Bedford Park Concerts 2017 Review

August 2017 saw the town of Bedford celebrating its 21st year of putting on its brilliant Park Concerts.  With everyone still reeling from the success of last year's event, which saw performances from rapper Dizzee Rascal and the one and only welsh legend Tom Jones, organisers really had to step up to top that for this year's concert weekend.  Boy did they certainly do that! 

The weekend provided three nights of amazing performers. Friday night (4th August) took us back in time to the 80s and 90s for the ultimate party that was oozing with cheesy pop goodness. The evening got off to a great start with performaces from 90s Zambian solo artist Rozalla who was most famously known for releasing the track "Everybody's Free" and singer/songwriter Nik Kershaw. Kershaw not only saw fame as a solo artist but also wrote big hits for other artists. Including Chesney Hawkes infamous "The One And only" which Nik also performed himself this weekend dedicating the song to Hawkes. Friday night also gave us the lovely and rather sparkly Baby D who performed three tracks, one of which was the amazing club classic, "Let Me Be Your Fantasy". One act of the night that was getting people talking was 80s english pop band Go West. The Duo enjoyed their peak of popularity between the mid 80s and onto the early 90s with hits including "We Close Our Eyes" and the iconic song written by the band for 1990 film realease "Pretty Woman" which was indeed the unforgettable "King Of Wishful Thiking". We were lucky to see both of these being performed on friday night also. Friday's biggest performances came from 80s pop hunk Jason Donovan, Livin' Joy and DJ Dave Pearce. Shortly after 8pm, the pit area of the arena was filled with middle aged women anxiously awaiting the arrival of their favourite 80s hearthrob. Donovan still looked great, and performed famous hits of his including "Sealed With A Kiss", "Nothing Can Divide Us", "Especially For You" which he sang with a guest female soloist for Kylie Minogue's segments of the single, the amazing "Any Dream Will Do" from the infamous musical Joseph And The Amazing Technicolour Dreamcoat" and he finished his energetic set with fan favourite "Too Many Broken Hearts". In My opinion, Aussie favourite Jason Donovan has certainly still got it! His stage presence was charismatic, cheeky and comical. During sets for Livin' Joy and Dave Pearce we were treated to many 90s club classics and heavy bass beats while watching an amazing laser light show from the stage which filled the grounds. 

Saturday evening (5th August) Bedford featured artists including, London based band Victoria, Bedford town boys The Wholls, 90s indie band Feeder and headliners Kaiser Chiefs! In amoungst thousands of people eating pizzas, mexican cuisine and drinking rather large quanitities of Pimms, I could feel how electric the atmosphere within the park really was. Chatter of people so excitedly waiting to see their favourite bands of the evening, including the performers families and friends.  Rock/indie, Bedford boys The Wholls drew in a younger audience while performing original songs "Give It Up", "Perfect Waste Of Time" and "Roll It Out". The local lads are quickly climbing up the music fame ladder after recently signing to big recording label Sony. If you like new up and coming bands, you should definitly check them out. Their debut album is out now. 

The first of the most anticipated acts of saturday night were met with a rather loud roar of excitement from the crowds of people in front of the stage.  Of course this excitement was when 90s welsh rock band Feeder stepped on stage. The band  formed in Newport in 1992 and were originally named Reel. The band found fame with the name feeder later on in their career. They are said to have been inspired by Nirvana, The Police and The Smashing pumpkins. Feeder gained much more media attention in 2001 during the release of their third album which featured lead track "Buck Rogers".  Now some time on are now looking very different, but can still play an amazing live gig.  Over the weekend we saw them perform a variety of hit singles including the chart topping "Buck Rogers", "Feeling A Moment",  "Just A Day" and the very mellow "Just The Way I'm Feeling" which caused the arena to become filled with fans gently waving their mobile phones with torches on in the air. Lead vocalist Grant Nicholas also revealed that they will be releasing a best of album in September 2017. This album will feature all the favourite hits and also debut nine new tracks. During the final song of Feeder's set a flare was lit in the crowd which to be perfectly honest looked quite spectaluar with its yellow glow and smoke filling the pit area. Despite looking rather awesome, this was a big hazard which could have caused harm and this was dealt with very swiftly by the security team looking after everyone over the weekend. 

