Welcome to Yorkshire’s “Song for Yorkshire” entry deadline extended

The Welcome to Yorkshire and London North East Railway (LNER) competition to discover a new song to celebrate the county is being extended into next year.

The latest national lockdown and uncertainty over what restrictions will be in place for the rest of the year means the organisers felt they would simply not be able to give the “Song for Yorkshire” entrants and the eventual winner the celebration and showcase they will deserve.

The new deadline for entering is now Sunday 14th February 2021 with all other entry details remaining the same.

All entries already received will go forward to judging as planned.

The contest is aimed at aspiring singers and songwriters of all ages who have been invited to compose an original song, to shout loud and proud about why Yorkshire is such a great place to live, study, work and of course to visit.

Chief executive of Welcome to Yorkshire James Mason said: “We’re massively impressed with the entries we have received so far but these new tougher COVID-19 restrictions mean we’ve simply had to change our plans. We were hoping to film the finalists before putting them to a public vote and then arrange a public performance for the winner, but this simply won’t now be possible. We want to make sure the competition is completely fair and transparent, and also give all the finalists their chance to shine, so we’ve made the decision to extend the deadline to February 2021.

"As we’re into another month-long lockdown it’s also the perfect opportunity for those people who’ve expressed an interest in entering but simply didn’t have the time to give it a go. We really hope this will be a positive feel-good activity which people can get involved with while we’re all staying at home again.”

The song can be performed solo or by a group, band or choir, and can be any type of music – from rap, hip-hop or soul, to pop, dance or even folk or classical. The more diverse the entries the better. Just please remember to adhere to the lockdown guidelines during any rehearsals.

The song must be an original composition all about Yorkshire and no more than four minutes long. To enter please submit a video file online at www.yorkshire.com/song Full competition terms and conditions can also be found there.

Welcome to Yorkshire and LNER want to extend their continued thanks to lead judge Lizzie Jones MBE and her esteemed panel of Yorkshire talent including Kaiser Chiefs’ Simon Rix, Capital presenter JoJo, stage and screen star Natalie Anderson, TV presenter Luxmy Gopal, LNER Commercial Director Suzanne Donnelly and theatre producer Dan Bates who will still be judging the entries.

Please join in the conversation with Welcome to Yorkshire and LNER on social media using the hashtag #SongForYorkshire