Who needs Glastonbury anyway?

What a weekend. That was one of the fullest weekends I have had in longer than I can remember.

Friday afternoon I finished work early, and hubby and I set off up to Dalby Forest. Hubby had bought tickets for the Paloma Faith concert the day they were released, and we’d been looking forward to going ever since. The thought of being out in the forest on a beautiful summers evening watching the amazing Paloma was something that had been keeping us going for ages. Unfortunately, the reality, at least in terms of the weather, wasn’t as idyllic.

Sheltering from the downpour

   

Dalby Forest is a beautiful venue. I’ve not been there before, and I hadn’t quite expected it to be so vast. In a clearing in the middle was an impressive stage, and food stalls for chip top ups later in the evening. As I say, we caught a coach so were quite early, and when the heavens opened with a torrential downpour… we were there. Having caught shelter under a bush though, when the heat returned and the downpour passed by, we soon dried off.

It wasn't long before we could get back out to enjoy the show

Paloma

There was a huge crowd and it was a real mixed bunch in terms of age groups. I’ve seen Paloma before in Birmingham, and she was great there, she certainly didn’t disappoint on Friday night. As well as being a fabulous singer, she’s great at interacting with the audience and really doesn’t seem to take herself seriously whatsoever. We were quite close to the front so got a really good view of the show, and thankfully the weather held off for the rest of the evening.

It’s funny, before going I had said I wouldn’t buy tickets for an outdoor concert again because of our unpredictable weather, but Dalby is such a lovely venue and the weather didn’t spoil our evening, I would happily go again.

Such a good show

 Saturday we were up bright and early, and the day couldn’t have been more different to the preceding one. Hot, sunny, dry… bliss. We meandered down to the sea front which was awash with people enjoying not just the glorious weather, but also the vintage fairs and aeronautical displays of Armed Forces Weekend. We were out for much of the day, and I did catch the sun, but I wasn’t going to complain about it, having been complaining of bad weather for the past few weeks. We missed the Vulcan fly past because we were in a courtyard cafe enjoying our lunch, but we did get to see the awe inspiring bi-planes with wing walkers from the comfort a café seating area, whilst enjoying cold bottles of beer. I can’t think of any better way to spend a Saturday afternoon.  

Fantastic show at the Open Air Theatre

After a full day out with the dogs, and a quick freshen up at home, it was time to head out for the second live music concert of the weekend, Alfie Boe at Scarborough Open Air Theatre. Like Dalby forest the night before, this was my first visit to the Open Air Theatre. The former Lido is an impressive venue, with a large sound stage and what is reminiscent of a moat between that and the seated audience. Still the weather was stunning, we couldn’t have hoped for it to be better. When Alfie Boe came to the stage the crowd were in awe, there were even people crying. I can’t convey how amazing his voice is, and frankly, nor can a CD, this is one you need to see in person. Like Paloma the night before, he is also very much a show man and can talk at ease with his audience. I love classical music anyway, but I know that sometimes the thing that puts people off is a perception of its stuffiness. This was certainly not a stuffy atmosphere and the audience was encouraged to participate and have fun.

He had some great support from the National Philharmonic Orchestra, Military wives choir from York and the most breathtaking soprano, Angel Blue. The concert finished off with all the last night of the Proms favourites, Land of Hope and Glory, Rule Britannia and Jerusalem, people sang, union flags were waved in earnest and everyone really got into the spirit of it.

Fireworks.... always impossible to get a good photo of

The night was topped off with a stunning firework display that surely the whole of Scarborough could see. Again, another astounding venue that I would not hesitate to visit again.

All in all, this was a pretty epic weekend and one I will not forget in a hurry.