Onto Saturday night's headline act! English rock band Kaiser Chiefs! The park was filled with screams and excitement when members of the band stepped on stage. Even more so for front man Ricky Wilson. The band was formed in Leeds in the year 2000 under the name Parva and released just one studio album which was titled '22' in 2003 before then establishing themselves as Kaiser Chiefs. With six studio album releases under their belts they are still going strong and continue to make great new music.  The five piece opened their exciting set with the ever popular "Everyday I Love You Less And Less" to which at the end of the song singer Ricky Wilson came to the very edge of the stage to encourage ticketholders to be louder and dance.  Over the course of the evening we saw them perform hits including "Never Miss A Beat", "Modern Way", "The Angry Mob" which we saw Ricky teaching lyrics to the audience to sing along with him, "Ruby", the massive "I Predict A Riot" and a favourite of Wilson's from their latest album "Hole In My Soul". Their latest singles from the 2016 album 'Stay Together' are quite different from the slightly heavier rock style that we are used to hearing from Kaiser Chiefs, they have a bit more of a slight pop/indie sound with catchy lyrics and more mellow rythms. During their set the very energetic front man was continuously playing up to cameras and playing one side of the audience off against the other during tracks. We were even asked by the band to sing "Happy birthday" as a birthday cake was brought out filled with candles on stage to celebrate the birthdays of a member of their sound crew and also drummer Vijay. After filling the park with music, strobe lighting and fans jumping around like caged animals the lads left the stage leaving us all shouting for "More, More, More" The rather tired looking band members returned to the stage once more to perform not one, but two more hits for us. They played "Misery Company" and then ended their set with the brilliant "Oh My God" I can honestly say Kaiser Chiefs have to be the best band that I have ever seen live! I am still feeling the buzz since seeing them on saturday night. And I'm pretty sure I will be for a very long time. Before this weekend I had enjoyed them, but now I love them! 

Still reeling from the night before, we then attended Sunday's Bedford Park Proms. A much more relaxed kind of day with a lovely calm yet excitable atmosphere. This year's theme was Bedford Proms Goes To The Movies. Upon entering the grounds we were greeted by a replica of the famous Delorean from "Back To The Future", which looked amazing with twinkling lights and its doors up in the air so that we could see some fun movie props from the films. All that was missing was Doc Brown and Marty Mcfly. On the far side of the stage we could also see a huge inflatable of Staypuft from the Ghostbusters films and a birds of prey meet and greet tent inspired by the enchanting Harry potter film franchaise. The Proms really was an event for all of the family to enjoy.  The grounds were filled with people equipped with tables, chairs and fancy food spreads. We even spotted someone that brought their own drinks bar with them. While some were sitting in their fold up chairs, covered with blankets just soaking in the ambiance, others were chatting with friends and relatives while dining on some rather exquisite meals which even included snacking on  lobster! Very elegant stuff indeed. A popular and clever food choice taken by many ticketholders was large quantities of watermelon. Have you guessed why? It was a little reference to the iconic film "Dirty Dancing". 

To get the musical evening off to a start we saw the young, talented and very brave children of the Pilgrim School Choir enter the stage with their teacher. All smartly dressed in their school uniform sporting lovely green blazers the children began to sing some of their favourite classics from the movies. Their time slot gave them the chance to perform well known songs from musicals and feature films including "A Whole New World" from Disney classic Aladdin, "When I Grow Up" featured in Matilda, "Do-Re-Me" from the timeless film and stage show The Sound Of Music and popular Mary Poppins track "Supercalifragilisticexpialidocious" which was made famous originally by Dame Julie Andrews and Dick Van Dyke. The small choir sang beautifully and were very professional on stage during their performance. It was very lovely to watch as the primary school children smiled at their families who were sitting in front of them in the pit area with cameras and tears of joy feeling immensely proud of their little ones for such an amazing achievement. 

