EP3 – The Ups the downs and round and rounds
Description
BFF18 just a few months ago so still fresh in our thoughts!
For our third year we knew what we wanted and needed to do to make this our best yet.
We altered our stage times to close earlier as in previous years regardless of whether it was bands or children’s tributes carrying on with entertainment until 9/10pm hadn’t worked.
We wanted to make the bar area more of a social area & continue entertainment on in there and constantly throughout the day and into the night.
We always involve our children with the planning & programming of BFF and with the recent crazes of slime and musical.y taking over our house and lives in general we simply had to include these this year.
We obtained mainline sponsorship from Bathroom Takeaway, who were opening their new midlands store just a short drive from the festival site. Bathroom Takeaway were an excellent company to work with and their support and enthusiasm for the event was fantastic. They created a real buzz at the event with daily competitions around their slime bath challenge along with an excellent prize of a eurocamp holiday for one very lucky family.
Bobbys Foods sponsored the cinema and provided lots of fantastic free snacks for people to sample throughout the weekend as well as during the run up to the event itself. We all enjoyed that too. We had professional BMX riders take to the stage and show some great stunts, (in between the rain-i’ll come back to that subject!).
Macmillan Children’s Books sponsored the Den where little ones could get cosy and read stories such as What The Ladybird Heard, complete lots of great worksheets or everyday everyone’s favourite monster The Gruffalo would make an appearance during storytime, which was really lovely to see the childrens faces when he appeared.
In the Den we had some great workshops such as graffiti and slime making as well as my firm favourite the Aardman Model making workshops-the Den was as always our creative hub!
Free Radio took over the bar stage area and this year it really was fantastic we scheduled alot more there were lip sync battles, karaoke, family bingo, dance workshops with the Tin Man from Britain’s Got Talent, some really great bands and singers along with tributes of Lady Gaga and Bob Marley, not to forget the DJ workshops with George and RueJay which as always were a huge hit. Character meet and greets with The bar really was the place to be!
As well as all of the above new additions for this year were a giant sandpit kitted out with buckets spades and flags, this was situated in the little ones garden area which was a huge space next to the outdoor cinema and there you could find books, toys, dress up clothes, dolls houses, garden games, trikes and hula hoops. Right near there was the circus workshops which ran all day everyday and families could learn to juggle, walk the slack ropes, spin diabolos all under the watchful eye of Flotsam Fools team of experts, who are also a completely family run business.
We also had lots more going on in the sports area as it was so popular the year before we bought bigger football goals, added badminton nets/sets and a good old swingball!
This year saw the new area hosted by Young Drivers were older children could drive corsa’s around the field with driving instructors-this was hugely popular and a fab addition.
The outdoor cinema was back and as big as ever, this year with a stage in front of it where the wonderful team of Stagecoach took charge and ran some excellent workshops for children of all ages, stage combat, street dance, tons of drama and singing worskhops of all varieties, superhero workshops and the stunning princess parade. Which they soldiered on with in the rain with wellies even when bad weather struck and tore down there marquee which was their dressing room and alot of the costumes got wet. We can’t thank Stagecoach enough for what they did at this years event, such talented young people and the staff were excellent and highly professional and motivated individuals throughout.
So yes the rain!! Its was back to haunt us, even though after last years thunder and lightening threat and bad weather, not to mention the 3months worth of sun on the run up to the event, we were certain even on the Friday of the actual event that there was no way the rain could or would be back especially not to the extent that it did!
It began on the Saturday and it wasnt great and did put a few people in bad moods but nothing could have prepared us for the Sunday..There was rain and wind so bad traders pitches were blowing away before we opened on the sunday, we had to re-arrange stage times to ensure the “Show must go on!” It was probably one of the most stressful days of mine and Georges lives so far not to mention heart breaking. Everyone was wet and miserable including us. Other events up and down the country had been so badly hit they had cancelled the event completely. It was like sheets of rain and 30mph winds it was horrific, and terribly unlucky. Lots of campers had to leave as they had either ran out of clothes, not bought appropriate clothes or for some their tents had been wrecked. It was a sad day as event organisers as our years work and business we had been building for 3 years was being washed away in front of our eyes. After a long meeting at 8am with our health and safety officer, our production manager, the land owner and head of security we decided we wouldn’t let it beat us and soldiered on and set about making the event safe and rearranging the stage shows to ensure nothing was cancelled apart from one workshop that was that was to be hosted by children and one singer who was travelling from down south and couldn’t get to us, we moved everything either into the Bar or Den and it was only for a few acts as the rain did eventually stop and the Michael Jackson Tribute stole the on the main stage and got everyone dancing and singing along.
We in hindsight yes could have again had the second marquee like 2017 but we felt that it wouldn’t be necessary especially as upon checking the weather right up until the weekend the rain storm wasn’t forecast. No one up and down the country knew it was going to be so bad, until the Saturday by which time it was too late to add more structures.
The Great British Weather had come for us again and it was hard and has been hard to come back from as like we’ve said before adults don’t like the rain. The kids didn’t care and dont care they were still playing football, still on fair rides, still running around still eager to join in with workshops and lip sync battles. Those that stayed for the Sunday enjoyed themselves those that were put off & upset by the rain did not, its as simple as that. RK mention fair rides in rain
The best bits from 2018 for me were the Slime baths on Bathroom Takeaway stand I personally didn’t do them but the girls did and loved it. The Michael Jackson tribute show was fantastic and also a band called The Underclass who played in the bar on Saturday evening-they were so good!