Sir Tom Jones is to be asked to head the line-up for next year’s Cornbury Music Festival.

Festival director Hugh Phillimore has revealed he is also going to ask Lionel Richie, “as he always does”, to play at the West Oxfordshire event.

The father-of-one, who started Cornbury 12 years ago, said he was juggling at least five possible line-ups depending on which music legend he can bag.

About 10,000 music-lovers descend on the fields at Great Tew each year for Oxfordshire’s first big music festival of the season.

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Mr Phillimore, 54, said: “Booking the bands is always an interesting and sometimes torturous process, but I’ve got a good, upbeat feeling about next year.

“We’ll be having another shot at Tom Jones and hopefully he’ll say ‘yes’.

“I always start with the completely impossible artists like Stevie Wonder, Billy Joel and Neil Diamond, then work my way down.

“I’m so proud of what we’ve achieved but we’re always striving to do better.”

Sir Tom was last night unable to respond to the invitation, as he is currently filming the latest series of The Voice for the BBC.

Mr Phillimore said he had spoken to 250 artists, including a certain “lively female rocker” from America whose identity he could not give away.

The festival, it was revealed yesterday, will be held on July 10-12.

Along with a weekend of music, Mr Phillimore said next year’s festival would feature a “huge range” of children’s entertainment, a fairground and gastronomic offerings.

The ‘Other Stage’ will have spoken word, poetry, comedy and magic performances.

In 2015 the festival will also continue its charitable partnership with East Oxford children’s and young adults’ hospice, Helen & Douglas House.

The festival hopes to help fund the centre’s music therapy specialist.

Mr Phillimore added: “Of course we want to be the best small independent music festival in the UK, but if we can do some useful fundraising for the local community while having a lovely safe family party then we’ll really be achieving something.”

The 2014 festival featured hip-hop act Arrested Development, Sophie Ellis Bextor and Jools Holland with his Big Band.

There were also performances from Oxfordshire bands on the first night Campfire Sessions.

Discount early-bird tickets for next year’s festival will go on sale for a week, from noon tomorrow until midnight next Friday.

For tickets, go to cornburymusic festival.com or call 0844 338 0000.

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