BoomTown Fair 2013

Now in its fifth year the festival will offer an array of music, theatre, comedy, art, and Arcadia. BoomTown Fair is a music, arts and family festival that takes place at Matterley Estate, nr. Winchester, Hampshire, and will run from Thursday 8th until Sunday 11th August 2013, with perhaps Wednesday open for early arrivals.

The main stage line-up will consist of ska and party bands from around the world, with the other live music stages offering cabaret, gypsy, folk, reggae, dub and country and western. Plus loads of cabaret, comedy, spoken word, a range of stages, an anarchist theatre, lots of site art and many areas to explore with plenty of catering options, all the normal facilities you'd expect at a festival and a massive emphasis on eco-friendly initiatives. All attendees are encouraged to dress up in fancy dress, the fancier the better!

Line-up

Confirmed for the Ska, Swing, Folk And Punk Stages are Parov Stelar Band, Ozomatli, Mad Caddies, Arrested Development, Julian Marley, Toots and the Maytals, King Prawn, The Neville Staple Band, The Selecter, The Wurzels, The Skints, Demented Are Go, Beat The Red Light, Chris Murray, Citizen Fish, Dirty Revolution, Faintest Idea, First Degree Burns, Graveyard Johnnys, Inner Terrestrials, L.O.C., Left Alone, Neck, RotFront, Sicknote, Smokey Bastard, Street Dogs, The Brains, The Casualties, The Junk, The Mahones, The Peacocks, The Restarts, Roughneck Riot, Will Tun and The Wasters, Worldly Savages, Orkestra del Sol, Hoffmaestro, Ska Cubano, Les Hurlements d Leo, Suicide Bid, The Creepshow, Flap!, Babyhead, Molotov Jukebox, and Random Hand.

The Reggae/ Dub And Jungle Stages will host Richie Spice, Collie Buddz and the New Kingston Band, Dub Inc., Lee Scratch Perry, Million Stylez, Gentleman's Dub Club, Tippa Irie, Mr Williamz, Mungos Hi Fi, YT, Musical Youth, Iration Steppas, Channel One Soundsystem, Robbo Ranx, I-Fire, and Dreadsquad feat Dr Ring Ding + Kasia Malenda + El Fata.

Whilst confirmed for the Break And Bass Stages are Foreign Beggars, Redlight, Chinese Man, Digital Mystikz, Koan Sound, Calyx & Teebee, Zinc, South Central, LTJ Bukem & Conrad, Opiuo, B.Traits, Mak & Pasteman, Reso, RackNRuin, WOZ, Sticky, Randomer, and Slipmatt B2B Billy Daniel Bunter.

For the latest line-up details as available please click here.

Tickets

Adult tickets were available priced at £149, plus a £10 eco bond deposit - part of the 'keep the town tidy' scheme - and have SOLD OUT. All teen (13-17 years) tickets priced at £89 have sold out, a child ticket (6-12 years) is priced at £20, and children under 6 can go free but need a ticket.

A deposit scheme was in place whereby the option is available for you to pay half of your ticket price, and the second half by the 1st of July 2013.

This year the town mayor has launched a new initiative, aiming to give something back to the wider community, with the option to donate £2 available at the time of buying your ticket. This money will be collected in the Boom Pot and handed over to a number of charities in the local community.

To buy tickets other ticket options, click here.

Family area

BoomTown has a specially designated family 'Quiet' campsite with showers, toilets, etc. This campsite is also a short walking distance from the Town Centre and OldTown so that the big kids can have some grown up fun time too! Other facilities specifically for families comfort include; Festibarrow, they will be on hand helping to ease the pain of carrying a weekends worth of luggage for you and the little ones! Festibarrow will be available for you and your belongings, straight from the boot of your car, right to your camping spot. A designated pushchair safe area will be situated towards the back of the main arena and the brand new Magic Carpet (Ski-Lift) is free for child ticket holders when accompanied by a ski-lift ticket holding adult for ease of getting about the site effortlessly.

There will also be age restrictions on access to the DownTown District (late night area) as BoomTown recognises that some of the louder areas of the site are unsuitable for our precious Mini Boomers.

