Henry VIII comes to Camp Bestival

This summer, festival goers at Camp Bestival which returns for it's 9th edition from Thursday 28th to Sunday 31st July, to the picturesque setting of Lulworth Castle, in Dorset can celebrate Henry VIII's arrival at Camp Bestival from Hampton Court Palace with the Tudors on Tour.

Presented by independent charity Historic Royal Palaces, this ‘festival within a festival’ will allow you to step into a living Tudor world. Bringing to life the magnificence and splendour of the Tudor court through a spectacular mix of theatre, games, and live craft demonstrations.There will be 16th century fashion in the Tudor Costume Tent. Weaponry, have a go with a cross-bow; and meet Henry VIII in The King’s Pavilion. Plus, a chance to find out what the Tudors knew about space, learn how to be the perfect courtier and see what you think of his new Queen (and fifth wife) Catherine Howard.

Camp Bestival’s own celestial sovereign, Rob da Bank said, "So, this has nothing to do with Outer Space but everything to do with the glorious and sometimes a bit bloody and gory history of the United Kingdom. Bizarrely, having DJed at a few Royal Palaces lately, we felt it would be good to bring some of that history to Lulworth Castle, a location not exactly lacking in stories itself. So from Tudor crossbow to cookery and a good old fashioned dressing up tent, naturally, I’m looking forward to unleashing my inner Henry VIII and whizzing back in time."

See the skills of the master crafts-people and stonemasons who built and maintained palaces like Hampton Court and the Tower of London (and a little bit later Lulworth Castle) and dip a candle to help bring light to the palace. Check out the Great Harry Theatre Show and discover how Henry VIII came to be King in a hilarious play for the whole family. Join in a Tudor Scratch Performance and take your chance to tread the boards. Or sit back and relax while you hear some of the King’s favourite stories.

Join the team who have brought the Hampton Court Palace kitchen to life and marvel at Tudor cooking as they roast beef for the King in front of their roaring fire and discover what life was like cooking for King Henry VIII. And don’t miss the chance to find out about Tudor games and play them yourself. See how high you can get on the leader board!

Spread across the Castle Field, Kids Garden, Big Top, Bollywood, Black Dahlia, East Lulworth Literary Institute, the festival offers family entertainment, sideshow attractions and more. There's a huge Kids Area filled with things to keep little ones of all ages entertained all day long. Plus Lulworth Castle has its very own Animal Farm where the kids can get up close to their super-friendly animals.

Exclusive to Camp Bestival, the Royal Albert Hall’s resident Education & Outreach orchestra, Albert’s Band, will present a Space Symphony of famous and recognised pieces of classical music.

The Mission Control tent will play host to a selection of activities including the National Space Centre team presenting challenges and intriguing facts and the chance to win a National Space Centre family pass, too. There's a chance to watch science experiments, learn about the universe and join a mission to Mars with The Science Museum.

Plus, The UK Space Agency will be taking a leaf out of Tim Peake’s exercise programme with some space-themed fitness and health activities, and the Space to Earth Challenge a special space-themed walk around Camp Bestival in fancy dress.

Stargazing experts from the Royal Observatory Greenwich can be questioned, and the Explorer Dome presents ‘The Wonder of Space’, a family-friendly show produced exclusively for Camp Bestival. Featuring rocket workshops and chemistry shows with freezing fog, fire, flashes and big bangs, you can explore space, stars, life on other worlds, the ultimate fate of our sun, and the sky tonight, with added cosmology for the curious and the chance to ask questions about our place in the universe.

OKIDO Magazine will have giant squishy monsters, a spacey episode of Messy goes to Okido, and a huge, collaborative Space Mural. There's a chance to send a message on a Space-Ready Postcard and work on the longest Space-Themed Bunting ever created. There's the Brickies Lego Space Academy and their space-themed LEGO® building workshops, and a performance of Urban Astronaut; a cautionary environmental tale.

Plus Bubble Inc Shows from Samsam Bubble Man, and Gobbledegook Theatre’s inventive and interactive art and Dorset-based group Everyday Sunshine.

