Chatham Historic Dockyard Trust Advises Medway Gaming Festival Will Not Return in 2025
The Chatham Historic Dockyard Trust has confirmed that the Medway Gaming Festival (MGF) will not be taking place in 2025.
Originally launched in 2021 by Medway Council, the festival enjoyed three consecutive years at the Historic Dockyard, with a fourth edition successfully delivered in 2024. Due to a combination of rising operational costs, changes to the public funding available to support the event, and insufficient visitor growth, the event has become financially unsustainable.
Olivia Horner, Director of Commercial & Operations at the Chatham Historic Dockyard Trust, commented:
“This was an incredibly difficult decision and one we did not make lightly. We have a genuine fondness for the Medway Gaming Festival and take pride in the events we have hosted over the last few years. Unfortunately, the current economic climate – marked by escalating prices, public funding constraints and ongoing cost of living pressures – has placed significant financial strain on events like these. While the Dockyard provided an iconic backdrop for MGF, sadly the event fell short of the financial targets necessary to justify its continuation. As an independent charity, our priority must remain the preservation of our unique 80-acre site and its many listed buildings.”
Gary Kirby, Chief Executive of Fragers, the company responsible for organising the content of MGF, added:
“Naturally, we are disappointed that we won’t be collaborating with the Dockyard on the Medway Gaming Festival this year. It’s been a fantastic experience working together to bring this unique event to life the last 5 years. MGF was one of the first events post pandemic to launch in the UK and had 3 years of fantastic growth. While the current climate now makes the event financially unviable at the amazing Dockyard venue, we are exploring ideas of other locations in Medway.”
The Chatham Historic Dockyard Trust remains committed to delivering engaging and commercially viable events that celebrate the Dockyard’s rich history and heritage while exploring new opportunities to attract broad audiences.
Photo credit: Steve Hartridge Photography
