Moseley Folk and Arts Festival, a mums' review
What I loved about it:
The line-up absolutely MADE the Moseley Folk and Arts Festival this year – what a show! I was fortunate to be able to attend all three days so I could enjoy many elements of this diverse festival.
The set from Supergrass was simply EPIC! The popular band drew in a very strong and lively Friday night crowd. There were many people swinging each other around and getting their knees up to the Longest Johns on Saturday too. By Sunday, if there had been a roof, it would certainly have been raised for the Coral!
I also loved the street food vendors! My favourites were the English Indian fried halloumi and chips with sweet chilli sauce, the Bonehead burgers and the Bournville Kinder Bueno waffles!
Finally, I LOVED the excellent range of acts in Speakers Corner. How fab that Nick Cope was there to talk to the kids! How totally awesome to start each weekend day with a yoga class from the lovely ‘I am Yogi’. Their usual home is a log cabin in the park!
Location:
Suitable for:
Value for money (out of 10):
Website:
What to expect from Mostly Folk and Arts Festival
If you are looking for guidance on which festival to choose (Folk or Jazz), naturally I would say both as they have very different elements to them. Whilst it is wise to be guided by the musical artists, it’s also a good idea to look at the acts on the other stages as my highlights from Friday (apart from Supergrass) were listening to Carl Chinn speaking about the real Peaky Blinders, and the comedy sets from Lindsey Santoro and Ivo Graham. There was not a dry eye in the house as everyone was crying with laughter. It was nice to see so many children and young people in the audience too who were clearly enjoying themselves. With regards to the music at Moseley Folk and Arts Festival, the website states, ‘We try to program a healthy mix of traditional, contemporary and downright experimental folk and acoustic music’ and I can definitely say that was achieved this year!
So, what was there for families?
Luckily, these dates in September are usually a fine weather weekend, so the elements are not really an issue to factor in. You can take a picnic blanket, camping chairs and your own food and you can even hire a caravan!
My children particularly enjoyed: Dancing in the bubbles and rolling in the hay by the main stage, making flower crowns whilst relaxing on the blankets, playing hoopla with Love Brum Charity, tearing around the festival site, playing tug – o – war with the Black County Museum, mooching in the shops for souvenirs, eating ice-cream from Shepherds van and drinking slushies from Slush and Slosh.
How much your children will get out of Moseley Folk and Arts Festival depends on the kind of things they enjoy doing. My children enjoy being active and burning off a lot of energy, so they were happiest when moving around the festival site and playing with others. However, some children really enjoyed participating in the workshops (Singing for Joy, Birmingham Folk, Ceilidh and Black Adder Morris) and dancing to the music!
Other child friendly events were: The Hobo Tree, activities by the Black Country Living Museum: rag- rugging, canal art demonstrations, master class in the potted history of the Black Country and Black Country street games. As mentioned, Nick Cope was entertaining kids in speakers corner on Saturday as well as the Birmingham storytelling cafe and we also saw the Circus Raj performance, Pirate Mike and took part in crafts put on by Fox Cubs Nature Play.
For future events, I would be pleased to see the return of rides / swings and possibly some more games (as my kids love a challenge) such as a football shoot out or a mini obstacle course or other organised playground games.
In summary, Moseley Folk and Arts Festival is a feel-good family festival with an eclectic mix of music. There were many smiles, a good deal of dancing and a lot of chatting! Many fun family memories were made. You can also feel the excitement as night falls, the fairy lights shine bright, and the festival folk come together to enjoy the headline acts. I know that my kids love it as they ask to go back every weekend! It’s already on our calendar for 2023.
REVIEW
Handy links list
Read more of my blogs and articles
CLICK HERE
