Camp Bestival

No circus is truly complete without a touch of magical miscellany, curious attractions and inexplicable distractions. And so, Camp Bestival’s most aberrant roustabouts have not only created an inspiring world of discovery with Oberon’s Observatory, the LEGO Imagination Factory and the Science Tent, but they’ve also brought together a breathtaking collection of oddities like Caravan of Lost Souls and Britain’s Not Got Talent that will enthral the whole family at Lulworth Castle this July 31-August 3.

Rob da Bank says: “We’ve got all sorts of incredible curiosities coming to Camp Bestival this year. From off the wall circus treats in the Caravan of Lost Souls, LEGO and their brilliant Imagination Factory, and surveying the site with a camp-bestiscope in Oberon’s Observatory to the mayhem of Britain’s Not Got Talent and amazing experiments in the Science Tent, there’s loads of ace stuff for all the family to discover. See you at Lulworth Castle!”

Starting with some curious circus fun, we have a true delight for the ears and eyes. Igor Rasputin’s Caravan of Lost Souls is an incredible ape-powered pop-up circus providing wondrous entertainment for your delectation and appreciation. Witness magic, contortion, hula hoop, mime, an amazing array of circus skills and more from this cabaret of curiosity, popping up in all four corners of Camp Bestival!

Entering a world of discovery, we are extremely excited to announce that LEGO will be joining us to kick off the summer holidays in style, with the Imagination Factory. A celebration of ‘free build’, this magical environment will immerse you in the LEGO belief in the power of each individual’s imagination. Doubters might see a pile of bricks and accessories but ‘we’ see a jet fighter, a beautiful flower, an alien monster, our dog called Spike or the skyline of New York. The golden rule of The Imagination Factory is that there are no rules – no rights or wrongs – just inspiration to let LEGO enable you to build anything that your imagination can conjure up.

In 2014, the year that modern man will try and harpoon a comet, Camp Bestival is proud to present Oberon's Observatory. A ramshackle but beautiful edifice with a stargazer's viewing platform, there will be camp-bestiscopes for studying the curiosities happening across the festival and searching for the stars. Hidden in the heart of Oberon's Observatory is an old projection room where Camp Bestival will screen 21st century windows into other worlds, space and art. For the period of one lunation only, Camp Bestival invites you to come and explore this extraordinary building.

Leaping headlong into the truly odd, the Showmany Calliope is mixture of traditional fairground showman heritage, pyrotechnics, a full independently powered 4K sound system and a bowtop caravan themed stage, that will play host to the devilish Mosschops and Sidewicket’s Britain’s Not Got Talent. So, do you want to perform on the craziest stage of all time? Have you got a talent? Have you not got talent? We don't care, because we haven't; so anything goes! From Dutch didgeridoo dancing to skateboarding budgerigars; panpipe duets to five-year-old Frank Carson impersonators (keep it clean please), we need you! Terms and Conditions do not apply.

And combining amazing discovery with the downright bizarre, the Science Tent is certainly not for boffins only and is definitely not to be missed! It’s a glorious mix of science-based performances like now>press>play and Rock Guitar in 11 Dimensions, timetabled science including programming robots, 3D printing your favourite Minecraft designs, being amazed by a Rapsberry Pi and lots, lots more and drop in sessions where you can make video games with Play-doh, power an alarm clock with fruit, pre-programme a robot arm and so much more. There’s tons to stimulate and fascinate every age group! And that includes you mums and dads!

Ladies and gentlemen, boys and girls, children of all ages, get ready for the greatest family show on earth! It’s all systems go for Camp Bestival 2014, taking place from July 31st to August 3rd, as we unleash the incredible all-action theme for our lucky seventh show, plus we’re launching our fun-tastic Advent Calendar packed with Christmas goodies that you won’t want to miss. And that’s not all, as we also have news of our ace Christmas promotion, and Camping Plus tickets too! 