KidzTown

eFestivals has been extremely impressed with the kids area at this event which provides a plethora of antics and activities to keep Mini-Boomer's occupied and engaged the whole festival long. Located right next to Family Camping this year it hosts Emergency Exit Art's gargantuan Binbot, made from 33 pink wheelie bins, will be walking around KidzTown spreading his environmental message. Whilst, other activities and attractions include: Three Bears Picnic, bring a bear and keep your eyes open for Goldie Locks and the three bears... Beatbox workshops for all the family, Geodome play climbing frames; Gorilla Vs Granny breakdance; GrannyOke, karaoke and dress up - karaoke Gran-nam style! Horse 'n' Cart rides for families and kids, lifts to and from car parks are also available; Spongeboards; and the Swingboats.

Workshops include; Bristol Energy Network; Biddi Bingo café & workshops; the Curiovan; Kids Kung Fu Workshops; Mr Wolf's shadow puppets; Pandemonium Party with face-painters and temporary tattoos, completely free; Panic Circus where kids learn circus skills; Pizza &Puppets with the Italian Job clay oven; Ringworld Meynell Games inflatables for fun bouncy play; and Silly Science will be on hand with multi sensory science play and exploration for all ages!

The good folk of KidzTown appreciate that Baby Boomers might not be ready for such independent levels of play and learning so have prepared some specific activities and area's dedicated to the smallest of the BoomTown family members including; the Babychamber, a Baby Boomers bell tent that creates a lovely happy haven for parent and babies, with chill out areas, nappy change, milk heating facilities, comfortable breast feeding areas, advice points and some eco goodies; The Playbus Baby Boomers play area from the Bristol Playbus offers soft play, creative play, and exploratory activities.

Theme

Boomtown Fair's fancy dress theme is explained here.

Town news

In 2013 through additional themed streets, more walkabout performance and new theatrical teams, the Mecca of BoomTown will expand. Moving the majority of the town out and away from downtown, BoomTown is set to expand massively on the inventive, craft, kids and chill out areas aiming to appeal to a much wider audience.

There will also be loads more in the way of interactive sideshows, mutated roaming vehicles and carnival craziness, as well as a handpicked selection of exclusive never seen before foreign collectives. Leaving the looming presence of Downtown in its own separate area and ensuring that only the bravest of the brave will face the nightly quest of Man Vs Bass!

The Magic Carpet Ride

A moving travelator 300ft long will help residents up the step gradient of the 'hippy highway'. Site changes and the expansion of the town's areas or districts from last year means big changes are planned for the city's layout with the Lion's Den, Oldtown, The Town Centre and Mayfair Avenue are moving out of the bowl and up to the top. Festival goers must purchase a weekend pass for £10 to use this easy-breezy form of transportation.

BoomTown Fair's Mini Venues

The new Latino quarter of Barrio Loco hosts Samedia Shebeen, Happy Slap Boutique's El Espectáculo Esqueleto, and Day of the Dead Bar.

ChinaTown hosts new venues including the Prawnucopia Love Lounge, Madame Electrifie's Laundry Service, and Alan's Happy Ending Cinema.

MayFair Avenue sees the return of Bearded Kitten's The Bank, Funkington Manor, The Bling Bar, The Park Hotel, Bump Roller Disco, plus new venues Last Aid hospital to the stars, and Candy Trash Beauty Boutique.

Town Centre hosts the Town Hall, Town Centre, Luna Cinema, the Postal Posse, and everyone's favourite haunt Bad Apple Bar (BoomTownÂÂ’s oldest building).

The pirate infested Oldtown is home to the Gramophone Disco, the People's Front Room, Big Love Chapel, The Twisted Fairground, The Gypsy Disco, and Cap'n Fransicso's Police Force a band of old sea dog's from the darkest depths of Kernow.

The Halfway Woods is the base for Psy-Trance crew Tribe Of Frog, and Floating Lotus.

The seedy underbelly of BoomTown's DownTown district is home to Charlie BrownÂÂ’s Casino, The Old School Garage, The ASBO Disco, and the galactic hangout of the Spaceport.

Plus regular DownTown favourites; the Prohibition Den, The Leisure Centre, The Body Shop, the Dance Off crew and their crazy tournaments!

Work at BoomTown

BoomTown are looking for for Bar Staff, Litter Pickers and Oxfam Stewards, see the website for application details.

Eco bond

To keep the site free from litter, Boomtown offer festivalgoers an eco bond initiative to help keep the streets of BoomTown tidy. Ticket purchasers will be asked to pay an additional £10 eco bond deposit. On arrival at the festival attendees will be given a 'boomtown eco bag'. Organisers ask everyone to fill this bag with all their rubbish and hand it back into one of the drop off points for recycling, and have their £10 deposit returned.

More information will be here when available.

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