KT Tunstall tops the first day of a bright, breezy and colourful Chagstock

Chagstock 2012 review

By Scott Williams | Published: Tue 24th Jul 2012

Chagstock 2012 - KT Tunstall
Photo credit: Karen Williams

Chagstock 2012

Friday 20th to Saturday 21st July 2012
near Chagford, Devon, England
£65 for a weekend adult, camping and parking are free - SOLD OUT
Daily capacity: 5,000

around the festival site (2)
The knights of the round table themed Chagstock is a fantastic looking festival located in some amazing eye catching scenery under an expansive sky. The views offer one of the most eye catching locations I've ever been to a festival at. On a good weather weekend, as this was, it is bright, breezy and colourful, perhaps under less sunburning skies the Dartmoor location could feel much more exposed.

The site is well laid out for the two day event which is held on Friday evening and all day Saturday, leaving Sunday to recover. The set up works well on the opening night with only the huge indoor marquee - Acoustic Knight Club operating, technicians are still setting up the colourful main outdoor stage. There's plenty of stuff for kids to do, posh toilets, and the Tavern is open.

Alice Jemima
Alice Jemima opens the event, which for the first time has sold out, and the young Devon singer draws some interest in the hanger like grass fllored venue and finishes with a decent cover of Lana Del Ray's 'Million Dollar Man'. She had only found out a few hours before she was doing it, but did a great job and seemed totally unfazed by the short notice she had been given.

The choice of music for a festival goer like me, now used to multiple stage action is a bit limited but a quick look at the handy programme reveals another live lounge stage with a line-up of local acts not in the published programme, over the weekend the highlights include Fiona Riches (who also wanders the campsite guitar in hand), Trudi Brown, Marianne Neary, Harry Vinnicombe, The Freak Bruvvers, With Nell & I, and many more.

around the festival site (1)
Many prefer to just loll in the sunshine and enjoy the expansive views of the moors, the acoustic stage easily heard from most places in the main arena. This year there's only one bar (previously there had been two apprarently) and it's 12 deep there most ofthe evening, probably due to the no alcohol on the arena policy. You'd have thought at £3 a pint there would be unruly behaviour, but there isn't and with around 3,000 pints consumed on the first night the bar staff are taken by surprise. They probably would have sold more if the cider wasn't so damn fizzy.

around the festival site (2)
There's a fairly decent choice of food on offer too, and the Indian is so moorish we return to eat there again and again over the weekend sampling their various dishes and Lassi, especially as they're on case to not develop large queues like other catering stalls seem to have most of the time. I switch coffee (my usual festival staple) for their delicious Lassi, as it takes forever to get a coffee from the only stall serving proper coffee.

A few more catering outlets would perhaps alleviate queues and offer an even wider choice, although buying food when acts were playing meant the queues were a lot less.

around the festival site (1)
We enjoy wandering around the giraffe, zebra, flamingoes, and dinosaur decorated site, have a go at trying to remove the sword from the stone (someone manages to as it's gone the next day), and looking at the goods on sale.

Ellen and the Escapades deliver a stunning set, a barefoot Ruarri Joseph draws in the crowds with his mellow tunes, and the marquee is rammed for KT Tunstall. She's already late on, and just starts with a mash up of 'Black Horse And The Cherry Tree' and 'Seven Nation Army' on kazoo before the sound dies.

KT Tunstall
Eventually it re-starts with 'Suddenly I See' with a beat so deep it's probably setting off car alarms in the nearby car park. The crowd love it, there's arms and a few kids waving in the sea of people. It's a short set but KT clearly wants to give the crowd as much of the set as she's still able too, before we hit the sleeping bags.

The annual late night festival cries of 'Alan' are replaced with this year's chant of 'Fenton!' as I drop off to sleep.
review by: Scott Williams

photos by: Karen Williams / Scott Williams


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