Boomtown Fair 2018

Where to begin.

What an incredible festival.

Before going  to Boomtown, but after I had, on a whim, purchased tickets, people were keen to tell me what to expect. To be fair to them, some of these people seemed to assume that a 52 year old woman would be shocked by drug taking and horrified by a festival loo. And on the whole, the reactions I received upon mentioning 'I'm off to Boomtown next year' were those of shock and horror. I was variously told :

"you'll hate it, it's a full on festival"

"Rather you than me, it's not a family festival"

"People die there you know, it's all drugs and gangs"

"The music isn't anything you'd like"

"It's a lot of walking, really hilly"

and my favourite :

" 'king hell, rather you than me, you'll die"

Reader I did not die. It is true that a lot of drugs are consumed at Boomtown, keys of ket seem to be as much currency as the great British pound. It is true that it is hilly and that there are many young people, it is true that people have died there, but it is also true that young people can be extremely nice and helpful, that walking is good for you and that the art and the stages and the music are amazing.

And that the actors and the sets are absolutely out of this world.

The festival itself is half the size (in ticket sales) of Glastonbury and twice that of Camp Bestival. It has a kids field - and you could easily spend all your time there - but it is not (imo) a kid's festival, or even a family one. Similar to Glastonbury the camping areas are within the main arena area itself, there is little demarcation and it is possible to camp very close to main stages.

There are so many stages I cannot begin to list them. Check the Boomtown website for details. The music is varied but never pop. We camped by a reggae stage and enjoyed that into the wee small hours. Being an old person (!) I did not always stay up late, laying in bed as the festival beats around me is one of my many festival pleasures.

There is a theme to each year's festival with a story line and actors, you can play along, interact and become part of the story...or not...as the mood takes you.

I watched a mechanical freak show, I chatted to a nurse at the asylum, I watched shows at Paradise Heights, I wandered through woods, watched films outside in the rain, climbed hills , watched fire jugglers, and danced to Bosnian bands in the market square.

I have never enjoyed a festival more.

If you are brave, if you can carry all your stuff on your back and march for miles, can bear to listen to loud bass tones late into the night (and early into the morning) if drug chat and drunken teens and compost toilets don't fill you with terror...Boomtown may be the place for you.

 I was also very pleased to see The Loop on site, helping to keep festival goers safe where saying 'don't take drugs' has failed, The Loop step in.

 I can't wait for next year.