SUMMER | FEATURE
15 years of Camp Bestival
Camp Bestival founders Rob Gorham ( aka Rob da Bank ) and his wife Josie mark 15 years of the festival with an interview that covers everything from breaking Guinness World Records to taking the event north to Shropshire
Words : Christopher Barrett
Riding the wave of success that followed the launch of Bestival ( cap . 40,000 ) in 2004 , Rob da Bank and his wife Josie reflected their changing circumstances , and lifestyle , with the launch of pioneering family festival Camp Bestival in 2008 .
Echoing the abundant creative energy of Bestival but with a more family-friendly focus , the first Camp Bestival ( 25,000 ) took place at Dorset ’ s Lulworth Estate , with headliners including The Flaming Lips .
Since that band ’ s frontman , Wayne Coyne , came rolling down the steps of Lulworth Castle in a giant transparent ball and rolled his way across the entire crowd to the main stage , Rob and Josie haven ’ t looked back . Camp Bestival in Dorset has sold out every year since its launch , gone on to outlive Bestival , and last year was expanded to a second site in Shropshire .
Josie says the idea of Camp Bestival first came to her when she was organising the second edition of Bestival while pregnant with her first child , Arlo .
“ I instantly wanted to put on a festival that was suitable for where I was going in life ; being a mum ,” she says . “ We called Lulworth Estate and within a few days we were doing site visits and we did a land deal . It happened almost overnight .”
That first event broke even , which as any organiser knows is rare for an inaugural festival . “ People just loved it , even nonfamilies loved it because it was very calm , safe and clean ,” says Josie . “ At that point , festivals were starting to really ramp up in terms of the partying , which was getting really intense , so it just went down really well and the offering has been the same ever since .”
Rob da Bank , whose music industry career has also involved being a BBC Radio 1 DJ and running independent record label Sunday Best , says the initial transition from booking adult-oriented acts for Bestival to more family-focused artists wasn ’ t entirely seamless . In 2009 he booked PJ Harvey for Camp Bestival , as a UK exclusive .
He says , “ She played an incredible set , just her on the piano and guitar , but the rules that came with it were that no other amplified sound could be played at the same time as her
Camp Bestival in Dorset
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