Friday dawned sunny, warm and lumpy – of course the air bed had a leak! Then it was the 30 minute queues for the loos as still down to 2 loos for the whole of our section and the water had completely run out too, grr.
Bacon butties for breakfast, flat whites and veging out until the site opened, with time to kill there was only one thing for it, another coffee and this time with amaretto – we’re on holiday!
What was in store today? I’ve learnt in previous years that the best action is around the Big Top and Pig’s Big Ballroom, this is where all the exciting new bands get their gigs and it’s usually much better than Castle Stage. However, The Proclaimers were on at 5.30pm and no way was I missing that.
Erth’s dinosaur zoo – had to see this as Small Boy loves dinosaurs. It was pretty good, the presenter warned the audience that by the end of it there would be small children crying…..and she was right, the dinosaurs were very well trained and even the carnivore came out to eat, sorry meet the audience.
Mr B The Gentleman Rhymer – this guy is fantastic, with his banjolele too, I heard him on Radio 4 on Sunday morning as he’s doing his show at Edinburgh Festival, catch him, he’s brilliant. He is a hip hop artist in the Queen’s English, chap-hop is what he calls it, love him.
The Proclaimers Brilliant, totally brilliant, “and I would walk 500 miles and I would walk 500 more to be the man who walked a thousand miles to fall down at your door, der der ler der……..” became our theme tune for the weekend with a snippet of “der der ler der..” before everyone broke out into the chorus. Thank you lads, a little bit of my teenage days transferring onto my kids, fantastic. Ellie and Anastasia had problems with the trains and arrived at 7pm gutted to have missed them.
After a mooch round the dingly dell with a promise to come back and see the fire show in the evening (never made it, too long a queue and too much else to do) we went back to the tent for fajitas and cocktails, as you do.
The plan was to make our way to the Big Top to see London Grammar at 8.30pm, I’ve learnt from previous years that you can plan what you like but it’s probably going to go pear shaped. It did, spectactularly. We walked past the Wagamama lounge and discovered that David Rodigan, reggae legend was playing. That was it, an hour or raving it up, with kids going for it too and London Grammar didn’t get a look in. This was probably the best event of the whole festival.
Next back over the Big Top for John Cooper Clarke. Now this guy is a hero from my teenage days, a punk poet who I loved, my favourite being ‘I married a monster from outer space’. I had a friend who new all the words to that. Disappointed, he had an hour set, didn’t engage the audience, ranted and was very boring. We didn’t even stick around long enough to hear my favourite poem, if he did it. Caught a little bit of Richard Hawley but not really my thing so off to Mr Teas with the kids for hot chocolate – naked hot chocolate in my case – no marshmallows or cream then back to the tent with little ones, big girls on 1am curfew and nothing else for it but to grab a blanket, put the light on, pour the wine and sit outside listening to the music and reading my book waiting for the others to get home.
