The Deer Shed Festival 2010.

Evening Strumpets,

I`m really pleased to be able to let you know that the Festival was a screaming success. We travelled on the Saturday Morning, having had our induction and pitched our tent the previous night. Now then, here`s the thing. Louise has never had the camping experience before, let alone the Festival experience. The thought of not being able to plug in her straighteners, and be susceptible to a thousand creepy crawlies has never really appealed to her funnily enough. I won`t get started on the toilet facility issues she has.

But she knew it was a big thing for me, and the woman that she is, she decided to give it a go. The time came to go to the Busk Stop stage and meet up with Carl, who would be sharing MC duties with me and Giles The sound Engineer. Giles was a really good fella, and during the course of the day had to get levels for, amongst others, a brass section, eurosynth, Glockenspiels, casio organs and of course the dreaded banjo.

The rest of the Alice Charmers appeared and we had a quick practice, before boom, we were off nd running. The set went really well, and really was a lot of fun to do. And then it was time for the MCing to start. Barbara Helen was a lovely woman with songs straight from her heart. Hope and Social ( abnd from Leeds) were something else. I will be genuinely surprised if they don`t have a big part on the main stage next year, and are definitiely a band to keep an eye out for.

The Band with no name came on board and played an accoustic set which like the weather, brightened the day, and Mark, who was a guy who just turned up on the day with his guitar, just in case there were any slots, got a chance to play to a festival crowd. The Glendale family are a group from all four quarters of the United Kingdom came on board and regaled us, before Jonny Glue (Previously Jonny Male from the band Republica) stormed a set with humour and pathos, and of course the Euro Synth! It was at this point that I noticed a very dapper Gent wandering overto watch the stage. As I walked over to ask if he was playing later, it dawned on me that it was Miles Hunt! But what a nice man he turned out to be. He`d come over becuse one of his signings for his record label was playing on the Stage next. A guy called Dirty Ray.

Dirty ray is one of the finest performers I `ve seen for many a year. He`s a mix between Howlin` Wolf and Tom Waits, and has the kind of voice that doesn`t come around too often. He was a really cool bloke as well. if you get the chance definitely go and see him. Trevor Moss and Hannah Lou from Danny and the Champions of the World then sang a sweet short set, as hannah was having extreme pain from her Wisdom teeth.

The night of the Busk Stop was completed by the Wonderful Holly Taymar, who along with Chris Bilton delivered as perfect a set as you`ll hear anywhere.

I`ve got some foot age of most othese acts, which i`ll be posting over the next couple of days, but for now I`m off to see my sweetheart cos I`m knackered.


The camping went great, apart from the fact we pitched the tent on an eariwig nest!!! Louise was not that chuffed!




Till the next one,

learn something new,

Mark.