Isle Of Wight Festival 18/06/2023 (SUNDAY)

We didn’t want a repeat of last time where we arrived a millennium too early for the gates to open, so got there around 2pm instead. I didn’t fancy going back on the ‘Booster’ ride to pass the time again, for some reason. Did I post a picture of that in the last blog? It was sheer insanity. I forgot the schedule started earlier than Friday, when the first band didn’t come onstage until 4pm. A large crowd was already at the barrier by this time, especially around the walkway (which wasn’t there on Friday). But we didn’t have any TikTok stars force us into an ill-timed singalong this time around, which was good news for us. We experienced everything from the right-hand side of the stage, instead of being square-on like last time. People seemed more pushy and entitled this time around, though. I think it must be because Niall Horan was coming on. We all know how crazy One Direction fans can get. Someone asked to swap places with me because they couldn’t see over my hat. I felt guilty for a nanosecond but remembered lots of other people were wearing hats. I also read once that you shouldn’t complain about who you choose to stand behind at concerts. Because you chose to stand behind them at a concert. We did adjust the hat so it was narrower but I definitely wasn’t going to trade places.

Ella Henderson came onstage just after 2:30pm. It was 2:35pm I think, due to inexplicably strange scheduling. I was looking forward to her performance as I enjoyed her a lot when she opened for The Script last year. It might be because I was already familiar with her as an artist, unlike many other starter acts. Her songs are extremely catchy. She has great energy but didn’t share much with the crowd, except for asking us to jump up and down and put our “heart hands” in the air. Neither of which we did. We’re too cool for that. Something about her voice gives me goosebumps, though. I love when she performs ‘Ghost’, the song which shot her to stardom. She always explains how it’s the song which jump-started her career and I love that she wrote it with Ryan Tedder. I remember when it was released and used to play on the radio non-stop. You still hear it from time to time, as it did really well. She sang ‘Let’s Go Home Together’ with a different person than Tom Grennan this time around. He’s too big and famous now. He’s doing his own thing. I wish I caught the name of the person she sang it with, as I can’t find any evidence online. I like that EH and TG sing this song separately during their tours. They must be very proud of it.

MIKA came on next and we weren’t sure what to expect, as it’s been a long time since we’ve listened to his music. I liked his songs a lot when they first came out fifteen years ago or so, which means a lot because I disliked most songs which played on the radio non-stop. He has a unique voice and is very obviously talented. His stage presence was incredible and totally drew us in. He used various props, including a giant flower and a tiger head/mask and cape. He borrowed a sparkly hat from a woman in the crowd, commenting that she was better dressed than the people on stage. He wore it for a second but it was difficult to get photos through all the hands and phones waving in the air. The rain didn’t put him off, as he got soaked and even jumped into the crowd for most of one of the songs. He made a huge effort to interact with the crowd and said eight years without doing any festivals felt far too long. It was quite emotional watching him enjoy performing his hits after so many years in front of a loving audience of this scale. The piano was pretty but broken. We don’t know if the rain damaged it or if it was already falling apart before it was dragged on stage. I was disappointed we didn’t get a piano session (my kryptonite) but MIKA was very entertaining regardless.

James Bay followed MIKA and I had reasonably high expectations for him as I really like the songs I’ve heard of his. I only knew some of the songs and Paul didn’t know any apart from the ones I played him once or twice before we went. I tried to look up clips of his performances on YouTube but can’t find anything better than mediocre phone recordings. Why do people insist on recording the whole thing? Sometimes you do find proper gems on YouTube but more often than not it’s shaky cameras with people singing along badly. I don’t remember a lot from his performance, sadly. The songs were of a very high standard but he didn’t move around the stage much. It was especially noticeable since he came on after MIKA. It’s odd seeing so many popular artists take to the main stage at The Isle of Wight Festival, when they are all so different from one another. I’m sad to say we found him a bit dull after MIKA jumping all around the stage less than an hour beforehand. In his defence, he tried to use the walkway but his guitar cable wouldn’t stretch far enough. Musically it was very good but he didn’t chat with the crowd. Of course, the stand-out tracks for me were ‘Let It Go’ and ‘Hold Back The River’. I’m sure there’s a third one I know pretty well but it’s not coming to me right this second. I’d recommend seeing him if you’re a fan of his music but just don’t expect major theatrics.

Niall Horan was very entertaining. Paul kept referring to him as “pretty boy” before he came out, not knowing a lot about him except for the fact he was in One Direction. I adore his new song ‘Heaven’ (well, it’s maybe not that new anymore) and was thrilled to hear it live. It didn’t disappoint. I was also happy to hear a One Direction song – ‘Story Of My Life’. It’s good he still caters to his older fans. People were drooling over him and wanting to get as close to the stage as possible, as you would expect. I don’t normally like when people jump on each other’s shoulders but there was a funny moment when a girl was screaming and having the time of her life on someone’s shoulders and casually turned around and shouted, “Oh, hi dad!” A woman and her child left and returned with a box of chips. People were muttering how she was using her child to get back to the front of the stage. I do agree once you leave you shouldn’t be able to push your way back to the front. If she didn’t have her young child with her, I doubt anyone would have budged. Niall had a great stage presence too (seriously, it’s so important) and took time out to read people’s hand-written signs. I can’t remember what the first one said (some generic statement probably) but the second one said, “Niall, you sexy man!” or something similar. He paused and then replied, “Yeah, you’re right!” which got a good laugh. He also chatted about the grey weather and said it would be considered a sunny Summer’s day in Ireland and he’d still get sunburnt. He also discussed how pleased he is that his new album ‘The Show’ had made it to number one that week. I think it knocked McFly’s ‘Power To Play’ album to number two and I’m not sure how much I can support that.

