BoomTown Fair is a UK festival that takes place in August. It featrues 4 days of live music and art event that offers an array of fringe comedy and theatre. The festival has an ongoing theme surrounding the "legend" of the festival, where Boomtown was once a small retreat, that had been changed into a "land of lawless rebels" with an actual "town population" of 13,000.

• Boomtown 2013 Lineup
• Arcadia at Boomtown

2013 EQUINOX

There will be a half way party held in a multi venue complex near Bristol, this is set to take place March 22nd.

Vibe

Going in to its fifth year BoomTown Fair is an arts, craft and creative festival that celebrates ska, reggae, dub, swing as well as roots and bass culture. With winding streets and eccentric venues to explore, BoomTown Fair is an actual town created by an ever expanding network of artists, craftsmen and imaginative minds

Many enjoy the "Boomtown Legend" as they feel it makes the event an unique experience. Providing a mammoth 25 stages, many find themselves returning year after year, as there is just so much to take in.

In a review spotted on the website I've Been There, one fan of Boomtown Fair commented "I want to be back in the land of Boomtown Fair, where drinking all day is encouraged, mechanical horses carry children through the crowds, the music is mad and the people are smiling".

BoomTown Fair is far from your average festival setting. Year after year the town committee push the boundaries and create an interactive and engaging pop-up city for the BoomTown residents to fully immerse themselves in.

Stages and other entertainment

The main stage line-up will consist of ska and party bands from around the world, with the other live music stages offering cabaret, gypsy, folk, reggae, dub and country and western. Plus loads of cabaret, comedy, spoken word, a range of stages, an anarchist theatre, lots of site art and many areas to explore.

BoomTown has a specially designated family campsite with showers, toilets, etc. There is also a children’s area with its own reception for babies, toddlers and children up to 12. The area is provides creative workshops and has a chill out space for parents.

Plus loads of cabaret, comedy, spoken word, a range of stages, an anarchist theatre, lots of site art and many areas to explore with plenty of catering options, all the normal facilities you'd expect at a festival and a massive emphasis on eco-friendly initiatives.

As the name suggests, the site is erected to look like a proper town, with 12 different districts – including 22 stages - for revellers to explore and enjoy. One of the areas, Mayfair Avenue, even boasts a casino, a gentleman’s club, hotels, banks, and daily roller discos.

And another new addition, The Old Town, gives festival goers the opportunity to, ‘step into a time machine and witness how their grandparents used to party with old skool disco’s blaring out nostalgic music from the 50’s onwards’.

Tickets

• Tier 1 - £85 – SOLD OUT
• Tier 2 - £97 – SOLD OUT
• Tier 3 - £109 - SOLD OUT
• Tier 4 - £124
• Tier 5 - £139
• Teen 13 -17 Years inclusive £85
• 6-12 Years Inclusive - £20
• Under 6 Free

The "Town Mayor" has also launched a charity initiative, with the option of ticket buyers donating £2 into the Boom Pot, which shall be handed over to a number of charities in the local community.

The festival sell out almost every year so we would recommend getting your tickets as soon as possible.

VIP

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Children

The festival tries its best to make the event child friendly as possible, with more child friendly entertainment being added year on year.

There is a "quiet" family camping area, as well as a kiddies area and reception for toddlers, babies and children under 12. This area has a creative program with workshops and games as well as a chill out area for parents.

**2013 UPDATE::

There will be an area with a mini festival feel called Kidztown, which shall offer a variety of workshops, stage shows, puppets, face painting, family bingo, quirky dance off’s, bouncy play and oodles more, including the guest appearance from four metre high BinBot – a friendly giant robot made from recycled wheelie bins!

Other slightly smaller activities and attractions include: Three Bears Picnic, bring a bear and keep your eyes open for Goldie Locks and the three bears... Beatbox workshops for all the family, Geodome play climbing frames; one for littler children and one for the medium ones! Gorilla Vs Granny breakdance – dance off show where kids join in and show off their breakdancin moves! GrannyOke, karaoke and dress up - karaoke granny style or Gran-nam style!

Horse ‘n’ Cart rides for families and kids, lifts to and from car parks are also available; Spongeboards, splat a wet sponge at someone when the heat gets too much and finally, the most traditional of festival fun rides, the Swingboats!

This is only scratching the surface on what is on offer.

Disability Access

For more information contact: access@boomtown.co.uk

Weather

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Location

The festival takes place in The Bowl, Matterley Estate, Hampshire.

Local Information

Nearby Winchester is a historical cathedral city, with a great choice of countryside walks and gardens.

Winchester also hosts the country's largest Farmer's market, as well as a good selection of pubs noted in the Real Ale bible "The Good Beer Guide"

There is also the old and preserved steam railway Mid-Hants Railway, as well as the preserved Edwardian water pumpin station Twyford Waterworks.

Travel

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Matterley Estate has direct access to the A31 dual carriageway and the A272 main road. These roads provide easy access for the A33, A34 and M3 with direct routes to and from London, Brighton and the M4 corridor in under 1 hour and Southampton, Portsmouth and Bournemouth in minutes. Winchester Railway Station is on the South Western Main Line with direct links to London Waterloo and all the above mentioned towns and cities. Southampton International Airport is a mere 12 miles away! Heathrow and Gatwick are also within very easy reach of Matterley Bowl.

If travelling from via the A303 and the A34 or from the M3 then exit at junction 9 – and if travelling from the south then leave the M3 at junction 10 and follow the A31 for A31 for approximately 3 miles and the site is on the south side of the A31 just past its junction with the A272. Signage will be on the roads for all major events.

Local Accommodation

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What to wear

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Camping

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Site Information

Ticket purchasers will be asked to pay an additional £10 eco bond deposit. On arrival, attendees will be given a 'boomtown eco bag'. Organisers ask everyone to fill this bag with all their rubbish and hand it back into one of the drop off points for recycling, and have their £10 deposit returned.

Food and drink

There is a great selection of food outlets in designated areas of the festival.

There are also several bars situated around the festival area. If you intend to bring alcohol to Boomtown then you will only be allowed to bring a reasonable quantity for personal consumption into the site. You can bring up to 16 cans or a box of wine or 3 litres of cider/larger/ beer/wine (decanted into plastic bottles). Spirits are not allowed. You can bring this with you on arrival to the festival only.

Perform at the festival

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Volunteer or work

For more information, click here

Drugs and security

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Stream online

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Mobile Apps

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Trivia

In 2012, the event expanded it's wall with h "town planners" allowing new streets and new venues, as well as improved camping facilities, and more second story buildings, the fancy dress theme was Outer Space.

Past lineups

2012 acts confirmed included Reel Big Fish, Asian Dub Foundation and Kill The Noise. The full line-up can be found here.

2011 line-up: Bad Manners, Gogol Bordello, Caravan Palace, Goldie Lookin Chain, DJ Zinc, Redlight & MC Dread, Ms Dynamite, 3 Daft Monkeys, The Baghdaddies, The Mandibles, Drunken Balordi, Plus many more...

2010: Toots And The Maytals, Ska n Ska, Neville Staple (The Specials), The Wurzels, and Dub Pistols, The Caravans, Long Tall Texans, Slim Slip & the Sliders, Tragic Roundabout, plus many more...

2009:Discípulos de Otilia, Smoke Like a Fish, Sonic Boom Six, Catchit Kebabs, Tofu Love Frogs, Zion Train, Vibronics, Step 13, and Dub FX, The Don Bradmans, 3 Daft Monkeys, Kilnaboy, plus many more...