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Posted on 05/09/08 at 11:44:13 am
I'm singin in the rain, just singin in the rain... well when I say singing I mean swimming! Tad damp down here after some hefty rain overnight but the vibes are positive and the weather’s gonna perk up! There you are – British optimism at its best.
Bestival has officially made it – we’ve been on The Archers on Radio 2 with two of the characters making their way down to the 'sunny' Isle of Wight for a jolly. I look forward to welcoming them...if they exist...I mean, do they send the actors or the actors in character? To be frank I’ve got bigger fish to fry but I’m trying to divert my attention from the rain falling outside.
The site team have been working all night non-stop to make the site as safe and usable as possible for today. We’ve even spent a lot of dough covering the entire main stage field with a plastic mesh to stop it turning to mud. Looks a bit eccentric but hey this is Bestival!
The Big Wheel has finally made it down the hill but I’m not sure if it's really gonna go up in the rain and even the Swim To Bestival is looking a bit shaky...the intrepid dozen swimmers could always have a swim across the site down here.
Anyway must stop talking about the weather as we have a bumper line-up of acts ready to roll down here, Howard Marks has just arrived in a spotless silver Merc with a big grin on his face and a giant squid and a piece of sushi have just ambled past squabbling. Bring it on!
Permalink
Ray of [Visitor] //September 5 2008 at 14:43
Sun out now on the isle - Bring it on : )
fat_butcher [Visitor] //September 5 2008 at 17:06
Good luck with the weekend. Would seem as though Bestival has overtaken Glastonbury as Most Hazardous In Show...
http://fatbutcher.wordpress.com
Mo [Visitor] //September 5 2008 at 21:09
The Archers are not on radio 2 - they're on Radio 4 - just had to point this out as it's important....
nowinawarmbednotmissingoutonnowt [Visitor] //September 8 2008 at 09:31
Rob, it sucked...get out of La La Land and start apologising to all those who weren't camping in front of the main stage with the 'magic plastic' for protection. i.e. everyone! come on, its only fair...full, open, wallowing apologies please.
[Visitor] //September 8 2008 at 10:00
We have returned early from the worst weekend ever...the buses out of there on Sunday morning were ram packed...we had all had enough!!!. Most people arrived on Thurday to rain, rain rain, the fields were already a mess .The lorries couldn't get round to empty the toilets without being pulled by a tractor!!
bands turned up but couldn't play due to not being able to get equipment on site or stages breaking down (noah and the whale, sam sparrow, Soko to name a few)
The main stage area looked great, which shows it can be done!..all looked good for the cameras eh!!?? Bestival???? more like WORSTival! Camping..toilets..organisation...it ALL SUCKED!!
Hill Billy [Visitor] //September 8 2008 at 10:09
Rob and the rest of the team did an incredible job in the face of some of the worst conditions since the bible. Sunday was one of the best days of music I have ever seen...long live the P Funk
esposito [Visitor] //September 8 2008 at 12:07
Visitor @ 10:00, nowinawarmbednotmissingoutonnowt @ 9:31
Stop being such fucking pussys, we got there late on Thursday, pitched tents in the rain about as far from the arena as we could be, got soaked during Foals like everyone else and fell over in the mud far too many times.
Despite all that, the entire weekend was awesome.
dan [Visitor] //September 8 2008 at 14:35
not sure what "a lot of dough is," but the plastic worked at the main stage, if you had done the whole site, you would have saved it, as it was the music wasn't good enough to overcome the mudbath
[Visitor] //September 8 2008 at 14:51
now, now, esposito@12.07...theres nothing wrong with having a few standards...im sure when you turn 18 you'll get some. Awesome.
[Visitor] //September 8 2008 at 15:09
Esposito you dumb arse..that is EXACTLY the kind of shit I am talking about!!! wallowing around in pig swill listening to music that may or may not be the band advertised is not my idea of a value for money weekend..OINK OINK!!
The fact that they could "save" the main arena and let the rest of the festival go to shit doesn't make any sense..EXPLAIN IT TOO ME!!
