Bestival 2013

Photo: Matt Richardson
The first sight we see on entering the Bestival site is Lionel Richie’s head, sticking out the earth in giant, inflatable form. Still, given that over the next few days we find ourselves dancing to ‘Time Warp’ with the brilliant Camp Cook drag queens, and getting married to an Irish bloke in Shenanigans, this doesn’t really come as a surprise.

M.I.A is the main draw on Thursday night, providing a stunning barrage of visuals – at odds with a set that quickly loses the Big Top’s attention. Once ‘Boyz’, ‘Paper Planes’ and ‘Galang’ boom out later in the set, though, Maya Arulpragasam is back on top of her game.

Wu Tang Clan are exceptionally good the next day – even though some of their members apparently didn’t make it through customs. The skies are blue, and the crowd is equally sunny in disposition. Later on The Flaming Lips haul their giant props chest to Bestival, and make grown men weep with ‘Do You Realize??’. It’s the sight of Wayne Coyne, atop a glam-rock pedestal festooned with LEDs, cradling a baby doll (yes, really), and brandishing all manner of hand-held light-up gadgets that steals the show on Friday night.

Warming us up for a night of wild dancing, Lulu James graces the Replay stage, donning an impressive piece of millinery modelled on a ship. She’s great fun, as are Swim Deep, who follow her lead with a cover of ‘Girls Just Wanna Have Fun’, and an energetic set for a bustling tent. It’s Snoop Dogg that owns Saturday with his caricature-like presence. ‘Drop It Like It’s Hot’ surely causes a few strained muscles – the whole festival has turned up for the occasion. Snoop also plays collaborations ‘Signs’ and ‘California Girls’ – it’s a set that caters for the hip-hop dabblers as well as the dedicated obsessive. The Knife wrap up Saturday with a visual spectacle of dance and watercolour lights.

Sunday may as well be Elton John Night. Fresh off the back of casually picking up the first ever Brit Icon award, he’s back onstage in his glittery suit, for his first English festival appearance since ‘69. Every single Elton classic is catered for, along with a rare rendition of ‘Candle In The Wind’. It’s a massively emotional set, it’s finale being ‘Your Song’, and a sky lit with endless fireworks.

James Blake draws Sunday to a triumphant close – ‘Overgrown’ from his latest album sends shivers down everyone’s wildly dancing spines. It’s ‘Limit To Your Love’ that puts the final flag atop HMS Bestival. Fitting really, because there probably is no limit to our love for this festival.