We took off before Blondie made an appearance and headed towards the Big Top tent. I wasn’t sure how hard it would be to fit inside, as I didn’t realise the place completely emptied between acts. Paul put me at ease by saying most of the people leaving after Niall were probably not Manics fans. There is a limit to how many people can fit inside and there were absolutely thousands of people there, so my anxiety was growing by the second. And the Big Top is quite a distance away from the main stage. We stood inside while The Enemy were performing but it was too loud to even talk, so we waited outside the tent and had a break from all the music. We caught most of their set but did disappear for a couple of the songs, so I can’t really write about it here. Plus, my mind was elsewhere. It’s not a band I’m familiar with, though they obviously have a large and dedicated fan base. When they were done and thanked their fans etc. we crept back into the tent and stood at the far left-hand side of the barrier. Almost everyone disappeared except for the people holding on to the barrier for dear life and a few kids picking litter for money. It was 20p per cup you returned, or something like that. Not a bad deal if you had the patience. I’d probably have more fun doing that and competing with friends than listening to music, if I was a kid.

Echo & The Bunnymen were fantastic but we didn’t know them at all and kind of felt like aliens until we remembered Manic Street Preachers were coming on after them and that’s why we were claiming our spots. The atmosphere inside the tent was so much better than at the main stage and the smoke machines added to it, even though we could hardly make out the band half the time. Paul worried it would be so bad we wouldn’t be able to see Manics – not that he is a fan of the band in any shape or form but because he was on photographer duty! I’ve finally caved and got a Spotify subscription, so I will listen to their songs again ASAP. From memory, ‘Lips Like Sugar’ was my favourite of the night. The frontman (Ian Stephen McCulloch – wow, that’s an awkward name to try and memorise) has an incredibly thick Liverpool accent and we struggled to make out ninety percent of what he said. He did attempt a crude “Knock-Knock” joke but nobody replied “Who’s there?” which makes me think it wasn’t just us who were in need of subtitles. I was even more excited to see them after they were praised by Jack Black in a film I watched recently, ‘High Fidelity’. I was on a bit of a Nick Hornby kick. I’d heard of them before and knew they were a reputable band but their songs have just escaped me over the years.

Manic Street Preachers came on last, headlining the Big Top. Robbie Williams was headlining the main stage and it’s a shame to have missed him as I’ve heard he is one of the best performers out there. But I don’t regret making the decision to see Manics instead, as they are one of my favourite bands. I’ve only become familiar with their songs over the past year, so there are still lots I don’t know. They tend to do a mix of hits and “deep cuts”, which is great. I love when bands do that. The whole thing honestly felt like a dream and I couldn’t believe it when I checked the time and they were at the end of their set. Paul didn’t agree and said the hour and a half or so felt like an eternity to him. Not everyone appreciates their genius. There was a girl in the centre who had a denim jacket draped over the barrier with images of some of their album covers splashed all over it. They didn’t acknowledge it but I’m sure they saw and appreciated it. Same with my t-shirt. I was wearing my ‘Door To The River’ one and James Dean Bradfield came over to our side a few times, almost definitely catching sight of it. They said it was their fourth time performing at the festival and they are always made to feel welcome. It’s disappointing we didn’t make it into the official YouTube video but we were too far off to the side. There was a cameraman above us though, as he instructed a woman in the crowd to smile widely for at least a minute while he ran tests. I’m so glad it wasn’t me. My least favourite part was when JDB claimed we must be sick of listening to him for twenty years when it was my first time seeing them. They welcomed The Anchoress (Catherine Anne Davies) to the stage for a couple of songs and she also has a wonderful voice. I was upset when their set came to an end as it seemed to pass too quickly, though I think Paul was relieved.

It took hours to get back to our cottage. I felt like crying when buses kept coming and going because it was so cold (we were still damp) and we were exhausted. I felt panicky standing there for so long and almost fainted when the bus finally came for us after 2am. I stopped myself from falling. I think I’m far too self-conscious to actually faint. They came at forty five minute intervals and they’d tease us by scrolling through the place names on the front of the bus before finally settling on somewhere. So many went to Ryde. It made us hate Ryde. People in our queue would cheer when it said “Yarmouth” (the direction we were going) and would boo loudly when it changed a hundred times. The people in front of us were in good spirits, though. There was a bit of commotion and the woman in front of me flew backwards, on to her back. Luckily, she laughed it off. I wouldn’t have. The man in front of us was raving about Manics to his friends and said they were his favourite of the festival “by a country mile”. Paul disagreed quite loudly but the man didn’t take him on. At least Paul’s not a huge Robbie fan, or I’d feel bad. The bus journey home wasn’t nearly as hilarious as the previous one. It was nearly 3am, so people were far too tired to sing. We had the same bus driver as Friday night and worked out how to get off a little closer to our cottage than we did last time. I’ve only now caught up from all the sleep I’d lost on this trip! We don’t think we’ll be hurrying back to The Isle Of Wight but it was definitely an experience to remember.