2011

Onstage, the lineup brought the full spectrum of folk and beyond. Tinariwen filled the park with the raw pulse of Malian desert blues, their backstage setup every bit as atmospheric as their set. Billy Bragg stepped onto our stage for the first time, greeted with a roaring Moseley welcome. Badly Drawn Boy, who also joined us in the pub that evening, made a lot of new friends. Willie Mason, Stornoway, Junip (yes, José Band), and Crystal Fighters stripping things back from their usual high energy Electronica for an acoustic set, each brought something entirely their own.

This was the year our design took a new direction, inspired by a book of Islamic patterns that Gerv found in a Hay-on-Wye bookshop. Its intricate Islamic patterns shaped the artwork across the festival, bold, unusual, maybe a little hard to read at times, but completely part of the adventure.

The atmosphere, as ever, did the rest. Sunlight on the lake, voices rising from every corner, kids running barefoot, and the occasional bit of chaos like the hay bale explosion during the Ceilidh workshop that in 2012 officially became the first Hay-Down.

The Little Racket was born this year – a genius concept conceived by Nicola Toms to raise funds for Oxjam. Oxjam sold raffle tickets to our audience, lucky winners were invited to intimate performances for an audience of only 20 by mystery musicians in the Chantry Tennis Clubhouse. You never knew who would be performing; you might even see Billy Bragg if you were lucky.

This format worked well for years; our friends at Mostly Jazz had Northern Soul DJ’s in the same tiny space – there’s a classic video somewhere of a uniformed policeman showing off his moves. The fun had to stop after our mischievous Mostly Jazz brothers booked techno DJ Harvey Lane, and it all got a bit too much for some!

Looking back, this was a year defined by bold choices and beautiful surprises. We booked artists who stretched the edges of folk, paired them with designs that told their own story, and welcomed a crowd who embraced every bit of it with open ears and open hearts. It reminded us why we do this: to bring people together, to take creative risks, and to celebrate music in all its forms – unexpected moments and all.