A SPECIAL concert celebrating the life of a man who helped turn Saltaire into a major folk music venue will take place tomorrow night.

Simon Heginbotham was the founder of the Saltaire Live folk gigs that regularly took place in Victoria Hall, where his tribute concert will also be held.

The music promoter, 52, passed away on April 20 after battling severe bouts of depression for more than 20 years, and his death has led to a host of tributes from friends and the music acts he championed.

The first Saltaire Live concert took place back in 2003, and over the years many of the top folk bands, particularly those of the Celtic variety, have appeared at Victoria Hall, including Bellowhead, Dervish, Show of Hands, and Altan.

Following his death, Mr Heginbotham’s brother Rob and his close friend Emma Devlin took the decision to try and stage all the concerts he had booked in the diary.

The first was on April 27 when former Bellowhead frontman Jon Boden played Saltaire with his new band The Remnant Kings on the first night of their new tour.

Rob Heginbotham said: “It was obviously a massive shock when we received the news that Simon had left us in such tragic circumstances.

“Having spent time here with him over the years, and in particular after talking to people in the last couple of weeks, it is abundantly clear that he had a hugely positive effect on many people here in Saltaire and in the wider folk music world.

“It seemed only right as a legacy to Simon to try and run as many of the concerts as possible, and to also look at keeping Saltaire Live running at least for the next 12 months and to see how things go.

“Obviously saying goodbye to Simon is the most important thing right now, but then we will look at the future after that.”

Mr Heginbotham’s funeral will  take place at 1pm tomorrow at the United Reform Church in Saltaire, followed by a reception at Victoria Hall at 4pm.

The artists playing in his honour from 6.30pm will include Bradford’s own Bella Gaffney, Jon Boden, Salsa Celtica, and Dervish.

For full details, visit www.saltairelive.co.uk.