So sad at Womad
I’d just spent several wonderful days in Turkey, visiting many cultural treasures, to find upon my return to Reading that we are to lose a jewel of our own.
I am, of course, referring to WOMAD, which is to leave Reading after 17 years (interestingly, the Reading Chronicle reveals that the deal to move WOMAD to Reading in 1988 was brokered at Sweeney & Todd pie restaurant) because it has become too big for the Rivermead site. Instead, the festival is to be move to Wiltshire. WOMAD explains:
Audience feedback we received after WOMAD Rivermead in 2005 included strong criticism of the site as a whole, and a feeling of overcrowding in particular. In order to alleviate these problems, WOMAD implemented substantial changes to the festival site in 2006. However, despite these improvements, a perception of overcrowding remains.
This news stunned me. But there is hope. According to the Evening Post, Reading West MP Martin Salter has persuaded Feargal Sharkey to join forces with Reading Borough Council, the Evening Post and promoters, in an effort to get a new festival going. Feargal was the lead singer of The Undertones and is now Chairman of the UK government task force ‘Live Music Forum’.
Let’s make this happen. We have a great opportunity to do something different, I feel. The show must go on.