Shortly after a small interval entered the next act of the evening. The students from The Redford School of Speech and Drama. The teens looked flawless as they were elegantly dressed in tuxedos and ball gowns as they walked onto the stage to take their places. The teenagers began their set with their rendition of the chart topping single "Skyfall" which was the title track originally made famous by popstar Adele from the James Bond film Skyfall. With gentle harmonies their version was just beautiful and soothing. The Choir then went on to perform Journey's "Don't Stop Believin" which was also featured in hit TV musical show Glee. The choir featured a male and female soloist during their version of the peppy pop song with the rest of the group performing in an accapella style.  One memorable part of the performance from this group of talented people, was a female soloist coming forward to sing latest disney release "How Far I'll Go" which happens to be the lead track on the soundtrack to Disney's Moana. The single was originally performed by Auli'i Cravalho who also voice's the lovely Moana in the animated feature film. The young blonde vocalist in the school choir sounded remarkably like the original voice actor while performing this song. She had the most beautiful and delicate voice, her rendition literally gave me goosebumps. The group performed a medley of music from feature films to finish their set, which again featured acapella vocals. During the medley the choir performed tracks which included "Part Of Your World" from The Little Mermaid originally sang by Jodi Benson, the "Star Wars Main theme", "Rule The World" originally performed by Take That for the film Stardust, "The Circle Of Life" from The Lion King, "The Time Of My Life" from Dirty Dancing, and an amazing leg slapping routine to "You're Gonna Miss Me When I'm Gone" which was used in the film Pitch Perfect and was performed by actress and singer Anna Kendrick. During this amazing medley of memorable soundtracks the group also performed approproate theatrics on stage to accompany each hit that they sang. These young people had amazling talent and really could go far in the music industry.

For the main concert, which started around 7.30pm our ears were treated to the sounds of the London Gala Orchestra who also introduced the Bedford choral society and west end stars Joanna Forrest, Daniel Koek, and opera vocalist Alison Buchanan. Daniel had performed "Born Free" and also sang "The Prayer" alongside Joanna. Alison Buchanan performed the ever wonderful "Ave Maria" with the orchestra also. During the concert we heard many well known soundtrack releases from feature films being performed by the London Gala Orchestra which also heavily focused on the amazing compositions of the award winning John Williams to which they played some of his most memorable pieces such as the "Star Wars Main Theme", "The Imperial March" also from Star wars, the "Jaws theme" from the movie of the same name, the "Superman Theme", the "Jurassic Park Theme", the theme from the whiptastic "Indiana Jones" and many many more. At the end of the night the orchestra brought their time to a close by playing the patriotic "Rule, Britannia" and "The Land Of Hope And Glory" as they were joined on stage by all three vocalists wearing great britain attire. The grounds was a sea of Union Jack flags waving in the wind. They then performed famous music from the James Bond film franchaise during a spectacular firework display, which also saw the organisers set off what I can only explain as mushroom cloud flame throwers which were situated in the pit area of the park. Sunday was definitly the most enjoyable night of the three for me (minus the Kaiser Chiefs on Saturday evening). There was no rushing around, no being trampled on by people trying to see their favourite acts. Just good old fashioned patriotic fun.

 

My weekend at Bedford Park Concerts was certainly a busy one. But nevertheless a very enjoyable one. I loved my time there as did our photographer and our 2 year old son. 

I wonder how Bedford will be able to top this next year? 
I can't wait to find out what they will have in store for their 2018 weekend!

All photos by Kane Howie

For more photos visit 

FRIDAY!

SATURDAY!

SUNDAY!

Bedford Park Concerts 2017 Preview

Bedford Park Concerts is back for 2017 after a very successful event last year which showcased the legendary Tom Jones,  rapper Dizzie Rascal and many more. This year we will see the return of an amazing jam packed three day line up. Friday 4th August will will see Bedford's biggest 80s and 90s themed party night with seven awesome retro acts which will include the likes of DJ Dave Pearce who is best known for hosting BBC Radio 1's Dance Anthems, Ex Neighbours star, musician and Australian favourite Jason Donovan, 80's band Go West, Nick Kershaw, 'Dreamer' artists Livin' Joy, Rozalla and Baby D who brought us singles "Let Me Be Your Fantasy" and "Everybody's Gotta learn Sometime".

