul and his team for all the hard work they put into making this year’s Glow festival such a huge success.”