Liverpool Post

Disappointed fans stay loyal to their hero as star attraction Terfel is forced to miss grand finale

Thousands of opera fans were left stunned and disappointed after North Wales star Bryn Terfel was struck down by laryngitis on the third and final night of his Faenol Festival.

The bass baritone walked on to the stage at the start of the Music Under the Stars performance to tell the 8,000-strong crowd he would not be taking part.

He told fans: "I have been suffering from laryngitis for a couple of days and I am sorry to say that I could not even sing Happy Birthday if I had to. "Fortunately, we have been able to secure the services of the well-known Irish soloist Michael McCarthy, and I know that he is really looking forward to entertaining us tonight. "You are going to have a great evening, but these things do happen and there is nothing I can do about it."

A spokeswoman for organisers IMG and Harlequin told later of Terfel's disappointment at having to pull out for the third Faenol concert, something he had really looked forward to for a long time.

Louise Cogman said: "The most disappointed of all was the man himself, and we know it was a very difficult decision for him to make.

"We were very fortunate in securing the services of a very capable soloist in Michael McCarthy, who turned out to be just fantastic. People were very impressed with him, and it was quite clear that the audience enjoyed the show enormously."

While many of those present were clearly disappointed Terfel would not be singing, most people appreciated he would have been putting his future at risk if he even attempted to sing on Sunday night.

by Emyr Williams

Many thanks to Anne Smith for sending me this article