Magic fills the enchanted Garden at Abbots Ripton Hall for three days a year. Think sunsets over a lantern lit lake, the mad hatter’s tea party in a head on with the Faraway Tree and you begin to get the picture. An enchanted extravaganza of expression, this beautifully put together boutique festival has it’s own place in the echelons of summer frivolities, and well deserved it is too. The only festival to invest equally into arts and music, the atmosphere is creative, eclectic, and full of surprises  – so much so that I lost count of how many times I overheard the word “magical”. Can’t be bad.

Once billed as “ a secret Cambridgeshire location”, this three day wonder has now put Abbots Ripton firmly on the map.  Huntingdon has never been so cool.  As a local with the added benefits of a my own bed and shower within minutes, it is an honour to have what the majority of the crowd felt was the best festival this summer on my flat East Anglian fen doorstep. Just an hour from London, the Secret Garden Party is do-able in a weekend without time off work, and as relaxation is imperative it’s a weekend well spent without doubt.

We arrived on Friday night and the growing popularity of SGP, now in it’s fifth year, was tangibly evident as crowds clamour for entrance and battle against cracks in the organisation system. Despite tempers flaring, all is soon forgiven and forgotten as the circus tent marquees beckon against the backdrop of a shimmering orange sunset.  Many of the staff working do so for a ticket, which makes for an inclusive atmosphere if not always the most professional service -not that it matters once you step inside the gates.

The organisers encourage eco friendly practices, from a car tax for bringing only two or more in a car to the festival to the compost loos (pungent, but as the slogan says, “changing the world from the bottom up”), and there is not a corporate sponsorship logo in sight.  Gorgeous organic and locally sourced foods abound, and once I succeeded in getting my hands on a programme (a slight hiccup that needs resolving for next year), the line up is mightily impressive.
Grace Jones headlining on Saturday night was a surprising inclusion received with a mixed bag of acclaim (I thought she was fantastic myself), and with Morcheeba,  Zero 7, the Little Ones, popsters Alphabeat, Officer Kicks, Adam Freelander and a host of upcoming talent to choose from the scope is wide enough to cater for all tastes and then some.

A tour of the Garden at any time gives a slice of all the wonderments on offer; whilst the calendar is packed full of amazing offerings, nothing beats a wander occasionally to catch the unexpected; I wander into a drumming workshop this way, drop in to pick up a bongo and join in perched on a hay bale. Creative expression and involvement is actively encouraged, with the result being a wonderfully eclectic mix of randomness that is the essence of the Secret Garden Party.

Waiting in the crowd for Grace Jones a trumpeter arises from the masses and belts out “We’ll meet again” amid much laughter and applause; tea ladies complete with aprons, feather dusters and a tea trolley serve cakes and biscuits to each person in a dance tent, and by the time I see a man cycling past in a contraption carrying a piano I am not surprised in the least – a coffin now serving as a speaker has just been carried across the lake by men dressed as Abraham Lincoln blaring out reggae.

One of my favourite endearing moments happens whilst sitting by the lake listening to Morcheeba and Zero 7, when a chap hands us bread to feed the ducks on the lake from a loaf he is carrying around. It’s this kind of spirit that makes the party more than a music festival, moving into an experience if an entirely different dimension that embraces fun, laughter and community spirit.

Action tents are scattered around the site and vary from an emotional baggage swap shop to a scrap dragon workshop making items from waste created by the festival and re-selling to others for a small profit and a lot of fun. Families are welcomed, and a variety of kids art activities are scattered around the grounds. For those preferring a quieter experience the plethora of meditation and healing tents offer some solace from the crowds, as do the series of talks on subjects such as poetry, art history and social politics for debate. The Secret Garden Party can be whatever you make it, and whilst the music here is amazing, the focus of the event has to be the investment into artists and workshops to make a memorable weekend.

This year’s “Come the revolutions” theme thoroughly infused the fun and frolics; embraced and interpreted at so many levels, the costumes, installations, action tents and revellers reflected the concept, it made for an inspirational and thought provoking backdrop.

Since local villagers lodged complaints last year about the noise levels and the dance tent bellowing for  “rewind” in the small hours, SGP has respectfully played it down this year. As the sound systems are put to bed for the night a different atmosphere prevails; acoustic sets and jazz bands spring up, and ambient music is fuelled in one particular tent by bicycles, and great way to wear off any extra curricular medications. In no way is the fun spoiled by making a compromise on the ear drums of others, and as the ethos of the festival mutual radiates respect it comes as no surprise that trouble seems to have snuck in and donned angel wings and face paint.

All too soon, it’s over for another year. As the last revellers peeled themselves from their final repose on lakeside boats and hammocks, the clean up begins and we all look forward to next July. Just 365 days to wait until magic comes to town – make sure you name is on the list. Don’t tell ‘em Jo sent ya…

Jo Gifford

www.secretgardenparty.com

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About the author

Loma-Ann Marks
Loma was a performer and freelance writer before becoming a journalist on the Daily Star Sunday, Daily Star and Express. She's the Founder and Editor of Culture Compass. North, South, East or West? I'll go anywhere. I like to think that I'm a pretty good map reader ( not everyone would agree ) but then I remind them that I navigated my way around the Paris one-way system with NO mistakes. High Class or Common or Garden? High class in the garden. Clothes or Culture? Culture in new clothes. My best night out ever made me feel....... That things would never be the same again. And they surely weren't the following day.

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