Camp Bestival Ringmaster Rob da Bank says: “Roll up, roll up, it’s circus time at Camp Bestival! Right from the start of putting on parties, back in the old days, we’ve always loved a bit of circus ballyhoo, no party is complete without a juggler or an acrobat, a hula-hooper or a contortionist and we promise that Camp Bestival 2014 won’t disappoint. We can’t wait here at Camp Besti HQ to get into the ring, so grab your greasepaint, get your costumes ready and we’ll see you at the end of July to kick off the school summer holidays in style. In the meantime, make sure you open all the doors on our brilliant advent calendar, there are some amazing Christmas surprises in store for some lucky Camp Bestivalites!”

That’s right! Camp Bestival 2014 is all about the Circus! A subject that’s always been close to our hearts with our very own ringmaster, Rob da Bank, leading the charge, we’re taking our circus love to where it truly belongs, Lulworth Castle for a full on takeover! The Camp Bestival roustabouts have been performing astounding acrobatics of their own to bring you an array of spectacular attractions and awesome shows that will bring the unmistakable thrill of traditional and mind-bogglingly modern circus to our four-day festi-holiday paradise. And we want you to get involved too, from moustachioed musclemen, lion tamers and high wire trapeze artists to performing seals, ringmasters and clowns, there’s a whole universe of possibilities to dress up and join in the fun, so get your thinking caps on. And just to get you in the mood, check out Marawa the Amazingrevealing the Circus theme here.

We’re getting super-excited already and we hope you are too. So, if you’re anything like us you won’t be able to wait until we frolic in the fields once more, but that’s OK, you’re in luck as we’ve lined up our amazing Camp Bestival Advent Calendar!  A fun-packed 24-day extravaganza, our Advent calendar is brimming with exciting and exclusive content behind each door, including money can’t buy prizes, upgrades, brilliant activities, videos and competitions that will bring merry mayhem to the festive season. Make sure you don’t miss out and head to the Camp Bestival Advent Calendar from December 1st.

Following this year’s brilliant sell out show, tickets for 2014 are already flying, so as the festive season is properly upon us, why not treat your loved ones to a lovely Camp Bestival ticket for Christmas? And just to make it even more Christmassy, we’re offering a super-festive and exclusive Camp Bestival Christmas Card with all tickets ordered between now and Christmas, so get your skates on! 

Striving to make Camp Bestival as good as it can possibly be, we are very pleased to be able to announce that the hugely popular Camping Plus will be on sale from Friday 29th November from 9am. Our own unique initiative designed to give a bit of peace of mind to Camp Bestival-goers who want to make sure they’ve got themselves a corking camping plot reserved, Camping Plus gives you a prime 5m x 7m pitch and has its own dedicated car park and entrance, with very easy access to showers, nice loos and a brilliant café. Camping Plus plots cost £125.00 (max of 2 adults and 4 children per plot – Early Bird price available for a limited time only) and are perfect not only if you know you won’t be arriving as soon as the gates open but also if you just want the comfort of knowing that you’ve got your camping space sorted.

And don’t forget that you can use our pioneering Payment Plan to purchase your tickets, meaning that an adult ticket can now be bought at a payment of just £7.80 per week over 25 consecutive weekly payments. Once you have signed up to the payment plan, which basically means giving your agreement by ticking the bank mandate form on Ticketline’s website, we will automatically debit your card on a weekly basis.

News of the music line-up, the comedy, poets, spoken word, attractions & activities, theatre & shows and lashings of circus action will be announced very soon, so make sure you get the inside track on our website and our Facebook and Twitter.

Camp Bestival 2014 Tickets:

Ticketline / 0844 888 4410

Adult Weekend Ticket (inc. camping) – £195
Adult Tickets are for anyone aged 18 or over on 31/07/2014

Student Weekend Ticket (inc. camping) – £180
Student Tickets are for Students with valid ID between 31/07/2014

Age 15 to 17 Weekend Ticket (inc. camping) – £113
Age 15 to 17 Weekend Tickets are for anyone aged 15 to 17 on 01/08/2014. These ticket holders must be accompanied by a Ticket holding parent or guardian over the age of 30*

Age 11 to 14 Weekend Ticket (inc. camping) – £88
Age 11 to 14 Weekend Tickets are for anyone aged 11 to 14 on 01/08/2014. These ticket holders must be accompanied by a Ticket holding parent or guardian over the age of 26*