Friday's Schedule:
16:30 Gates Open
17:00 Rozalla 
17:40 Nik Kershaw 
18:35 Baby D
19:15 Go West
20:15 Jason Donovan
21:15 Livin' Joy
21:50 Dave Pearce

On Saturday 5th August, Leeds Indie rockers Kaiser Chiefs are expected to perform some of their most notable hits including "I Predict A Riot", "Ruby", "Everyday I Love You Less And Less" and more from their six studio albums.  Supporting will be Welsh band Feeder, The Wholls – a local Bedford Town favourite and lastly indie rock band Victoria.  

Saturday's Schedule:
16:30 Gates open
17:45 Victoria
18:45 The Wholls
19:45 Feeder
21:15 Kaiser Chiefs

Sunday 6th August the weekend event will present  Bedford Proms 'Goes To The Movies'.  This wil be an evening of beautiful west end style performances including a set from Australian Tenor Daniel Koek who starred in west end show Les Miserables.  He will also be joined by soprano singer Joanna Forest and opera vocalist Alison Buchanan who is originally from the town of Bedford.  As if there isn't enough to enjoy there will also be the London Gala Orchestra, Bedford Choral Society, a laser light show and even the infamous Delorean car from the memorable Back To The Future franchaise films and a firework finale to round up the weekend to bring it to a close.  

Sunday's Schedule:
16:30 Gates open 
17:15 Pilgrim School Choir 
18:00 Bedford School Of Speech and Drama
19:30 Main Concert 

I can see this being a very popular event. Tickets are still available to get yours while you can. 

To purchase tickets please click on the dates below

FRIDAY 4TH

SATURDAY 5TH

SUNDAY 6TH

For more information click HERE!

The retro legends come to Norfolk for Reload Festival

Reload Festival confirms it will bring a raft of British and US music legends to Norfolk for its two-day event later this year, on Saturday 6 & Sunday 7 September, at the region’s Showground

Saturday’s main stage line-up is confirmed to include a UK exclusive performance by Kool & the Gang, along with Soul II Soul, Rick Astley, ABC, Go West, Hot Chocolate, Imagination, Oddysey and From the Jam

The Human League, Billy Ocean, Sister Sledge, Jason Donovan, Heaven 17, Aswad, Bjorn Again, The Real Thing and more will complete the main stage line-up on the Sunday.

These iconic artists have amassed scores of classic smash hits, through a vast array of musical styles, from Ladies’ Night, Don’t You Want Me BabyWe Are Family, Celebration, Back to Life, When the Going Gets Tough, the Tough Get Going and Too Many Broken Hearts, through to You To Me Are Everything, We Close Our Eyes, Don’t Turn Around, The Look of Love, Temptation and Never Gonna Give You Up

With family camping available on-site, a second stage featuring a host of DJs spinning the big sounds, trapeze artists, stilt walkers, a silent disco, karaoke and much more, Reload Festival is the place to show the kids how it’s really done

A Reload Festival spokesperson comments: Reload Festival is a brand new festival dedicated to delivering music for a generation of partygoers who long for the days of music you can really dance to. Reload represents the rare opportunity to see a large number of top acts across one weekend of huge hits”

More dates for Hampton Court Palace Festival

Due to public demand, Historic Royal Palaces and PWR Events are delighted to announce that Jools Holland will play an extra date at Hampton Court Palace Festival on 11th June. Always a sellout at the Festival, he will be joined by the fantastic Gilson Lavis and special guests include Melanie C and Marc Almond and guest vocalists Ruby Turner and Louise Marshall who together with Jools and his fantastic Rhythm & Blues Orchestra will raise the roof of the magnificent Palace for two special nights. 

Jamie Wells, Director of PWR Events said: “Jools Holland has always been a favourite at the Festival, playing more than 30 times over the last 20 years and we’re thrilled that he will be with us for two nights this June. It’s always a great party night and wonderful way to open the Festival.”

In addition, there will be an enchanting night of opera on 21st June. The Royal Philharmonic Concert Orchestra will present a special midsummer’s concert conducted by Renato Balsadonna and featuring the beautiful voices of soprano Deborah Norman and rising star Noah Stewart.

Other artists already confirmed include: George Benson, The Beach Boys, Jamie Cullum, Rick Astley & Jason Donovan, Jools Holland and the Royal Philharmonic Concert Orchestra who will all perform in Henry VIII’s open air courtyard. 

