Empire of The Sun exclusive for Wilderness Festival

Australian electronic music duo Empire Of The Sun lead the first acts for Wilderness festival, set to be held at Cornbury Park in Oxfordshire from Friday 9th until Sunday 11th August 2013.

The show of elaborate costumes, fantasy stage sets and plenty of feathered headwear will be a UK festival exclusive this summer. Also venturing into the wild this year will be Noah and the Whale who close the main stage on Sunday, Rodriguez, Michael Kiwanuka, Tom Odell, Ghostpoet, Tribes, Matt Corby, Lucy Rose, King Krule, Melodys Echo Chamber, Eliza and The Bear, and Yellow Lounge.

London Folk Guild are also returning for a third year bringing a variety of folk performers to the festival.

The festival of musicianship, theatre, talks, panel debates, late-night parties, outdoor pursuits and food experiences returns for its second year to Cornbury Park in Oxfordshire.

Once again Wilderness' famed Banquets, Feasts and Gastronomy return with Long Table Banquets hosted by Yotam Ottolenghi, plus chefs Russell Norman & Polpo and Mark Hix. This years sees the return of Sam & Sam Clarke's Moro Souk Tent, the and Thyme Cookery School.

The festival arts offering will be expanding to include performances from some of France's most prolific circus and theatre collectives, Transe Express presenting the aerial spectacular 'Maudit Sonnants', and after dark flying trapeze show LesPepones, Theatre de Rue, and Cirque Traditionnel.

Late Night Revelry is provided by the producers of Secret Garden Party and includes The Secret Valley hosted by Rumpus, The Bacchanalian Masked Ball with performances from The Artful Badger, Feast Of Fools and Miss Behave.

Those who are fans of theatre can enjoy tented and promenade performances from Shakespeare's Globe (who present 'Red Not Dead', Petersham Playhouse will perform Lewis Carrol's 'Jabberwocky', as well as Vignette Opera, and Tax Deductible's 'Sh*tfaced Shakespeare'.

The talks and debates line-up for the literary Arts & Encampments include The School of Life, Intelligence Squared, Tom Hodgkinson's The Idler, Literary Salon hosted by Damian Barr, Secret Forum Fiction (including Granta, Tibor Jones, Canongate, Bloomsbury, Penguin), Chris Lintott and Oxford University Astrophysics Dept, The Royal Observatory, Singalong-A-Wickerman, Shamanic Street Preachers, Dark Mountain, NOW Fest, Jim Al-Khalili with TheBritish Humanist Association, The Catalyst Club & The Odditorium, The Napoleonic Association, new ways of thinking with Natures, Charles Dickens Museum, Oxford Museum of Natural History, Oxford Museum of the History of Science, and Pitt Rivers Museum.

Well Being and Outdoor Pursuits include Lakeside Spa, The Sanctuary, meditation with Headspace, Lost In Beauty, Horse Riding, Green Crafts, Eden Project Den Building, Oxford Cycles, Wild Swims,Forest Medicine Walks, The Bushcraft Company, and Wild Runing.

Festival goers can also enjoy The House of Fairy Tales, Unicorn Theatre, Boutique Babysitting with Mortimer Nannies, The Village Hall, Royal Society of the Protection of Lovebirds, Witchwood School of Rock, Hullabalo Arts, and Bearded Kittens Cricket Match.

The Wilderness Spa returns bigger and brighter than ever this year set alongside the lakes, and offer festival-goers wood fired saunas and hot tubs along with the massages in the Sanctuary well-being area.

Festival organisers from MAMA & Company and Secret Productions: Dean James, Tim Harvey, Jim Whewell and Jo Vidler said, "As festival organisers, Wilderness is still the mouth-watering prospect it's always been. It's a festival of experiences entirely shaped by the landscape of Cornbury and the surrounding Wychwood Forest. Each and every one of the amazing shows and happenings have been inspired by the lakes, valleys, copses and rides of our majestic home. From this year's exquisite banqueting concepts to the epic theatrical shows we are bringing over from mainland France, it will be a weekend of both electrifying entertainments and restful escape. We can't wait."

Early bird tickets have sold out. An adult weekend camping tickets are priced at £139. A young person (aged 11 to 17 years) is priced at £65, with children aged 10 years and younger going free. A campervan ticket is priced at £65, and a car park ticket is priced at £10. A wekeend (2a +2y) ticket is priced at £335 (purchased in multiples of 4). To buy tickets click here.

Latest Updates