Rob da Bank's Weekly Blog #7

By robdabank on 03 May 2009

Just got back from Radio 4 where I was interviewed by the ace Peter White on the state of festivals. I was extremely hungover having celebrated in a somewhat debauched style at the launch of mine and Josie’s festival book Rob da Bank’s A-Z Of Festivals (out today in all good book shops gang! Plug, plug)

We had a little bash down at London’s Rough Trade record shop where I DJed, did a stumbling incoherent speech and then showed the film that we’ve made with me reading an excerpt [check it out above!] so I don’t have to do readings live! What a chicken. I’m getting into the book signing experience though, mostly just so I can chat to fellow festival enthusiasts about their highs and lows. I even ended up signing a girls arm who swore she wasn’t gonna bathe for a week. Fame at last.

Radio 4 were pursuing the angle that lots of festivals are going under but I countered that for every festival that doesn’t make it through this year there’s another waiting in the wings. It’s probably too early to tell how many festivals may not come back and there is such a rollercoaster of positive and negatives that could affect us. On the one hand a senior executive in a media company I know told me that if swine flu does really hit the UK all the festivals will have to be cancelled. I’m taking that with a massive pinch of salt and selfishly hoping that god forbid that did happen as Bestival’s the last show of the summer Britain would be back open for business by then. On the upside the BBC have been forecasting a ‘BBQ summer’ which we could all do with after the soggy festi season last year. Right I’m off to don a hygienic face mask and sizzle some sausages. See ya next week.

Rob da Bank
www.bestival.net
www.campbestival.net
www.aiforg.com

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