28 August 2022 (gig)
31 August 2022
We arrived in The Cotswold’s on Sunday for the final day of the festival, which had already been in full swing for two days. We were in for a treat. Something different for me this time though, I’d decided to take the family along. The atmosphere was colourful and friendly as soon as we entered. The festival is heavily advertised as family friendly, and we were not disappointed. The number of children was a welcome sight as we’d fit right in and weren’t going to be annoying too many people with the bubble-gun we picked up not long after our arrival going in everyone’s faces! This was the 11th outing of the festival and from what I’ve been told is learning and improving year on year.
The site had so much to entertain that we struggled to explore all corners during one day, but hopefully we can return next year to tick a few more sections off. After a few hours exploring the ‘Little Dudes’ Den’ we headed to the mainstage to catch Gabrielle rolling back the years with a hit laden set. The ‘Dreams’ singer was full of energy and upbeat attracting a large crowd, regaling stories of being around for over thirty years. The set consisted of a feast of feel-good numbers including ‘Out of reach’, ‘Sunshine’, ‘Rise’, ‘When a woman’ and ‘Give me a little more time’ – I’d forgotten the back catalogue was so strong! A perfect Sunday afternoons entertainment!
We headed off to experience the festivals other strong selling point – food! It seemed like everything you wanted was available, in good quality. Whilst queuing we could see ‘Alex James’ Cheese Hub’ packed out dancing to none other than ‘Dom Joly’ on the decks. Just your typical Sunday afternoon DJ.
Back over on the main stage we were pleased to see a new young singer – nominated for the BBC Sound of 2022 and 2021’s John Lewis advert singing sensation ‘Lola Young’. The young talent apologised for a sore throat before wowing the crowds with an Amy Winehouse / Adele South London vibe, we expect a lot more to come in the future.
Sub-headlining the day was Nottingham’s Jake Bugg. After seeing his initial tour when his self-titled debut album was released – I was surprised to learn it turns 10 this year. Bugg begins with last years upbeat summer-tune ‘Lost’, before ‘Kiss like the Sun’ and ‘Slumville Sunrise’. This is enough to get the crowd off their chairs and appreciating the talent this still young man has. Bugg slides through back catalogue favourites of mine ‘Seen it all’ and ‘Two Fingers’ and ‘Lightning Bolt’ before finishing on with ‘All I need’ to send the crowd happily on their way.
Another band still going strong after 25 years were Sunday evening headliners Stereophonics – a band who never sit still or seem to age. The Welsh rockers fronted by Kelly Jones, in typical leather jacket style, took to the main stage just after 8pm to a packed-out field to a crowd full of anticipation. Throwing themselves straight into ‘Do ya feel my love?’ off newest album 'Oochya!', before flowing into ‘C’est La Vie’ and ‘I wanna get lost with you’. With a back catalogue as full as Sterephonics, it must be hard to pick a setlist. But Kelly took time to chat with the crowd before belting back into another one. An evening with ‘Maybe tomorrow’, ‘A thousand trees’, ‘Have a nice day’ and ‘Handbags and gladrags’ still sound so fresh, the band as tight as they always have been, and Jones delivering on the vocal, what other way to finish than fan favourite ‘Dakota’.
The festival was well attended with 25,000 over the weekend. The previous days were headlined by ‘The Human League’ and ‘Anne Marie’, with notable mentions going to ‘Sugababes’, ‘The Sherlocks’, ‘Sam Ryder’ and ‘Basement Jaxx’.
We will hopefully return next year.
Photo Credit: Russ Fujak.