* NB: 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 26)

Age 5 -10 Weekend Ticket (inc. camping) – £20
These ticket holders must be accompanied by a Ticket holding parent or guardian over the age of 21*

Age 4 and Under Weekend Ticket (inc. camping) – FREE (but ticket still required)
Age 4 and Under Weekend Tickets are for anyone aged 4 and under on 31/07/2014. These ticket holders must be accompanied by a Ticket holding parent or guardian over the age of 21*

Camping Plus Plot – £125

Advance Car Parking – £11

Campervan Ticket – £72 per vehicle

Caravan/Trailer tent ticket (includes a car parking space) – £83

Well, what can we say? Camp Bestival 2013 was another utterly awesome festi-holiday frolic. We had four days of sunshine and fun with awe-inspiring sets from Richard Hawley, Levellers, Labrinth, Grandmaster Flash, Introducing’s Daft Punk extravaganza, Sasha, Gabrielle Aplin’s secret gig, David Rodigan’s Ram Jam, DJ Yoda, The Cuban Brothers and more, the crowds were singing and dancing all weekend long. And with another legendary performance from Mr Tumble, japes aplenty from Dick n Dom, Disney World Record attempts, Horrible Histories, the utterly stunning Erth’s Dinosaur Zoo, the kids were knocked off their feet!  And that’s not to mention a whole list of highlights like the Black Eagles Circus, The Young British Foodies, Jo Whiley, Charlie Brooksinterviewed by Sara Cox, the Story Den in the Dingly Dell, the Freesports Park, Dance Space and Art Town, theSoul Park and so much other amazing stuff, we packed in more than ever this year and had such a brilliant time. We hope you did too!

Rob da Bank says: “Wow what a year…sun, fun and our best crowd yet in a 4 day technicolour knees up. Thanks to all the crew, artists and mostly you lovely lot for creating such a spectacle. So, to 2014 and I've already got some great acts in the bag and even more action planned for all ages so get in early and see you in 12 months!”

Now that Camp Bestival 2013 is over, we’re already looking ahead to 2014 (July 31st to Aug 3rd, 2014) and how we can make things even better and so much more fun! So if you had as good a time as us, then you’ll be pleased to hear that Camp Bestival 2014 Early Bird Tickets are on sale now! Available at special Early Bird prices for a limited time, you’re going to have to be quick to snap them up! Tickets are available from Ticketline and will also be available on our innovative Weekly Payment Plan so you can choose to pay for your tickets in one go, or split the total cost over 34 or 36 weekly payments:

We’re pleased to announce that we will be once again be offering our 34 week payment plan for Friday entry weekend tickets and a 36 week payment plan for Thursday entry weekend tickets which means that an adult ticket can now be bought at a payment of £5 per week over 34 or 36 weekly payments. Once you have signed up to the payment plan, which basically means giving your agreement by ticking the bank mandate form on Ticketline’s website, we will automatically debit your card on a weekly basis. NB: Booking fees will be charged with your initial transaction.

Camping Plus reserved pitches will be available to buy separately when they go on sale later this year.

Sunday night saw our incredible Grand Finale fireworks display and animation mapped onto the stunning backdrop of Lulworth Castle. Themed ‘What A Wonderful World’, the creative teams from BrightonArt, Chroma Collective andTwo Tigers Fireworks joined forces once again to create an absolutely magical masterpiece which you can nowwatch in full here: http://youtu.be/dDjx_xkJaxI (if viewing on mobile watch here: http://vimeo.com/72028010)

Finally, if you missed out on Camp Bestival 2013 merchandise at the festival, this is your chance to get your hands on our selection of T-shirts, hoodies, sweatshirts and more – loads of items that sold out at the festival are now available again to buy with plenty sizes currently in stock: visit our Camp Bestival Shop now: http://bestival.firebrandstore.com/camp-bestival

So that just leaves us to say a huge and heartfelt thanks to everyone who came along to this year’s Camp Bestival and made it so special. Roll on 2014!