Wickham Festival
Wickham Festival is a 4-day music event that takes place in the village of Wickham, Hampshire, England. Wickham hosts live music and comedy across four stages, as well as food stalls, craft stalls, real ale and cider bars and children's entertainers. It has been listed by The Guardian as a top 'Family Friendly Boutique Festival'. The 2015 Wickham Festival was named Best Festival at the Live UK Music Business Awards, and the 2018 event won Best Festival at The Guide Awards, with the 2019 event taking the title of Best Live Event.
Although the history of the festival can be traced to the 2003 Eastleigh Festival, the first Wickham Festival was held from 3–6 August 2006 in and around the village community centre, with a line-up rooted in folk and traditional music. Since then the festival has expanded to become a venue for both well established artists and those just breaking through, across many musical genres, and has previously hosted talks from the likes of Tony Benn and Bill Oddie. Recent years have seen high profile performances from rock and pop artists, including James Blunt, Kiefer Sutherland, Frank Turner, Wilko Johnson and Lightning Seeds. The festival has not lost touch with its roots, continuing to promote folk music, world music and such festival stalwarts as Richard Thompson, Bellowhead and Steve Earle. Wickham Festival has also introduced British audiences to international musicians, including Carlos Núñez Muñoz, The Spooky Men's Chorale and Le Vent du Nord.
History
The origins of Wickham Festival can be found in the original Gosport Festival of the early 1990s, and the Eastleigh Music Festival. Both these events were organised by local councillor and music promoter Peter Chegwyn.Gosport Festival
The original Gosport Festival organised by Chegwyn, Robin Fegan & Pam Pullen ran from 1991 to 1995 on Walpole Park, Gosport, Hampshire. Concerts were held in a 1000 capacity 'Big Top' and an Open Stage. Artists to perform at the festival included Roger Taylor of Queen, B B King, The Saw Doctors, The Manfreds and The Bootleg Beatles. The Gosport Festival also saw one of the first shows from the supergroup SAS Band.Gosport and Fareham Easter Festival
Mr Chegwyn also organised the popular Gosport & Fareham Easter Folk Festival, which ran from 2001 to 2011, Based out of Fernham Hall, Fareham, attendees would be treated to 4 days of folk music, workshops, dance displays, craft fairs, and a Cèilidh.The festival was set to move to Wickham in 2012, however it was decided to incorporate it into Wickham Festival instead.
Eastleigh 'Big Top' Music Festival
The current festival began as the Eastleigh 'Big Top' Music festival in 2003:The history of Eastleigh’s Music Festival can be traced back to 2002 with the involvement of Keith House, Eastleigh’s council leader with his fellow Liberal Democrat and county council colleague Peter Chegwyn who was also a music promoter. Mr Chegwyn had been organising a highly successful music festival in Gosport which had featured artistes like the international blues superstar and guitar legend B.B King. The intention was to try and replicate the success in Eastleigh.
Location(s)
Previous locations
Since the first Eastleigh Music Festival in 2003, the site changed a number of times before settling in its current location.Eastleigh
Between 2003 and 2005, the festival took place at Eastleigh Park, Eastleigh. The Eastleigh Music Festival was a six day event featuring live music and entertainment, with free lunchtime world music concerts, free family entertainment every afternoon and ticketed evening concerts.Stokes Bay
The festival moved to Wickham in 2006, however due to issues with Winchester Council, it was relocated for 2008 and 2009. For these two years, Wickham was incorporated in to the Stokes Bay Festival at Stokes Bay, Gosport. The festival returned to Wickham in 2010.Wickham
Wickham is a village located in Hampshire, just north of Fareham. The historic village square is home to a number of bars, restaurants, boutique shops and hotels. Wickham is also home to the historic Chesapeake Mill, built from the timbers of HMS Chesapeake.Apart from 2008/2009, the festival has taken place in Wickham since 2006. The first Wickham Festival included performances from Daby Blade from Senegal, Spiers and Boden, Los Pacaminos, Richard Thompson, Shooglenifty, Sparks, Oysterband, Fiddlers' Bid, Osibisa, Flook, Steeleye Span and The Larry Love Showband. These shows primarily took place in and around the Village community centre.
