Bestival

It was arguably the wettest event to be staged on the Isle of Wight in living memory, but even mass flooding leading to a deluge of mud failed to dampen the spirits of upbeat Bestival-goers, who partied on regardless.

As always, the down-to-earth, highly original yet wondrously eccentric atmosphere at the Bestival carried equal significance to the wealth and variety of musical marvels on offer during the course of the three-day phenomenon. Exorbitant performances were provided by the likes of My Bloody Valentine, Pendulum, The Human League, Will Young, Underworld, surprise acts Grace Jones and The Specials and the much anticipated Amy Winehouse.

A wet weather frenzy!

Despite being staged a little later in the year than most UK festivals, throughout its five year history the Bestival has always been fortunate with the weather. However following an unfavourable summer, it quickly became evident that Bestival 2008 would be one to remember; thanks to the extraordinary conditions.

A staggering two months-worth of rain fell on the Robin Hill site between Thursday and Saturday, reducing the majority of the 87-ache country park to a vast sea of mud. Having seen the forecast and heard the gloomy weather predictions, thousands of anxious revelers flocked to the main Island towns in a bid to try and prepare themselves for the dirty dilemma.

Shops were overrun with swarms of eager Bestival folk, all battling to get their hands on rapidly dwindling supplies of waterproof jackets, trousers and of course Wellington boots. 110 pairs of wellies were sold within two days at Newport’s Stead and Simpson shoe shop, with Fields menswear having to transport wet weather gear from other Island stores to stock their Newport branch. One of the sales assistants at Fields said; “We could have filled our entire window display with wellie boots ten times over and still not had enough pairs to meet with demand.”

The show must go on

All too well aware of the implications of flash floods upon open fields situated within a valley, Bestival organisers were quick to swing into action, determined to usher in health and safety precautions whilst doing everything they could to ensure the smooth running of the award-winning event.

Plastic matting was introduced to the main arena to make the heavy traffic area of the site in front of the main stage less slippery, whilst bales of hay and wood chippings helped to soak up some of the mud in and around the busy Bollywood thoroughfare and 24-hour field.

Opening a day earlier than usual to help stagger the arrival times of visitors, the downs car park and campsite soon emerged as the weekend’s maiden casualties; with hoards of plucky people flocking to the site on Thursday afternoon to pitch their tents in preparation for the weekend’s festivities; churning up reams of mud as they did so.

Lorry-loads of gravel were shipped into the main car park in an attempt to avert cars from getting stuck in the mud. In spite of these efforts, several cars could be seen sliding into hedges on Thursday and Friday evenings with steadfast marshals doing their best to control the situation. It was easy to identify Bestival-goers out on the Island’s roads throughout the course of the weekend as the tell-tell signs of mud drenched tyres, bumpers and bonnets were a sure giveaway!

Household names coupled with a succession of groundbreaking masterstrokes

The Bestival is renowned for the sheer range of talented musical performers and DJ’s it manages to cram into its weekend schedule and this year was by far no exception. Following a 16-year break away from the limelight, Dublin indie-rockers My Bloody Valentine who carry the reputation for being the “World’s Loudest Band’ cranked up the volume on Friday night and drowned out the pouring rain. They followed an impressive set by industrial metal act Pendulum, who took the then drenched crowd by storm.

Come Saturday morning there were more than 60 flood warnings in place across the UK, but the celebrations at Robin Hill rose well above the water levels. Those Islanders put off by torrential conditions the previous evening donned their waterproofs and made their way to the Bestival site, looking forward to an exciting day of fun, frolics and famous faces.

After months of speculation as to whether troubled singer Amy Winehouse would make it to the Bestival stage, fans were delighted to see her perform at what was her last scheduled show of the year. Arriving on stage 40 minutes late, Amy kept the crowds guessing as to whether the headline slot would be filled by her or precautionary standby act, but to the relief of Bestival organisers, the such measures were eventually uncalled for.

Performing a string of distinguished hits including “Back to Black,” “Valerie” and “Rehab,” Amy also enchanted audience members with her rendition of the 1961 Sam Cooke soul classic “Cupid” which also features on her 2007 Back to Black album. Getting into the nautical fancy dress spirit were Amy’s nine-piece band who all wore white sailor outfits, with Amy herself standing at the helm of the stage, which was fittingly renamed the “HMS Winehouse.”

Earlier in the day Hot Chip arrived onstage dressed as a knight, a dragon and Donald Duck for a set which included “Ready For The Floor,” “One Pure Thought and Over And Over.”

A day full of surprises

Following the unprecedented success of last year’s surprise guest appearance by legendary pop/ska band Madness, lucky Bestival-goers were treated to not one, but two surprise acts as part of the Saturday afternoon line-up this time around. English 2 Tone ska revival band The Specials took to the main stage at 5:15pm with the singer/supermodel and well renowned actress Grace Jones wowing the crowds with a formidable appearance and song-by-song costume changes at 6:30pm.

Months previously many were surprised at the news that former Pop Idol winner and unlikely Bestival performer Will Young would be playing as part of the Saturday schedule. His intended appearance on the Bandstand stage was revised to see him perform to a packed crowd of devoted followers of all ages on the BBC Introducing stage.

Dressed as Napoleon, Will charmed the crowd by promising to remove an article of clothing after every song. First to go were his glasses, followed by his waistcoat and finally his boots! Throwing the items into the crowd; admirers appeared dismayed by the fact that his set had to be cut short owning to the change of venue! Will joked with fans that he would have to suffer the inconvenience of losing his deposit on his hired costume, whilst performing familiar favourites such as “Leave Right Now,” “Your Game” and his latest single “Changes.”

They came, they saw, they laughed… and they loved it!

Eighties synthpop band the Human League made two appearances on Saturday, both on the main stage in the evening and in the Big Top in the afternoon with a complete rendition of their influential, triple platinum album “Dare.” In both instances, crowds packed out the venues and danced and sang along enthusiastically to a succession of celebrated hits; the multi-million selling single and ultimate crowd pleaser “Don’t You Want Me” featuring on both set lists. They concluded their evening performance with a rousing version of “Together in Electric Dreams.”

With the worst of the weather out of the way by Sunday, there was plenty to celebrate. Having represented France in the Eurovision Song Contest back in March, Sébastien Tellier graced the main stage with his romantic humour and often bizarre electro pop/ cabaret tunes.

Revelers got into the party mood with American musician George Clinton and his bands Funkadelic and Parliament who played an incredible two hour set full of uplifting funk. This paved the way for Sunday night headliners and illustrious dance act Underworld, who brought the evening to a close with an electrifying laser show.

An additional 200-plus acts performed across the site throughout the three-day weekend in the various tents and stages.

30,000 carefree folk – unphased and undefeated

Having previous set the Guinness World Record for the Biggest Fancy Dress Party back in 2004 and 2006 this year many questioned whether the organisers had somehow foreseen the inclement weather conditions when selecting the strangely apt theme “30,000 Freaks Under the Sea.” It set the tone for people to put their concerns about the mud behind them and get into the Bestival spirit by parading around in everything from wetsuits to all-in-one Victorian bathing costumes, rubber rings and armbands!

Despite the testing conditions, Bestival 2008 was a resounding success and proved that it will take far more than a generous measure of mud and a plentiful and persistent supply of rain to prevent people from having fun at this wondrously zany and uniquely unparalled event.

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