Jools Holland

Hampton Court Palace Festival 2014 full lineup announced

Historic Royal Palaces and PWR Events are delighted to announce the artists that are confirmed for next year’s Hampton Court Palace Festival: George Benson, The Beach Boys, Jamie Cullum, Rick Astley & Jason Donovan, Jools Holland and the Royal Philharmonic Concert Orchestra will all perform in Henry VIII’s open air courtyard. The Beach Boys will go on sale on Wednesday 18th December, but all other shows are on sale now. 

The ten-time Grammy award-winner George Benson will perform hits from his impressive back catalogue including Give Me The Night, Lady Love Me (One More Time) and Turn Your Love Around on 23rd June as well as songs from his latest album Inspiration: A Tribute to Nat King Cole

The Beach Boys who are known as the ultimate American rock band from California will be gracing the audience with their musical talents on 24th June. Known for their top hits including: Good Vibrations, Wouldn’t It Be Nice and Surfs Up, The Beach Boys have sold in excess of 100 million records worldwide. With 28 studio albums and 4 live albums to choose from we are sure they will not disappoint.  

We are thrilled that the most successful UK jazz artist ever, Jamie Cullum will make his Festival debut on 17th June. With a Grammy, two Golden Globe, two BRIT, GQ Music Man of the Year, Sony Radio Award under his belt, Jamie will treat the audience to his classic hits and songs from his new album Momentum. 

On 20th June, pop sensations Rick Astley and Jason Donovan will perform a double-headliner singing all their big hits. On confirming his slot at the Festival, Rick said: 

“I am overjoyed to be playing at Hampton Court Palace this year. I’ve just moved and now live four minutes away, so Jason and I are going to have a garden party before the concert. It’ll be like a home gig and the perfect way you start the summer.”

Pop sensation Rick Astley rose to fame in the 1980s and dominated the charts around the world. He still holds the record of being the only male solo artist to have his first 8 singles reach the UK Top Ten and in 2008 he won ‘Best Act Ever’ at the MTV Europe Music Awards. Rick’s unique soulful and engaging performance continues to wow audiences wherever he goes. We look forward to an evening of all the hits, including the song that shot him to fame ‘Never Gonna Give You Up’.

Star of stage and screen Jason Donovan has had a glittering career since the days of ‘Neighbours’ and his subsequent success in the world of pop music. Since that time, he has rarely been away from stage or screen including leading stage roles in ‘Joseph’, ‘The Rocky Horror Show’, ‘Chitty Chitty Bang Bang’, ‘Priscilla’ and ‘The Sound of Music’. Jason continues to be a well-loved household name, and delighted TV audiences by reaching the ‘Strictly Come Dancing’ final, as well as being mentor and judge on ITV’s ‘Superstar’. Jason will treat us to classic hits including ‘Sealed with a Kiss’ and ‘Nothing Can Divide Us’.

Always a sellout favorite at the Festival, Jools Holland will open the summer concerts. His passion for music has made him a doyen of the music scene, and he was awarded an OBE in 2003 for his services to the British music industry. Jools’ phenomenal success has seen him sell millions of records throughout the course of his career and he holds the unique status of performing with musicians who have achieved success in every decade of the 20th Century. He will be joined by the fantastic Gilson Lavis and special guests include Melanie C and Marc Almond and guest vocalists Ruby Turner and Louise Marshall who together with Jools and his fantastic Rhythm & Blues Orchestra will raise the roof of the magnificent Palace once again.

Jools Holland

The Royal Philharmonic Concert Orchestra also returns to the Festival for another spectacular classical evening. Conducted by Ben Palmer, the Orchestra will perform scores from the mainstream masters of classical music: from Mozart to Tchaikovsky, Grieg to Elgar and Debusy to Strauss. A fireworks display will provide a visual fanfare to round off this superb evening.

Date Artist Time Ticket Prices

12th June Jools Holland

14th June Fanfare & Fireworks with the Royal Philharmonic Orchestra

17th June Jamie Cullum

20th June Rick Astley & Jason Donovan

23rd June George Benson

24th June Beach Boys