Yesterday I spent five hours negotiating queues as I transported punters to the practice day of the British Grand Prix at Silverstone. It was hot and dull and made doubly difficult by the entitled behaviour of the vast majority of car drivers trying to avoid queuing by behaving badly, you know the sort of thing: pushing in, being aggressive or abusive, etc. The sheer scale of this event should not be underestimated. Approximately 300,000 people descend on a small village in Northamptonshire for the best part of a week. Numbers compare with Glastonbury, although I suspect that Glastonbury punters tend to be a lot more mellow about things and probably less ego-centric. I genuinely struggle to see the appeal, especially given the cost of the event and the amount of hassle it takes to get there, and once there, in and out of the circuit; but we are a big world and cannot all like the same things. It was a rough morning, though. Three-day ticket entry only £800 a head approx.
By contrast, I spent the evening in the company of Leeroy Stagger, supported by Aldous Pinch at the Old Forge in Cranford. It was a joyous experience attended by forty people who were royally entertained and moved by two contrasting acts. The musical hall madness of Pinch and the moving musicality of Stagger and his pal Ryland Moranz. To me, this is extraordinary, an act from Canada appearing in a local tea room. Much praise must be given to proprietor Rob Walker for putting on these gigs and serving lovely grub. If you’re in the Kettering area, it is a must-stop location. It was £12 a head, and you could get to the loo!!
I know what I’d rather do every week, but each to their own.
The music this week is from these two acts: Aldous Pinch has to be seen to be believed, and he writes and records all his backing tracks, and would not be out of place on the Edinburgh Fringe or indeed Glastonbury. Leeroy Stagger is just a class act. The radio show featured lots of lovely stuff this week: Hawk and Steel, Twin Peaks, Jim James, Be Good Tanyas, Ben Folds, and much more.
