A proposed food and drink festival during the TT fortnight has been given a lifeline following a rejected planning application last week.

The ‘Foodie Village’, which was initially planned to take place at St Ninian’s Church in Douglas, will now be held in Castletown.

Organised by the Manx Food Market Traders’ Association (MFMTA), the event plans to feature stalls and food trucks offering breakfast, lunch and dinner as well as live music and entertainment.

A marquee area with seating, a stage area and a pop-up fine dining venue inside St Ninian’s church itself had also formed part of the initial plans.

However, the scheme was unanimously rejected by members of the government’s planning committee, despite the festival being recommended for approval by the planning officer.

This was due to concerns over increased traffic, parking issues, noise, odour and the effect on the existing food offering at the grandstand during the period.

Chair of the MFMTA, James Quayle, told Manx Radio: ‘We wanted to look at what other alternatives we could do. We've had a very busy week, but we are absolutely delighted to be able to tell you that Castletown has stepped forward and opened their arms as graciously as possible.

‘We will be in Castletown for practice week before being based at the North Quay and St Matthew’s Church on North Quay in Douglas on June 1 and June 2.’

Mr Quayle told the Isle of Man Examiner that negotiations are ‘still ongoing’ regarding the location of the foodie village during TT week.

Speaking to Manx Radio, he continued: ‘We will offer you a great place to enjoy food, hang out, see crafts, listen to some music and have a really nice experience.

‘We've managed to do about four months work in four days. We've got another two months worth of work to do, so I reckon that will take three days!’