Overview

This year for the first time – under pressure from the council, as a way of limiting numbers – the Ambient Picnic changed from a free event (with donations asked for) to a paid-for & ticketed event. Although the Picnic is very well established, there were worries all round that this could lead to a poor turnout. And with the last few years Picnic having had blazing sunshine, the not so good weather that we’ve had lately was also a worry. Would anyone turn up?

Due to some last minute licencing issues there was about a half-hour delay in opening the gates, and by the time they did open there was a decent sized queue. So thankfully, the worries were unfounded – the Picnic’s reputation as a great day out was enough to get people there, despite the weather forecast suggesting a threat of rain.



And of course the rain came, but luckily though it didn’t start until after there was already a good crowd on site. It did drive some away early, but enough stayed for there to be a decent atmosphere.

Slap-bang in the middle of the site was a new feature, the open-air BigFoot Dance Platform. Initial thoughts were ‘how come there’s a new dance stage?’, until it was explained that the stage was for dancers, and not musicians or DJs. With a selection of dancers from around the country, this was here for these experts to show off their not inconsiderable break-dancing and other skills.

Very quickly there was a crowd sat in front, enjoying seeing what these guys and girls could do, to great applause. Unfortunately the rain brought an end to the demonstrations, as the stage surface was too dangerous for them to continue. But as a surprisingly popular new feature, this’ll hopefully be back next year.



Elsewhere, the bands and DJs did their thing on the stages around the site, with the tented stages attracting more than they might have due to the shelter they offered.

All in all – taking the new ticketing and the weather into account – the Ambient Picnic 2005 was a great success, with round 5,000 people attending the fun. See you next year!

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