Hundreds head to capital for first night of Pentecost Festival

Last night hundreds of people came to five different events that marked the beginning of Share Jesus International's Pentecost Festival.

The Metra nightclub in Leicester Square, in the heart of London, hosted a number of Christian Comics, including Tim Vine of BBCs Not Going Out fame. Just streets away, George Dillon performed his adaptation of Matthew’s Gospel to a wrapt crowd.

“We are thrilled with feedback that we have received so far,” stated Joy Da Costa, the Pentecost Festival Team Leader. “The first night has been a real success as people have travelled from across London and other parts of the UK to share in the festivities.”

Pentecost Festival has a number of events in the build up to the weekend, with comedy, theatre and prayer.

The weekend itself will feature international activist and author Shane Claiborne and Bethel’s Bill Johnson, who has witnessed many miraculous healings. There will also be the UK’s first showing of Call+Response, a film about human trafficking, at the Coronet Cinema with a Q and A with director Justin Dillon.

The Friday night will feature a signature event in the world famous Hammersmith Apollo, which will feature Tim Hughes, Reuben Morgan, Nicky Gumble and Pastor Agu.

Andy Frost, Director of Pentecost Festival shared, “This morning, we have just heard that the Apollo event has only a handful of its 5,000 capacity left for sale.

"As a team, we are very excited that this year, many more thousands of people will attend Pentecost Festival, which is aimed at celebrating the church’s birthday and reaching out missionally.”

With a great weather forecast for the weekend, festival organisers are expecting the Generate Justice campaign and the stage events in Leicester Square and Embankment Gardens to attract thousands of Londoners.

This year’s festival will finish with a live BBC1 broadcast, with an expected five million viewers.