The Brit Fest Cheshire 2024 (Preview Event)

By Dottie Rood

Well how secretive this was! We knew the title of the Press release occasion, Brit Fest Cheshire, but that was all!
When we arrived we were greeted very warmly by Anthony (more about him later!) and given a red, white and blue garland and the promise of a press bag later (we couldn’t have it yet as it would spoil the surprise announcements !!!).
The venue (Bowdan rooms Altringham) was adorned with lots of red, white and blue from balloons around a settee for photo opportunities to flags draped around the ceiling and a large lit sign saying ‘THE BRIT FEST’, all very intriguing as there was still no clue as to what was going to happen next. EXCITING!

When we entered the large hall we were greeted by a soldier (with the traditional red coats of the Kings Guards) on stilts, he was accompanied by a female stilt walker in a red, white and blue outfit and wings! It was very impactful as they were so tall!

The room slowly filled up whilst we were offered fish & chips plus drinks from Maslish Brewery and Camden Town Brewery, the atmosphere was building up nicely and the anticipation was palpable.
THEN:
The curtains on the stage peeled back to reveal video footage of Jenny Powell in her wellies in a field?!?
Giving a very enthusiastic report she told us (finally!) what Brit Fest is!
“A brand-new world-class family friendly music festival celebrating the very best of Britian” WOW!
Jenny told us it is going to be held in the grounds of Ashley Hall & Showground in Altrincham Cheshire WA14 3QA, between Friday 5th July to Sunday 7th July 2024 and will include 3 days of live music from artists hailing from the shores of Great Britain. Also it will be a celebration of British culture, the arts, fashion, food and drink plus classic cars and lots more making this festival stand-out as a truly unique event.

The organisers of Brit Fest are Olivier nominated brothers Anthony and Edward Prophet. Edward was then introduced to us and came on stage to tell us more about the ethos behind Brit Fest:
“We are thrilled to officially reveal plans for The Brit Fest Cheshire 2024-which promises to be the biggest festival this part of Cheshire has seen.

The Brit Fest Cheshire will celebrate not just music but the very best of British culture, cars, food and drink, fashion, the arts and some renowned musical entertainment from these shores. The appetite for once again coming together and celebrating has never been stronger, so we want to use this opportunity to gather and shine a spotlight on the amazing talent we have in this country.

The event will have a strong charity and community focus, we are working hard with partners to make sure the festival can be as carbon neutral as possible by developing an offsetting programme. We will announce more details as we head towards the event.

We are excited to welcome festivalgoers to Cheshire and hope they embrace the event and take the opportunity to join us for a fabulous weekend with family and friends.”

It was a very inspiring speech and was greeted with enthusiasm from the audience, it proved to be as exciting as the build-up.

Headline acts for Brit Fest Cheshire 2024 include: Scouting for Girls, Kim Wilde, Heather Small, The Feeling, Fleur East, Cast, Tom Bailey of the Thompson Twins, Starsailor, Toploader, Reef, Dodgy, Lottery Winners, Hot Chocolate, Nik Kershaw, Paul Young and Tunde Baiyewu from the Lighthouse Family.
Also featuring: Cassidy Jansen, Chris Helme from the Seahorses, Johnny Hates Jazz, Matt Ford’s Big Band, a DJ set from Mike Joyce from The Smiths, Neeve Zahra, Owen Paul, Sonia, String Infusion, The Bluestones, The Boo Radleys, The Christians, The South, The Real Thing and T’Pau.

The full programme and running order will be announced in the Autumn when tickets go on sale.
You can register your interest now by visiting: www.thebritfest.co.uk also:
Facebook: /thebritfestuk
Twitter: @TheBritFestUK
Instagram: @TheBritFestUK
Hashtag: #TBF2024#thebritfest
THE BRIT FEST 2024
Friday 5 July-Sunday 7 July 2024
Ashley Hall &Showground, Ashley Road, Altrincham, Cheshire, WA14 3QA.