Woodbridge Festival of Art and Music Announces First Line Up Details for 2024 Weekend.
Friday 30th August - Sunday 1st September. Elmhurst Park and Various Venues
Woodbridge Festival's flagship weekend returns with a pre-party followed by three days of events in Elmhurst Park, Whisstock’s Place, The Riverside, Bell and Steelyard and various venues around town.
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Woodbridge Festival celebrates its twelfth year with a bumper line-up of acts and a new festival theme that sees famous artists showcase talents they’re less known for. Expect TV presenters to launch albums, best selling authors to perform live music, TV stars to DJ and DJs to reveal artworks.
This year the festival starts with a pre-party on Saturday 17 August, at Ye Olde Bell and Steelyard, featuring special guest Simon Lee aka Faze Action, one of the key DJs in London’s disco music resurgence, and festival founder and renowned DJ Ben Osborne.
The festival weekend opens at The Riverside on Friday 30 August with Les Spaine, a pioneer of club DJing, former head of Motown Recordss in the UK and considered the godfather of UK funk DJs. Les has worked with everyone from Marvin Gaye and Stevie Wonder to David Bowie.
Million selling author Louis de Berniers, whose book Captain Corelli’s Mandolin was made into a hit film, makes a rare appearance wearing his singer-songwriter hat, performing songs from his new LP.
Live electronic duo Sons of Slough were massive favourites of iconic producer and DJ Andrew Weatherall, and not only because his brother Ian Weatherall and collaborator Duncs are in the band. One of the pioneering fully live electronic acts that, along with acts such as Orbital, helped shape the sound of dance music in the Nineties, this will be one of only two UK festival appearances by the duo.
TV and Radio presenter Katie Puckrik (The Word, BBC6Music) launches her new compilation album ‘Yacht Rock Odyssey’ (released over the festival weekend) with a DJ set overlooking the masts on the River Deben.
TV and film actor Ben Miles (Huge Disco) plays a DJ set returning to his pre-acting youth as a DJ. Best known for starring role as Patrick Maitland in the television comedy Coupling, as Montague Dartie in The Forsyte Saga, Roger Dascombe in 2005 film V for Vendetta and Peter Townsend in The Crown. Plasticons, his DJ duo with The Detectorist’s Toby Jones, still makes regular pop up appearances in central London.
DJ Justin Robertson, a founding father of modern clubbing as a regular Haceinda resident and the DJ who inspired the Chemical Brothers to make dance music, will exhibit his abstract paintings, as will DJ and Mi Soul presenter Abi Clark.
Dave Jarvis of London’s notorious Faith parties has just celebrated 25 years of the organisation he started with Terry Farley and Stuart Patterson, with a massive event at Koko in London - as well as the subject of multi page feature in the current DJ Mag. Jarvis is also celebrating the 50th release of the Moton records, the label he started with Diesel and DJ Harvey.
Rob Mello another pioneer of dance music under his aliases as House of Whacks and Black Science Orchestra and Simon Lee, of Faze Action, will play sets reflecting their genre defining contributions to House music in the UK.
The Heavenly Social’s Carl Gosling, aka Heavenly Jukebox, & Sophie DJ alongside Woodbridge Festival founder Ben Osborne (White Trash/ Noise of Art). ICR favourite Daddy Turbo will unleash his trademark b-lines, while Ibiza chill out pioneer Chris Coco will get his solar vibes on. Transient radio head boy, Bobby Bucys, is joined by North London’s Itchy Soul crew and everybody’s favourite purveyor of seven inch DJ sets, Sid Le Sarge.
Local live rocking act JS & The Lockerbillies bring their popular re-workings of classic rock-a-billy, r ’n’ b and rock ’n’ roll and more regional acts are to be announced
The popular wider events scheduled over the festival weekend include Arts Area with workshops, weaving, art trails, make and do, the Kids Zone, Eco Zone, Wellness Area, with massage, herbal medicines and treatments, Literary Area, Drum Workshops and the Food Village featuring Delroy’s Caribbean Grill, Korean Kitchen, Saltpeter, Pizza, high quality, local sourced street food and bars with ales, lagers, craft beers, wines, spirits, cocktails and ice creams.
The popular all ages Make & Do sessions return with activities print a one-of-a-kind festival souvenir, badge making, clay monsters (and fairies), recycled crafts and more, led by cross platform artist Alice Stallard and textiles artist Claire Hardaker. Enjoy Family Yoga with Emmakyoga, Glitter Tattoos with Abbie, GIANT games with 5th Woodbridge Sea Scouts and take time to chill in the Family Read and Chill zone with story time sponsored by Suffolk Building Society. Look out for the Choose Love heart trail around the festival site and take your insta selfies surrounded by love…. Discover more about local community initiatives and doodle your eco message to the world.
This year’s Wellness area includes plants from Katie’s garden, free massages, practical exhibitions on subjects such as how to make Kombucha, Yoga and Qi gong classes, meet the practitioner - your questions answered sessions, Complimentary Chinese herbal tea to sample and herbal tincture medicines for sale - Arnica, Calendula, Echinacea, etc.
The Festival will return to Elmhurst Park for a tenth year, and also returns to The Riverside, its long term venue for ‘club night’ events, for the first time since the pandemic.
The festival has been supported by public bodies and private enterprises, these include Mediterranean Shipping Company, Suffolk Building Society, East Suffolk Council, Woodbridge Town Council, Suffolk Digital, Grove Court and The Natural Health Centre. Tickets on sale now.
Festival dates at a glance.
Woodbridge Festival of Art and Music 2024 Main Event Dates:
Saturday 17 August Festival Pre-Party Ye Olde Bell And Steelyard with UK Disco don Simon Lee (Faze Action) and Ben Osborne from 5pm
Friday 30 August Festival Weekend Opening Night at The Riverside with UK Funk legend Les Spaine from 9pm
Saturday 31 August Main Event in Elmhurst Park from Midday plus night time venues from 8pm
Sunday 1 September All Day After Party Whisstocks Place From 1pm
Tickets
Tickets to venues available separately.
Bell and Steelyard - From £10
The Riverside - From £10
Elmhurst Park - From £10