2017
Festival reviews from the year 2017
Bluedot 2017 Review
Less than 24 hours ago I was watching my son take a lightsaber lesson at the Jedi Fighting Academy with one of the cast of the Phantom Menace. And then a couple of hours later he got to ask David Prowse, the actor who plays Darth Vader, “did you get hot in your suit?”, using a microphone in front of a crowd of people. When you’re 7 years old, that’s as good as it gets isn’t it?
Chagstock 2017 Review
It was wet and cold but at Chagstock I saw only happy faces. People had come to enjoy themselves and that’s what they did.
Cornbury Music Festival 2017 Review
When anything that has been loved comes to an end, there is inevitably a celebration of its existence intermingled with a sense of loss. These emotions could be felt across the Cornbury site all weekend. The sun shone, the music played and the crowd partied. The 14th and final Cornbury Festival definitely went out with a bang. Literally as well as metaphorically.
Read more…
Blissfields 2017 Review
And Blissfields 2017 pulled out all the stops to create a perfectly bizarre and fun family festival this year.
We visited Blissfields as a family in 2015 for the first time and fell in love with this fantastic little treasure. After discovering the theme for 2017 was BIZARRE we were all pretty excited to explore what the brilliant Blissfields team had in store.
Love Supreme 2017 Review
The size and diversity of Love Supreme was a big and brilliant surprise. For the last few years, the South East’s best jazz event has boasted some fantastic line-ups, and this year’s was just as strong. Read more…
Wood Festival 2017 Review
When I heard that Wood Festival had sold out for the first time ever, I was really happy for the small team of hardworking organisers. My only concern was whether the intimate, spacious little festival would be able to cope and be just as fantastic as last year at maximum capacity?
Read more…
Nozstock 2017 preview
With less than 4 weeks to go until this years Nozstock – the Hidden Valley gets underway, here is a little of what you can expect from this amazing, family friendly festival:
Geronimo Festival 2017 Review
The biggest children’s festival in the country; Geronimo Festival moved home this year from Tatton Park, Cheshire to Arley Hall. I had never visited the previous place so cannot compare the two but the new site had plenty of room to cater for all ages of children, as well as the young at heart. With everything from free donkey rides and ferret racing (your children actually race the ferrets along human sized tunnels!) to large scale stunt shows and circus displays you will not hear the words “I’m bored” at any point during your visit.
Alfresco Festival 2017 Review
Elderflower Fields 2017 Review
Elderflower Fields continues to get better and better – a truly magical woodland adventure.
We have been massively excited in the run up to Elderflower Fields this year as it always feels like the start of summer. Last year’s weather was a bit amiss so we decided to go all out and hire a motor home. Typically, the run up to the festival this year predicted the first May heat wave! We have been to Elderflower Fields before but it seems to be growing and growing in popularity with the festival fully selling out at a 5000 capacity well before the event.
Bluedot 2017 Review
Less than 24 hours ago I was watching my son take a lightsaber lesson at the Jedi Fighting Academy with one of the cast of the Phantom Menace. And then a couple of hours later he got to ask David Prowse, the actor who plays Darth Vader, “did you get hot in your suit?”, using a microphone in front of a crowd of people. When you’re 7 years old, that’s as good as it gets isn’t it?
Cornbury Music Festival 2017 Review
When anything that has been loved comes to an end, there is inevitably a celebration of its existence intermingled with a sense of loss. These emotions could be felt across the Cornbury site all weekend. The sun shone, the music played and the crowd partied. The 14th and final Cornbury Festival definitely went out with a bang. Literally as well as metaphorically.
Read more…
Love Supreme 2017 Review
The size and diversity of Love Supreme was a big and brilliant surprise. For the last few years, the South East’s best jazz event has boasted some fantastic line-ups, and this year’s was just as strong. Read more…
Nozstock 2017 preview
With less than 4 weeks to go until this years Nozstock – the Hidden Valley gets underway, here is a little of what you can expect from this amazing, family friendly festival:
Alfresco Festival 2017 Review
Chagstock 2017 Review
It was wet and cold but at Chagstock I saw only happy faces. People had come to enjoy themselves and that’s what they did.
Blissfields 2017 Review
And Blissfields 2017 pulled out all the stops to create a perfectly bizarre and fun family festival this year.
We visited Blissfields as a family in 2015 for the first time and fell in love with this fantastic little treasure. After discovering the theme for 2017 was BIZARRE we were all pretty excited to explore what the brilliant Blissfields team had in store.
Wood Festival 2017 Review
When I heard that Wood Festival had sold out for the first time ever, I was really happy for the small team of hardworking organisers. My only concern was whether the intimate, spacious little festival would be able to cope and be just as fantastic as last year at maximum capacity?
Read more…
Geronimo Festival 2017 Review
The biggest children’s festival in the country; Geronimo Festival moved home this year from Tatton Park, Cheshire to Arley Hall. I had never visited the previous place so cannot compare the two but the new site had plenty of room to cater for all ages of children, as well as the young at heart. With everything from free donkey rides and ferret racing (your children actually race the ferrets along human sized tunnels!) to large scale stunt shows and circus displays you will not hear the words “I’m bored” at any point during your visit.
Elderflower Fields 2017 Review
Elderflower Fields continues to get better and better – a truly magical woodland adventure.
We have been massively excited in the run up to Elderflower Fields this year as it always feels like the start of summer. Last year’s weather was a bit amiss so we decided to go all out and hire a motor home. Typically, the run up to the festival this year predicted the first May heat wave! We have been to Elderflower Fields before but it seems to be growing and growing in popularity with the festival fully selling out at a 5000 capacity well before the event.