Due to Covid 19 Rescheduled to 27-29th August 2021
Keep tabs on it at: https://www.watchetfestival.co.uk/
Tuesday, 12 May 2020
Tuesday, 1 April 2014
APRIL FOOL ANNOUNCEMENT from Watchet Music Festival 2014
As promised, we've got something special to announce today.
Yesterday we received a letter from the Council Licensing Department to say, subject to traffic and noise limit restrictions, our application to relocate to a new site has been approved! We're really excited!
"Why the move?".
Well, we've wanted to increase our capacity from 4000 to 5000 for a while and, to help bring in the extra punters, we want to have a 'Heavy Rock' stage to bring in the 'Download' crowd. Obviously, neither of these things are possible where we are, sited on the top of a cliff.
How have we done this?
If you've ever been to Watchet or Watchet Festival you may have seen two small islands out in the Bristol Channel (approximately 3-4 nautical miles from Watchet): Flat Holm and Steep Holm. To cut a long story short, we've only gone and hired Flat Holm!
Why Flat Holm?
Steep Holm, as the name suggests, isn't suited to camping. Flat Holm has it's own pub, shop, ample flat fields suitable for a 4th stage and camping space for an additional 500 people. Also, there are hardly any residents to complain about the noise!
How will people get there?
Well, we have a signed letter of understanding from 2 local boat owners. One will run a ferry service to the island and the other back to Watchet. We haven't firmed up on all the details but we can tell you that on the Friday and Monday we will run a service every 30 mins and on the Saturday & Sunday we hope to run 9 or 10 trips from Watchet to the island each day, starting at 5am and finishing at 10pm (subject to the weather and tides). There may need to be an additional charge to use this service. Although the ferries are licences to take 500 people per trip seats will be limited (300 people per trip). The remaining 200 will be required to stand for the 30 minute sailing. It will be possible to reserve a seat at an additional surcharge of £5.50.
Now for the bad news!
For obvious reasons there'll be no campervans and only 2 man tents will be allowed to be brought over. Larger, pitched tents will be available to hire on the island (prices TBC).
No food or alcohol will be allowed on the ferries and to ensure we don't run out, people will be limited to 5 drinks per day from the bar. Tokens will be available at £5 per token. As traders will need to arrange for their stalls to be taken to and from the island food prices will need to increase. There will be a cap of £6.
As you can imagine, the hire of the island doesn't come cheap. So, starting next year, ticket prices will also need to rise to £105.80 per adult and £60 per child (2-15).
We will be sending out emails later this week with more details but that's all we are at liberty to pass on for now.
We hope you are all as excited as we are?
Sunday, 2 March 2014
Spring into the Somerset Pub Trail
Cadbury is keen to check out the list of the 43 pubs taking part in the Somerset CAMRA's 12th Pub Trail which starts in April 2014. She picked up her copy of Somerset Pints of View in Pebbles Tavern.
Friday, 9 November 2012
Maasai in Monksilver!
We had a bizarre evening yesterday when we drove along windy narrow lanes in pitch darkness ("this can't be right!" - thank God for the satnav.) to find the cavernous village hall in Monksilver. The EMN Community Hall on Exmoor is incongruous, a bit like finding the Opera House at Manaus in the middle of Amazan Jungle in Brasil! Here about 150 predominantly aging white people got a taste of Maasai culture on a cold winter evening in November..
We were treated to an entertaining program that included a cow milking song, the killing of a lion, whistling to cattle, Gospel songs and the ceremony of becoming a warrior. There was also some impressive "pogo" dancing! You can find out more about the warriors at http://www.osiligiwarriors.co.uk/.
We were treated to an entertaining program that included a cow milking song, the killing of a lion, whistling to cattle, Gospel songs and the ceremony of becoming a warrior. There was also some impressive "pogo" dancing! You can find out more about the warriors at http://www.osiligiwarriors.co.uk/.
Thursday, 18 October 2012
Doniford Beach
Littered with concrete skeletons of coastal defences,
Once thought to be indestructible,
Now tossed into a jumble on the shore.
Discarded playthings of the ocean
Mirroring what fate has done with the issues
that we once thought so solid in our lives,
Now scattered in disarray amongst the fossils,
From millennia before.
Stephen Hawkins 18.10.2012
Once thought to be indestructible,
Now tossed into a jumble on the shore.
Discarded playthings of the ocean
Mirroring what fate has done with the issues
that we once thought so solid in our lives,
Now scattered in disarray amongst the fossils,
From millennia before.
Stephen Hawkins 18.10.2012
Staple Plain
Following a tip off from twin sisters with 5 dogs on Doniford Beach yesterday, this morning we headed for the National Trust area of Staple Plain and the neighbouring Staple Plantation. Here we found broad leaf woodland, bracken-filled combes, lowland heathland and broad tracks leading to the top of Beacon Hill with panoramic views over the Quantock Hills and the Bristol Channel beyond.
A fellow dog walker mourned the loss of the Rhododendron Valley (or Vinny Combe) which was full of rhododendrons until they were all cut down last year. Apparently they poison the soil and were giving diseases to all the native trees, but it would appear that many would have valued the beauty of the flowers over their potential damage. A lot of other trees have also been cut down to prevent the spread of another disease, but it is a mixed blessing as it has exposed some magnificent views. We saw some plump white sheep but none of the red deer that live here.
A fellow dog walker mourned the loss of the Rhododendron Valley (or Vinny Combe) which was full of rhododendrons until they were all cut down last year. Apparently they poison the soil and were giving diseases to all the native trees, but it would appear that many would have valued the beauty of the flowers over their potential damage. A lot of other trees have also been cut down to prevent the spread of another disease, but it is a mixed blessing as it has exposed some magnificent views. We saw some plump white sheep but none of the red deer that live here.
Tuesday, 2 October 2012
New Discoveries
Although we have been living here for 4 months we are still finding new areas to explore. We have found a new footpath close to the house which takes us down into Whitehall, the heart of Watchet and on to further footpaths steeply climbing the green hills opposite our house. We have gathered sloe berries on the Old Mineral Line trail and blackberries from the slopes of the Quantock Hills and have sloe gin and blackberry vodka slowly maturing for Christmas consumption.
This morning we took a short drive along the A39 and explored trails through the St. Audries Forestry Commission pines with distant views of the silver grey waters of the Bristol Channel. The large sinister black block of Hinkley Point nuclear power station was visible to the east. Cadbury, our chocolate Labrador who was 10 years old on Sunday was delighted by the choice of overlarge "sticks" to play with in the undergrowth and found a relatively clean pond to splash about in.
On the way back we discovered a small car park in the shadow of 2 huge lime kilns, which gave access to the Jurassic coastal beach at Doniford. Cadbury enjoyed swimming in the sea and chasing a yellow rubber ball which she found. The sun transformed the wet sand into a shining silver mirror and I was delighted to spot a fossil ammonite on one of the large rocks on the beach.
This morning we took a short drive along the A39 and explored trails through the St. Audries Forestry Commission pines with distant views of the silver grey waters of the Bristol Channel. The large sinister black block of Hinkley Point nuclear power station was visible to the east. Cadbury, our chocolate Labrador who was 10 years old on Sunday was delighted by the choice of overlarge "sticks" to play with in the undergrowth and found a relatively clean pond to splash about in.
On the way back we discovered a small car park in the shadow of 2 huge lime kilns, which gave access to the Jurassic coastal beach at Doniford. Cadbury enjoyed swimming in the sea and chasing a yellow rubber ball which she found. The sun transformed the wet sand into a shining silver mirror and I was delighted to spot a fossil ammonite on one of the large rocks on the beach.
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