Last weekend’s lucky Standon Calling revellers bore witness to yet another milestone year for the festival, with an array of musical talent descending upon the stunning Lordship grounds including the likes of Suede, Jess Glynne, Kelis and many more. With a record attendance of ten thousand and live performances from both musical heavyweights and a crop of rising talent, Standon Calling also proved it was the leader in food, production, family (and even canine) entertainment, further securing its place as one of the UK's best-loved boutique festivals.
Whether it was the bombastic display from The Hives, the ornate sounds of rising star Declan McKenna, Ghostpoet lighting up the Big Top stage or unforgettable DJ sets with Gold Panda and house veteran Theo Parrish the ship continued to sail at this year’s ‘Legend Of The Lost Seas’ edition of Standon Calling festival. Highlights on the main stage included a sun drenched and hilarious display from The Cuban Brothers, performances from Swim Deep and Everything Everything and the unforgettable headline performances from Suede, Jess Glynne and Kelis.
Dance heads took to the dancefloor with the festival’s first Hospitality Records takeover in an arena of decadence, the Cowshed stage, with stellar DJ sets coming from dance music heavyweights London Elektricity, Fred V and Grafix, S.P.Y, Krakota and more. Sink The Pink presents Savage Disco took the reigns on Saturday before returning on Sunday to the new Laundry Meadows stage with Artwork, Jonjo Jury and Guy Williams in tow. Music-lovers looking for something a little different were treated to immersive shows from Rotten Hill Gang featuring Paul Cook and Glenn Matlock (Sex Pistols), TOY, Razorlight’s Johnny Borell and more over at Laundry Meadows for The Great Brain Robbery with visuals from legendary auteur Peter Wynne Wilson.
For the first time ever, Standon Calling opened its doors a day early on Thursday for The Welcome Feast. The festival invited hungry festival-goers to taste the delights of the UK's leading street food traders including the likes of Burger & Beyond, Mac Factory, Club Mexicana and Waffle On. Kelis dropped in to serve customers from behind the counter at her pop-up collaboration with Le Bun before taking to a rare in depth Q&A at the Clock Tower. Ceru On Tour were also on hand over the weekend, providing a Levant inspired mezze feast in their own pop-up restaurant.
At The Admiral's Nest on the lawn of the Standon Lordship festival-goers could sit back with a delicious Flaming Lips Bloody Mary enjoying inspiring programming from Salon London who hosted a variety of talks exploring water, revellers were tickled pink with comedy from the likes of Yianni Agisilaou and Andy Storey, while Write It Mic It welcomed some of the country's best playwrights and spoken word artists to perform, as well as tunes and knowledge testing with the brilliant Sounds Familiar music quiz.
Workshops carried out across the weekend included creating beautiful handmade jewellery, DJ classes for teens and for those who fancied a more relaxed weekend, morning yoga and mediation, hot tubs, and the Soulfull Sanctuary were on hand to help. As the sun shone, Ibiza was brought to the festival by Baby Biza with the help of puppets, dancing and dress-up taking place in the family area, as well as classes and reading for the kids throughout the three days.
For the more daring, Standon Calling’s very own trapeze offered a try & fly session with soaring heights and incredible view of the main stage acts. Standon Calling wowed once again with its famous dog show awarding canines with ‘waggiest tale’ to ‘best walk’ to 'most like their owner' in what is arguably a highlight and certainly one of the most loved part of Standon's experience. The festival also held its annual costume parade where thousands flocked to show off the brilliant and often hilarious outfits from lobsters to jelly fish to pirates and so much more.
