With the ash-cloud reaping havoc and the BA staff on strike, why leave the UK this summer with all the great festivals on offer? There are the boutique affairs like the Secret Garden Party and Bestival, the one day fun of Field Day Festival and the action packed Wakestock, all of which offer great entertainment.
When most people think of summer festivals, Glastonbury, Reading/Leeds, V-Festival and Download spring to mind. This year why not try something different, a little less mainstream and yet still with great crowds, unique atmospheres and incredible line-ups.
Wakestock – 2nd – 4th July
To start the summer there is Wakestock in Abersoch, North Wales. Now for most of us, the reasons to head to a fairly remote village on the North Wales Peninsula are few and far between. For fans of wakeboarding, adrenaline-fuelled weekends and music festivals, Wakestock is the perfect excuse.
The festival is set in the outskirts of the beautiful village of Abersoch, with the music and camping on one site and the wakeboarding down in the Pwlheli marina. The daytime entertainment is now one of Europe’s premier competitions with pro-riders from all over the world competing with inverted tricks, 1080 spins, rails and jumps. The music kicks off early evening and boasts headliners such as Feeder, N-Dubz, Maximo Park and The Scratch Perverts. Wakestock is the biggest wakeboarding and music festival in Europe.
For those who are not big fans of festival camping you can stay in the village and jump in a short taxi or bus ride up to the main site. Buses run through the day to bring the campers down to the marina and the village and to return back to the main site for the evening.
My last visit to this festival involved a group of ten of us staying in one of the many holiday cottages for the week. Chilling by the beach, the marina and in the village pubs each day, followed by a cheap taxi ride up the main site to enjoy the music and party atmosphere. Not that I have anything against camping but having clean showers and beds compared to filth that I endured in Leeds was a welcome comfort.
If you like action sports, a great range in music and a chilled atmosphere that can break into a huge party at anytime, then this is the festival for you.
Secret Garden Party – 22nd – 25th July
The Secret Garden Party is one of the most bohemian and boutique festivals you can experience. With the emphasis being on community spirit set in a massive garden party full of ’60s inspiration and style. The venue is near to Huntington in the Cambridgeshire countryside and the festival organisers ask those driving not to disturb the local villages and also offer coaches from London, Brighton and Bristol to help reduce CO2 emissions.
The entertainment is as varied as you would see at any festival in the world. Instead of the usual two or three massive stages that the big festivals go for, there are 14 intimate arenas to take in the live music on offer. The musical highlights include Mercury Rev and Crystal Fighters, though this festival is as much about the activities as it the music.
For those looking to relax and take in the atmosphere there will be a sing-a-long with the Jungle Book on the big screen. There is the Karaoquee Camp set in an oriental theme to fill those singing and samuri urges. There is full-on face painting, a 1960s salon and art exhibitions. There are theatre productions, the Samba Band alarm clock (starting at 10am!) and games that include paint wars – essentially a battle of paint, wits and bravery.
There is more to do at the Secret Garden Party than I could begin to imagine or describe. For those wanting a bit of luxury there is boutique camping with butler service included. The festival is also one of the most family-friendly around with the kids’ parade, more face painting and children’s theatre. If you are looking for something different, an escape from reality and an enchanting vibe the Secret Garden Party is your festival this summer.
Field Day Festival – 31st July
East London plays host to Field Day Festival. A strictly adult-only one day event that combines fantastic music with a village fete atmosphere. Based in Victoria Park this is one event you can get to with the greatest of ease using London’s public transport.
The rustic festival is a great way to spend a Saturday afternoon, last year included egg and spoon races, tug of war and other classic games straight out of a 19th century rural fair. As the day goes on the music warms up with three stages offering Londoners an incredible line-up.
This may only be a one day event but it offers a great escape and a fantastic party for those who just can’t bring themselves to leave the capital.
Big Chill – 5th – 8th August
The Big Chill does what it says on the tin. It’s a fantastic festival with a chilled vibe. The general crowd are a little more mature and it is a family-friendly event. Set in Hertfordshire, the 35,000 capacity festival is as far removed from the likes of Creamfields and Global Gathering as you can get.
The Big Chill festival is another event that combines a diverse choice in music with performing arts, comedy and film. The festival is run by Big Chill, who also run a record label, a bar and a nightclub. With a background in music and entertainment their flag-ship the Big Chill Festival is a winner.
Over the past decade the festival has boasted some fantastic artists. Starting with this year there is Massive Attack and Mr Scruff and in previous years Basement Jaxx, Orbital, Royksopp, Zero 7 and Goldfrapp have all entertained the crowds. This year also boasts British acts such as Lily Allen, Roots Manuva and Plan B.
I asked a friend of mine about their favourite aspect of the Big Chill and got a less than usual answer ‘well the music is always pretty good and there aren’t any chavvy teenagers but the best thing is the clean toilets and showers’. Well there you have it, any festivals with good hygiene are good festivals in my eyes!
Bestival – 9th – 12th September
The closest I am ever going to get to ‘what Glastonbury used to be like before the fences’ is Bestival. This is a festival that manages to combine a bohemian crowd with boutique style and world class line-ups. For those who feel Bestival is getting too big there is also the intimate Camp Bestival earlier in the year. The event is held at Robin Hill on the Isle of White and attracts a very loyal crowd.
Bestival offers a different experience to other festivals, for example one of the days is an official fancy dress, in 2005 they broke the record for the biggest organised fancy dress, with 10,000 cowboys and indians! This year’s theme is Fantasy, whether that be Peter Pan, Alice in Wonderland or Lord of the Rings, as long as you take part you can be as creative as you wish.
The festival is also incredibly family-friendly. With a more relaxed crowd than the mainstream events, the number of people taking their kids to Bestival is growing, there is even the Bigtopmania Kidzone Team and the Breastival baby temple for new mothers.
With a huge amount of boutique stalls, a hidden disco (yes it was hidden and took some time to find) and an eclectic line-up this is a really unique festival. This year’s highlights are going to include The Prodigy, Dizzy Rascal, Hot Chip, LCD Soundsystem, the Flaming Lips and Roxy Music. There’s the Pamper Lounge for the spa treatments, the Inflatable Church for the spiritual types and the Buttercupcakes Afternoon Tea Hut.
This is a fantastic weekend of entertainment, decadence and dance. The way festivals should be and the perfect end to the summer.
I don’t know what your musical tastes are, whether a grown up crowd or a field full of hippies, is your scene but with the depressing ash-cloud hanging over our heads, why worry about cancelled flights and four day trips home. There is a festival to suit everyone and plenty more I haven’t mentioned. If you want a weekend of raucous Scottish partying try out Rockness, if Indie is more your thing there is the Truck festival and if you have a fetish for bearded men motorcycles there’s the Bulldog Bash.
Don’t get the holiday blues, relax and enjoy the British summer. Pack your biggest tent, designer wellies and fancy dress and get stuck in. I will.
Written by Stephen Adam
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