First Ladies of Pop the Sugababes last night made a sweet success of bringing the first Peel Bay Festival to a rousing end. Sexy, sassy and soulful, they blazed through a greatest hits set list which brought the house down and closed the festival on a fittingly upbeat note.

The last chapter in the Island's greatest musical story was packed with energy and drama right from the beginning. Rising local star, singer Sam Barks, wowed incoming crowds with a powerhouse performance which belied her tender years. Backed by a dynamic band, she turned more than a few heads and showed just why - along with the other local acts showcased during the festival - young talent on the Isle of Man should be recognised and nurtured under the spotlight more often.


Early in the evening, excitement levels were already nudging fever pitch as young fans waited for the night's opening act, ex-Busted star Matt Willis, to arrive on site. When he did so, grinning and waving from behind tinted windows, it was to screams and the almost audible pounding of hearts. Willis, a hugely engaging performer with charisma to burn, seized that momentum and cranked it up mercilessly from the second he raced on stage. Opening with a fiery performance of his first smash hit 'Up All Night', he threw down a sweat-soaked gauntlet to the audience, daring them to cut loose and rock out. Little by little they did,thanks to Matt's explosive performance, a clutch of infectiously catchy songs with super-sized choruses and a backing band who could have given any number of hard rock groups a run for their money.

Cooling down afterwards, Matt shared his thoughts about the show: "Seated gigs don't really suit my kind of performance. I like to get everyone involved and having a great time and seats kind of constrict that, but it's a family event, not a Matt Willis show, so there are really young kids. I haven't seen that since Busted days so this was really weird - good though! Like a step back in time. It was great fun and I really enjoyed it. I thought we really won them over in the end and I think everyone was having a good time.” It's important to make allowances for Matt's natural modesty - to say everyone waswon over would be a king-sized understatement. “I thought he was absolutely brilliant", said Jane from Peel; "he was much more rock than I thought he would be and a fantastic entertainer. He would have been the star of the night but I don't know if you can beat the Sugababes. I've heard they're amazing.”

It wasn't long before we all got to hear just how amazing the Sugababes can be. The crowd roared their approval as Keisha, Heidi and new girl Am elle sleekly took to the stage and instantly took ownership, strutting, shimmying and weaving their perfect harmonies around the echoing space of the marquee.

The most glamorous ‘girls next door’ ever to storm the charts, the 'babes ’ showed just how they've managed to retain their pop crown over several years of success. Combining mellow, reflective moments (a seated, acoustic rendition of 'Ugly') with ruthless siren songs (the jaw - dropping 'Freak Like Me'), the girls drove their fanswild and brought unbelievers to their knees, not least on the triumphant closing number 'Push the Button.' Dispelling rumours that the band are to split, Heidi pledged that they were working on a new album and that "we love our job". It's a good job they do, as the Sugababes are surely now at the very top of their game.

Between acts, Jonathan Irving took to the stage to deliver a valedictory speech which summed up his feelings on the festival. Thanking the legions of people involved in mounting
the festival, he went on to say, “I just wanted to thank everyone for their support and it’s tremendous to see so many people here. Over the seven nights we’ve probably had over 30,000 people come to see the concerts. Thank you everyone for supporting us – it’s a great encouragement. This has been a total team effort – I am the figure head, but I wouldn’t be standing here today if it wasn’t for the support of lots and lots of people. The perception by the public has been excellent, as has the feedback. For our first festival I think it's been an absolutely tremendous effort." His dismissal of the "moaning minnies" who thought it couldn't be done received a whooping cheer but that paled in comparison with the uproar which greeted his final question: "If we were mad enough to do this again next year… would you come?” From many, many people - of all ages and musical persuasions - the answer is a resounding 'yes'. One woman, Sue, summed up the common feeling when she said, "I have to say - a fantastic concert and definitely value for money! Our only regret is that we didn't go to any other of the concerts. Thank you, thank you, thank you for bringing this to the Island! What an initial thought, what a fantastic dream - what a dream come true for so many people, young and old! If you ever do anything like this again, you can count on our support!"

Cable and Wireless, who launch their Sure Mobile brand in early July, sponsored both the final night and Friday's Ronan Keating/McFly concerts – and were delighted with what the festival had achieved. Marketing Executive Julie Heselton commented, “I think it was a great success for us – we really got our brand out there to the public and everyone had a great night.” Commercial Director Simon Last-Sutton supported her sentiments: “It’s the first year for the Peel Bay Festival and the first year for Sure Mobile – both tremendous events which help to connect people in the Isle of Man.”
As the crowds melted away into the night - heads full of music, light and memories to last - there was more than a little melancholy stirring amongst the sense of celebration.

Peel Bay Festival has, in a brief week, come to mean so much to so many. It has proved to people on the Isle of Man and beyond that dreams can become a reality shared by thousands. Could that really be the end? John Shakespeare believes it could be just the beginning: “It's all over now – but we ended on a real high. The Sugababes were fantastic – I was even dancing in the pit myself. I want to thank all the team. We had our hitches but by the Madness concert we got everything sorted and we were really rocking and rolling. We’ve put on a real, proper, professional festival at the end of the day and I hope we can do it again – and obviously it is important for the public to support us – so thank you to everyone who came!”

The last word goes to Jonathan Irving, to whom all lips are turning with the same question: Same time, next year? “It's been a very interesting experience and it would be a shame not to do it again based on the knowledge and experience we’ve gained over the last nine months – I’d really like to give it another go."