“I LOVE it when you see a dad with their toddler over their shoulder having a snooze despite the music, wearing their headphones,” said Helen, one of the team behind Wokingham Festival.
Andy, Chris, Helen, Dean and Julie are five Wokingham residents who bring music to the town each year in this not-for-profit event.
Their three-day music spectacular takes place in Cantley Events Park each year, giving a platform for local bands, national and international artists, to entertain Wokingham audiences.
“The atmosphere this year has once again been great, with lots of visitors,” said Andy.
“We’re all volunteers, and we, in turn, have a fabulous group of core festival volunteers who make this event happen.
“Without them Wokingham Festival wouldn’t exist.”
More than 1,000 musical acts applied to play at the festival this year.
Of those, 43 live acts performed over three days, including: Who Ate All The Crayons, The Ogretones, The Country Chicks UK, The Blupers, One Last Day, Mordecai Smyth, Splink, Perfect Beasts, Amy Dx, and music veteran The Crazy World of Arthur Brown.
Brown, at 84 was quite possibly the most senior person at the festival, his set closing the festival on Monday evening.
Expected to take the stage with fire, reviving his 1968 hit, he didn’t disappoint, providing festival goers with the spectacle they were hoping for – his lit fire hat.
Brown is no stranger to Berkshire, having performed in the first Reading Festival in 1971 and, despite the decades, he retains a remarkable vocal range.
“Bands are keen to play here because the festival is well run, the sound is good, and everything works,” said Andy.
“And they all say what a great friendly atmosphere there is.”
With the festival being fully enclosed, children are able to run around on the Cantley field in safety while their parents enjoy the music.
There’s an on-field bar provided by the Twyford Beer Festival team, children’s activities, and plenty to choose from when people feel peckish, including street food, burgers, pizzas, waffles, doughnuts and ice-cream.
Music lovers will be pleased to hear the the festival team is already busy planning next year’s event.
For information, visit: wokinghamfestival.co.uk