The Science Tent will mix science-based performances, timetabled science, technology workshops and drop-in sessions. There's The Rasberry Pi Foundation and Code Club in their Astro Pi Workshops. Explore comets and asteroids, learn how to cook up your own hairy star, make a CD hovercraft, and then make a human hovercraft! Launch a paper rocket, make a sound straw, and join the Silly Science Team’s Slime Workshop.

There's also woodland-based workshops with The ATE Trust presents…Woodland Warriors and Space Agents. Investigating a crashed spaceship in the Dingly Dell, ATE’s Space Agents might need your help to examine the space wreck, learn useful phrases in intergalactic languages, or to keep a lookout for strange-looking creatures. They will also be running space-themed ‘Cosmic Crafts’ workshops alongside our ever-popular woodland crafts. And there will be a Final Night Showcase and Procession in the Dell, with a special surprise planned for this year…

Plus Musical Mania workshops inspired by the adventures of Buzz Lightyear, and Planet Frozen, where you will learn the songs, dances and stories inspired by the smash hit Frozen.

There's even a showing of Aardman Animations’ classic A Grand Day Out with Wallace and Gromit!

Space cadets can also expect Flying Astronauts, Planetarium Shows, Cosmology Workshops, Stargazing, Space Orchestras, Rocket Building, Space Smells, Post A Space Card, Giant Rockets, Build Your Own Planet, Make Space Murals and lots more. With plenty of edifying action from the National Space Centre, The Science Museum, Royal Observatory Greenwich, Okido, Explorer Domes and many more.

Jess Glynne will be headlining Friday night, Norman Cook aka Fatboy Slim will headline Saturday night, and Sunday's headliners are Tears for Fears. PlusKaty B, KT Tunstall, Squeeze, Arrested Development, Seun Kuti and Fela's Egypt 80, Bananarama, DJ Yoda, Jamie Lawson, Turin Brakes, Brand New Heavies, Dawn Penn, The Cuban Brothers, Duke Special, Louis Berry, Tayo & Rob Da Bank's Prince tribute, Sound of the Sirens, The Demon Barbers XL, The Scorsese Agreement, Delilah Sisters, The Rajasthan Heritage Brass Band, Circus Raj, Folk Ido, and the live adaptation of the children’s book, Aliens Love Underpants, Dick & Dom, and Justin Fletcher aka Mr Tumble.

The festival will also host Sound and Vision: A Celebration of David Bowie with Rob da Bank, Lizzie Ball, and Classical Kicks Orchestra.

buy tickets now >

The early bird offer has ended. Tickets are now priced as follows:-
Adult Weekend Ticket (inc. camping from Thursday) - £197.50
Student Weekend Ticket (inc. camping from Thurs) - £185
Age 13 to 17 (on 31/07/2016) Weekend Ticket (inc. camping from Thurs or Fri) - £118
Age 10 to 12 (on 31/07/2016) Weekend Ticket (inc. camping from Thurs or Fri) - £93
Age 5 to 9 (on 31/07/2016) Weekend Ticket (inc. camping from Thurs or Fri) – £45
Age 4 & Under (on 31/07/2016) Weekend Ticket (inc. camping from Thurs or Fri) – £15
Babes In Arms (1 & Under) - FREE (but ticket required)
Car Parking - £20
Campervan Ticket - £85 per vehicle
Caravan / Trailer Tent Ticket – £96 (one car only per caravan/trailer tent – no exceptions)

NOTE: all tickets will incur a booking fee.

All teens (aged 11 to 17) MUST camp in the same area as their families with a maximum of 2 teens per adult (over the age of 30). All children aged 4 and under (on 31/07/2016) can attend for free (but MUST HAVE a ticket). These ticket holders must be accompanied by a Ticket holding parent or guardian over the age of 21.

There's also a 30 week payment plan to purchase tickets meaning that an adult ticket can now be bought at a payment of just £5 per week over 29 consecutive weekly payments following an initial deposit payment of £27.50.

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