In the years since 2006, the festival site has moved slightly to the fields either side of Blind Lane, north of the village square. The festival settled on its current site in 2013, where it has expanded to include three music stages, a dance stage, food and craft fayres and real ale and cider bars. The festival also features family entertainment, including a Digital Funfair and the Groovy Movie Solar Powered Picture House. Camping facilities have also grown to include glamping fields and spaces for motorhomes.
Present Day
2014
Running from the 14–17 August, the 2014 festival started with one of Wickham's biggest audiences, when 7,000 people saw James Blunt perform in the Big Top. Other acts to appear that year included Lightning Seeds, Bellowhead, The Ukulele Orchestra of Great Britain and Hugh Cornwell. The festival was also treated to a rare U.K. appearance from Steve Earle & the Dukes.2014 also saw the introduction of the Acoustic Stage, and the first editions of the .
2015
The dates for the 2015 festival were 6–9 August. The festival saw the introduction of an open mic stage and a late night Festival Club, a new viewing platform for the use of disabled festival-goers, and other improved facilities.Artists appearing at the festival included: Billy Bragg, Seth Lakeman, Eliza Carthy Big Band, 10cc, The Proclaimers, Moulettes, Show of Hands, Martin Carthy, Wilko Johnson, Andy Fairweather-Low, Tom Robinson, De Temps Antan, The Spooky Men's Chorale, Askew Sisters, The South, Lisbee Stainton, Luka Bloom, Tankus the Henge, Les Barker and Roy Bailey. The main stages were known as the ' Main Stage' and the ' Stage 2'. Gosport based provided support in managing the second and third stages.
Buoyed by stunning weather and lineup, over 25,000 people attended the festival, making it Wickham's most successful year. Festival organiser Peter Chegwyn stated: This festival has really put Wickham on the map. Now we are becoming well known we have top acts asking to play here rather than us chasing them, with Tom Robinson adding: It has been a fantastic festival and I am delighted for Peter Chegwyn who is truly a legend in this area. He is a one-off and people are very lucky to have him. The atmosphere here is wonderful and the reaction from the fans was amazing. I was quite moved by it.
Wickham Festival was awarded the 'Best Festival ' at the 2015 Live Music Awards, and was shortlisted for 'Best Event' at the Portsmouth WOW247 Awards.
2016
The 2016 Wickham festival took place from the 4–7 August. The first acts announced for 2016 were Lynched, a traditional Irish folk group from Dublin, Skerryvore, Keston Cobblers Club and The Red Hot Chilli Pipers. The headliners for the Big Top Main Stage included Tony Hadley, The Stranglers, SAS Band and Lindisfarne. Other acts to appear included 'Rockney' legends Chas & Dave, Folk music icon Roy Bailey, American/Irish folk super-group Cherish the Ladies, Nashville Songwriters Hall of Fame inductee Gretchen Peters, and pop producer extraordinaire Trevor Horn.Comedian and conservationist Bill Oddie gave a talk at the festival, on behalf of the League Against Cruel Sports 'Sanctuary' campaign, and performed two songs with SAS Band.
The number of stages at the Festival increased for 2016. The site included three covered stages and one open air stage, as well as a performance stage for dancers. All Time Grates sponsored the main stage at the festival, with and The Breeze joining the festival to support the second stage.
2017
After another successful festival in 2016, the 2017 dates were announced as 3-6 August. Earlybird tickets at a reduced price were made available on the final day of the 2016 festival. The camping capacity was increased with three added fields, and a free concert at Wickham Community Centre was scheduled to entertain early arrivals on the Wednesday evening. Three inches of rain fell before the gates opened, causing a delay to proceeding while festival staff worked tirelessly to ready the site. As organiser Peter Chegwin said:We have got every tractor we could from south Hampshire and we have put down tonnes of straw. The rain has just made the fields an absolute quagmire but the bottom line is if we haven’t moved heaven, we have certainly moved earth.
