PUBLICANS have pledged to ensure that Burnley’s famous blues festival remains a four-day spectacular next Easter.

Lack of big-name sponsorship has prompted promoters of the blues festival to reduce the headline event, at Burnley Mechanics, to a single day for 2010.

The announcement came as a blow to pubs and clubs as this year’s 21st festival, headlined by Lil Ed and the Blues Imperials, was said by licensees to be the most popular for years.

But landlords behind the well-attended fringe gathering, incorporating more than half a dozen bars in and around the town centre, will still be operating for four days.

Ken Southern, of the White Hart in Church Street, Burnley, said a meeting had been held between landlords and the borough council over the future of the fringe.

He said: “They have said that they will still support the fringe and that we can still do it over four days.

“Some pubs start on the Friday but others will be having bands on the Thursday, right through to the Sunday.

“We always have bands on over the four days, and the Bier Huis usually start early as well, and there will be other places taking part as well.”

Other venues who took part in the fringe this year included the Coach and Horses, Inn on the Wharf, the Talbot Hotel, the Press Room and the Sparrow Hawk Hotel.

The fringe offers blues fans, who visit Burnley from around the UK and Europe, to enjoy some of the event’s big names in a more intimate setting.

Promoters of the blues festival had been unable to find a major backer after the end of a three-year deal with Burnley-based aerospace giants Aircelle.

Even if the promoters found an 11th hour sponsor, it remains unclear whether this would have an effect on the festival format, as many headline acts must be booked months in advance.