It's to avoid clashing with the Ricoh Women’s British Golf Open held at Royal Lytham & St Annes Golf Club.

The dates for 2018 are Monday July 16 to Sunday July 22.

It had initially been planned to hold the festival just a week before the huge golf event but following further consultation with Fylde Brough Council and local tourism bosses the decision has been made to make the date change to two weeks earlier.

A spokesman for Lytham Festival said: “Moving the dates of Lytham Festival is not a decision we have taken lightly however after consulting further with all local partners, it makes absolute sense to do this because of the Ricoh Women’s British Golf Open.

“We have an incredible line-up planned for Lytham Festival 2018 and we look forward to announcing this very soon.

“We have informed all customers who have already purchased tickets and where they are unable to attend we will offer full refunds.”

The move in dates will see Lytham Festival 2018 taking place two weeks earlier than has been normal.

The spokesman added: “One thing many people tell us is that they wish Lytham Festival didn’t clash with their planned summer holidays. Well, in 2018 it won’t, and we hope that for many people, particularly those local to Lancashire and the North West, that this makes for a doubly enjoyable Lytham Festival.

“July and August will be tremendous months for businesses and accommodation owners across the Fylde coast with both Lytham Festival and the Ricoh Women’s British Golf Open happening and we look forward to seeing the benefits both events will bring to the area.”