£30,000 was spent in one day to get the festival running, with improved weather conditions ultimately allowing the event to break previous records. Revellers were treated to performances from KT Tunstall, 10cc, Levellers, Eliza Carthy, Peatbog Faeries, John Otway, Tankus The Henge, Ferocious Dog and many, many more.
2018
At the conclusion of the 2017 festival, reduced weekend tickets for 2018 were made available. The dates announced are 2-5 August 2018, and on September 17th Gaz Brookfield and the Company of Thieves were the first confirmed act. After its successful launch at the 2017 festival, it was announced that Jonathan Pie would be returning in 2018 to headline the comedy stage. The festival ultimately included 5 fully programmed stages of music, as well as the late night comedy and the return of a free concert in the Wickham Centre.At the end of the festival it was announced that a contract extension had been agreed, securing the festival at the current site until 2020. Wickham Festival 2018 won the 'Best Festival' award at The News Guide Awards 2019.
2019
Following the conclusion of the 2018 festival, early bird tickets were made available for 2019. The dates for the festival are 1-4 August 2019. A strong line up was put together, featuring Rock legend Graham Nash, local boy Frank Turner, Hollywood star Kiefer Sutherland and Barnsley comedy-folk stalwarts The Bar-Steward Sons of Val Doonican. The second stage has been expanded to give it equal billing with the bigtop.The 2019 Wickham Festival won the award for 'Outstanding Street Food at a Music Festival' at the Hampshire Street Food Awards.
2020
The dates for the 2020 Wickham Festival have been announce as the 6-9 of August. In September 2019 it was announced The Young'uns will be playing Wickham Festival 2020. Stanley Jordan will be returning to the festival, playing a set of Jimi Hendrix music inspired by his iconic Isle of Wight Festival appearance. Van Morrison was announced as the Saturday night headliner.COVID-19
On 1st of July 2020 it was announced that due to the ongoing Wickham Festival 2020 was being postponed. Despite attempts by organisers to put on a 'COVID Secure' event, Government advice made it impractical to do so. The official release from the festival stated the following:Until a few days ago we were hopeful of being able to stage our Festival as planned this August.
We have invested a considerable amount of time and money in drawing-up detailed plans for the UK’s first ‘Covid-Secure’ Festival and had received a very favourable response from all who had seen our plans.
Sadly, in the last few days, two things have changed:
- The Government issued an edict stating that no live concerts can be held at the present time. Although clearly aimed at indoor venues the Government have yet to make clear whether it also applies to outdoor venues. If it does, we would not be able to have any musical performances. No music = no Festival.
- The Government have also re-introduced lockdown measures in Leicester and have stated other local lockdowns may follow if Covid infections increase. We cannot take the risk that fresh lockdown measures may suddenly be imposed just days before our Festival and force us to cancel at the very last moment.
Following the postponement, a special 'drive-in' concert was arranged with Show Of Hands.
