Beat Herder Festival, Gisburn, Lancs June 2012
I always think of Beat Herder like Glastonbury, all the quirky thing’s you’d find there but on a smaller scale; like an underground bar and a tattoo studio. But this year was more like Glastonbury than ever as it was raining!
Lets face it, the British weather has been shocking and when you plan to go to a festival on the last weekend in June you don’t plan to pack wellies and a PAC-a-Mac! Unfortunately, this year Beat Herder got caught in this cross-fire. But the party must go on. And trust me the rain didn’t dampen the spirits one iota! So I donned my wellies and summer dress (I won’t be beaten by a rain cloud) and braced myself for the mud.
Beat Herder is situated just outside of Clitheroe in the wilds of the Ribble Valley, Lancashire. It’s a compact little site offering a bit of something for everyone. The main 
stage is set back on a grassy field, but the whole festival pivots around the forrest clearing they call Toil Tree’s. The festival has a real circus vibe with big tops and hidden gems all over the site. Including the Beat-herder and District Working Men’s Social Club which offered a break from the norm. This year saw 70′s party duo Black Lace rocked the working mens club tent…. even the coolest kids 
where dancing to Agadoo…
For a little festival they always make great artists bookings. Friday night saw Fake Blood command the main stage but I soon retired to the forest clearing; it was heaving as it had the most shade and the best tunes. Utah Saints and the crew kept the party going till the early hours.
In between the showers the sun was belting hot and it gave the ground a chance to dry out ready for Saturday 
shenanigans. I made a quick detour to my parents to have a shower and left the festival to pop and see the Stone Roses at Heaton Park… ahh come on it had to be done!
I attempted to get back in time for Orbital but only managed to see the men packing up the stage. I headed back to the forrest area to catch Etienne De Crecy’s set in full throttle and even with out his glowing boxes he was immense! He was followed very swiftly by James Holden the techno wizard- I never knew a forest could rock the way this one did!
Previous years I have spent the Sunday afternoon lying on the grass watching the main stage. Unfortunately, this year I woke up to a torrential rain storm so the grass had turned into a mud bath. I was fed up with the British weather and threw my toys out of the pram, so I packed 
my old faithful pop tent up and headed home. I was very disappointed to be missing Mr Scuff who does his annual set in the forest area and the song of praise but I couldn’t face the weather! But I promise rain or shine I’ll d back at Beat Herder next year…
Beat Herder always sells out quickly so watch out for early bird tickets… www.beatherder.co.uk
The beautiful photograph’s used in this article are by a very talented young man – James Abbott Donnelly you can see more of his work at www.JamesAD.com