There was a mud RIVER running through the whole event and many bands couldn't even get their equipment on site...The tent I was working in got ONE BALE OF HAY to stop the river coming through it..how infuriating to see a whole "wood chipped" pathway laid out for the parade which stopped just by the bollywood area..this stinks of making it look and sound better than it was..thats whats pissing me off..not the rain you little swine! oink oink oink!!!
someone else wearing a snorkel [Visitor] //September 8 2008 at 15:21
dear Visitor at 10.00 and 14.51, I don't think Mr da Bank books the weather, and beyond one particularly impassable stretch of mud, I'm not sure what else I'd expect the organisers to do in the circumstances. Yes, lots of us have standards but they are as much to do with the music and the crowd as with our creature comforts. And I was 18 two decades ago.
Muddy Waters [Visitor] //September 8 2008 at 19:34
All the photos show sunshine and joy. That wasn’t the case. If it were not for the fact each of us paid a lot of money to be there we would have not stayed there for a second. If I had paid this money for any thing else and got the service I did I would get a refund and would get onto trading standards. I’m all up for getting into the “festival” mood, but come on. Mr. D’Bank may put on a great sunny festival but puts on a shockingly bad wet one. Wellies rule. Mud, rain, cost of food/drink, lack of bins, toilets, Bestival all suck. Too much money for what you got.
joski [Visitor] //September 8 2008 at 20:21
I guess it just depends on who you are with and your attitude. me and my friends managed to have one of the best weekends ever despite the weather, I still rate Bestival as my favourite festival and I can't wait until next year...x
[Visitor] //September 8 2008 at 22:44
Quote -"one stretch of impassable mud???"(someone else wearing a snorkel)
Now was that the bit outside the radio one stage that had broken down? or the bit from the bollywood area to the SkidRow Area? Or was it the pathway all the way up to camping? Where the tangerine fields and its tents were swamped with mud and left empty??....or was it the bit that the lorrys couldn't drive along to empty the toilets?
now WHICH impassable stretch are you referring to!!
gary o [Visitor] //September 8 2008 at 22:44
to be fair there was only one section about 100 meters long that for anyone but the very able was actually impassable. unfortunatly there wasent a way round this. i think a little more there could have been done. barring that, had a wicked time and shall be in attendance next year, but possibly better equipped for horrid conditions.
[Visitor] //September 8 2008 at 22:44
Quote -"one stretch of impassable mud???"(someone else wearing a snorkel)
Now was that the bit outside the radio one stage that had broken down? or the bit from the bollywood area to the SkidRow Area? Or was it the pathway all the way up to camping? Where the tangerine fields and its tents were swamped with mud and left empty??....or was it the bit that the lorrys couldn't drive along to empty the toilets?
now WHICH impassable stretch are you referring to!!
Hannah [Visitor] //September 8 2008 at 23:23
What is wrong with you all. The mud was insane, ut actually noticed the rain much less than i thought would. It was amazing fun and brilliant. My 1st time and the best festival i've been to ever!
[Visitor] //September 9 2008 at 10:11
The problem is Hannah..this was my 4th festival this year..and I was at Besitval last year and they were all amazing...AMAAAAAAAAAZING.....there was rain and mud at a few others..but this one did not compare....severe weather warning should have prompted severe weather warning action. more metal grids to walk on...at least!!
I'm sure you'll be at plenty more festivals and then you'll actually have something better to compare it to.
Suzy [Visitor] //September 10 2008 at 15:17
It was amazing, if you're going to moan like little girls then don't go in the first place and leave tickets for people who are up for it
[Visitor] //September 11 2008 at 12:17
Ha ha you're all just bitter cos you didn't stick it out for the best day!
Sound Advice [Visitor] //September 11 2008 at 12:20
My god I wish people would just shut the F**k up about how muddy it was and how it spoiled their whole weekend. We havent had a summer this year so people should have come prepared for every kind of weather, and if they weren't prepared to do that then why turn up in the first place.
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