2021
With the dates confirmed as 5-8 August 2021, all artists that were booked to appear at the postponed 2020 festival agreed to appear in 2021.Comedy
In May 2017 it was announced that a late night comedy stage will be added to the festival. The first act confirmed for the new comedy stage was Tom Walker, famous for his alter-ego Jonathan Pie. Sets from Raymond & Mr Timkins, Zoe Lyons, Matt Green, James Veitch and others made for a successful first year of comedy at Wickham.Lineups
This table shows the 'Main Stage' headliners and other notable performers from the all stages at Wickham Festival.| Year | Location | Dates | Headliners | Notable Performers | Comedy |
| 2003 | Eastleigh | 29 July – 3 August | Bob GeldofThe DriftersLevellersSAS Band | The Saw Doctors | |
| 2004 | 23 July – 1 August | Bill WymanWill YoungSteve Harley | Dionne WarwickShane MacGowanAled Jones | ||
| 2005 | 4 August – 7 August | The ProclaimersThe Saw DoctorsThe Undertones | Hayseed DixieBeth Nielsen Chapman | ||
| 2006 | Wickham | 3 August – 6 August | SparksSpiers and BodenRichard ThompsonSteeleye Span | Alabama 3Seth LakemanKing Creosote | |
| 2007 | 2 August – 5 August | Jethro TullEddi ReaderThe Saw Doctors | Hazel O'ConnorShoogleniftyLuka Bloom | ||
| 2008 | Stokes Bay | 31 July – 3 August | Show Of HandsThe UOGBLevellers | Michael McGoldrickChumbawambaThe Blockheads | |
| 2009 | 29 July – 2 August | The ZutonsSAS BandThe Proclaimers | Edward IILe Vent du NordThe Spooky Men's Chorale | ||
| 2010 | Wickham | 5 August – 8 August | Eliza CarthyShoogleniftyKid Creole and the CoconutsShow Of Hands | The UndertonesPeatbog FaeriesThe Mighty Zulu Nation | |
| 2011 | 4 August – 7 August | Jools HollandRichard ThompsonBellowheadThe Men They Couldn't Hang | ToyahKathryn TickellTony Benn | ||
| 2012 | 2 August – 5 August | The ProclaimersBellowheadLevellers | KT TunstallThe WurzelsBlair Dunlop | ||
| 2013 | 1 August – 4 August | DexysThe WaterboysSeth LakemanThe Blockheads | Wilko Johnson10ccMoulettesThe SouthPublic Service Broadcasting | ||
| 2014 | 14 August – 17 August | James BluntLightning SeedsSteve EarleBellowhead | Hugh CornwellOysterbandDreadzoneThe Poozies | ||
| 2015 | 6 August – 9 August | Wilko JohnsonBilly BraggThe Proclaimers10cc | Andy Fairweather-LowMartin CarthyDhol FoundationTom Robinson | ||
| 2016 | 4 August – 7 August | Tony HadleyThe StranglersSAS BandLindisfarne | Trevor HornGretchen PetersSteeleye SpanHayseed DixieChas & Dave | ||
| 2017 | 3 August – 6 August | 10ccShow of HandsLevellersPeatbog Faeries | KT TunstallJohn OtwaySeth LakemanEliza Carthy | Jonathan PieZoe LyonsJames VeitchTom DeaconRaymond & Mr Timpkins | |
| 2018 | 2 August – 5 August | Steve HarleySqueezeJon Boden & The Remnant Kings | Kate RusbyThe UndertonesJohn IllsleyRoger ChapmanRichard ThompsonFerocious Dog | Paul McCaffreyJonathan PieTanyalee DavisMarlon Davis | |
| 2019 | 1 August – 4 August | Graham NashLevel 42Frank TurnerGilbert O'Sullivan | Kiefer SutherlandJudy CollinsAlabama 3Ralph McTellThe Bar-Steward Sons of Val Doonican | Fin TaylorAlistair BarrieNinia BenjaminDave JohnsBen NorrisClinton Baptiste | |
| 2020 | 6 August – 9 August | Postponed - Drive-In concert from Show Of Hands | |||
| 2021 | 5 August – 8 August | Van MorrisonSAS BandThe Waterboys | Eddi Reader Edward IILil' Jimmy ReedLeo SayerNick Lowe | TBA |
Charity
Wickham Festival works closely with , a Fareham-based charity that supports homeless and vulnerable young people across south Hampshire. Over £4,000 was raised for them over the 2014 festival weekend, with this figure being topped in 2015, with a total of £5,000 being raised. A similar amount continued to be raised at every festival since.Starting with the 2016 festival, a partnership with was announced. The League was established in 1924 and campaigns to end cruelty to animals in sport. The charity hosted a sanctuary tent at the Festival, where attendees could learn more about their campaigns and 'enjoy some tranquillity'.