Standon Calling is an annual music festival held just outside the small UK village of Standon, Hertfordshire in the grounds of private residence Standon Lordship. It is an unsponsored, themed boutique festival which grew from a birthday barbecue into an annual public event.
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Pronounced "Stand'n" (as in "London") rather than "Stand-on", the festival began as a birthday barbecue for founder Alex Trenchard in 2001. It became a live music event in 2004, with a single stage on the same site and a one day line-up including Sevenball and Do Me Bad Things. In keeping with its origins, the ticket price included a barbecue lunch.
In 2005, a second stage was secretly built in an adjacent field. Following the final act, organiser and birthday boy Alex Trenchard announced "Don't go to bed!". Performers dressed as fairies, who were hidden in the crowd, threw off their cloaks and led the festival-goers to a surprise all-night party.
The festival expanded to two days in 2006 with a full-size main stage, a Friesian cow-themed dancefloor in a former stables and a treehouse bar built into a circle of horse chestnut trees. The secret stage, revealed late on the Saturday night, was themed as Dante's Inferno. Revellers were led down into a sunken garden as White Rose Movement took to the stage. The area featured damned torsos twisting out of trees and camouflaged performers startling unsuspecting passers-by.
These theatrical set-pieces involve the attendees and allow them to play a part in the proceedings instead of passively watching bands. This is a key factor that differentiates a boutique festival from a traditional music festival.
2007 saw a Rio Carnival theme and the blossoming of another festival tradition, fancy dress on Saturday. Headliners were The Rumble Strips, New Young Pony Club, Noisettes and Mr Hudson & The Library. Friendly Fires also played the main stage on Saturday afternoon.
In 2008 the festival expanded to three full days, with the Super Furry Animals closing the main stage. Other acts included Florence & The Machine The Maccabees, Glasvegas, Late Of The Pier, and Dan Le Sac Vs Scroobius Pip.
The theme was Japanese culture, with outfits varying from Harajuku girls to Wasabi peas. Japanese acts included Melt Banana, Acid Mother's Temple and Cosmic Inferno, while activities included calligraphy demonstrations, tea tastings and binocular football.
There was even an underwater disco, which that won Standon Calling the Innovation Award at 2008's UK Festival Awards.
In 2009 the theme was "Space", commemorating the 40th anniversary of the Apollo 11 Moon landings. The festival site was duly decorated with props including a Tardis from cult BBC sci-fi serial Doctor Who and the DeLorean time machine from the Back to the Future film trilogy. There were several space-related events, including two evening presentations by space expert Jerry Stone of Spaceflight UK.
2010 saw Standon Calling grow, both in terms of space and ticket sales. Themed around "Murder On The Standon Express", a miniature town with boutique stores, food stands and a fancy dress shop was built on the site.
The festival spread from Standon Lordship onto neighbouring fields with additional car parking and camping. Coach travel provided from local train stations. The pre-festival marketing included a series of "Road to Standon Calling" gigs in London and a competition for smaller upcoming bands to play the main stage on the Sunday night.
2011's theme is 'Gods and Monsters' with the line-up to be announced over the coming weeks.
On February 3, 2011, founder Alex Trenchard was jailed for three years for defrauding his employer Tesco of £355,000 to fund the event using his company credit card. This followed losses on ticket sales during the 2007 and 2009 events.[1]
He has apologised to all those affected and his parents have paid back the money. The festival team have vowed to carry on and will complete their work on the 2011 event.
In a public statement issued shortly after Trenchard's conviction, festival director Graham MacVoy said: "I know that Alex very much regrets his actions and feels great remorse for the distress he has caused, but the festival is about more than just one person. The team have been preparing for this year’s festival and Alex’s absence for a number of months.
"Standon Calling 2010 was a resounding success and we are building on that. Our Early Bird tickets for 2011 sold out in half the time they did last year. Excitement is building and we are about to unveil our theme and make our first line-up announcement.”
Among others
After playing at the festival in 2009, Mumford & Sons returned that November for an exclusive gig to promote the release of debut album Sigh No More. The concert was attended by friends and invited members of the media. Singer-songwriter Laura Marling also attended, performing a cover of Dolly Parton's Jolene.