Woodford Day 0 (Paul)

Yep, day 0. Sarah and I actually arrived on Christmas day, so perhaps it should be day -1, and I was completely surprised at how many people there already were here. There are literally hundreds of people putting up tents, stocking toilets with paper, checking electrics, organising events (yes, right up until the day there are parts of the calendar that are fluid -more on that later), all manner of things. Bridget and I came up here last Saturday to set up the campsite (and it's amazing how quickly Sarah and Mannie can find life-threatening things of incredible importance to do when there are tents to set up). Despite a storm last night, all the tents were still up, so I set about putting the finishing touches to the site with streamers of prayer flags and paper lanterns. That's one of the things I love about the Woodford Festival -you're here for a week so you can settle right in. Bridge and I got a great site right near the Green Room. It's noisy but hey, you don't exactly come here to sleep!

We spent Christmas day just wandering around with our good friend Davydd McDonald who seems to have become our Woodford version of Dobby the Campsite elf, but without the politeness or even obeying of my orders. In fact he just turns up (out of thin air), drinks my coffee then buggers off, but he's grand value and knows more tunes than any six people I know.

Ok, the important bits. I'll keep a record throughout the festival (hopefully!):

Weather: It's hot, but not unbearable, very gentle scattered rain, but otherwise great. Evenings are just sublime
Number of Byron Bay organic doughnuts scoffed: 1
Huntsman Spiders around tent: 1
Ciders drunk: 5
Times I've fallen over a guy rope: 1

So, this morning (Friday) we received a mobile phone summons to meet with the Festival Director, Bill Hauritz. Bill met with a bit of an accident a few weeks ago so he's currently running the festival from a wheelchair while his terribly broken knee (and leg) heals. We were a tad nervous, after all, it's not everyday that you get a call from Katie, Bill's #1 asking if you're on site and would like a wee job...

We've been invited to perform at the opening ceremony, in the Amphitheatre tomorrow evening. Never would I have imagined we'd be playing the Amphitheatre here! We're going to be playing some of our own tunes, then backing an old mate, Terry Jacobs for a song before playing some more tunes. Should be a blast! The potential audience is massive.

Tonight there's a small session down at the Duck & Shovel, and although the festival doesn't really start until tomorrow, there's a surprising amount going on. I'm sitting in the Green Room typing this, one eye on the screen, one eye on the door watching the performers coming and going. It's such a great relaxing place, carpet, comfy chairs, constant curiosity wondering about the origins of all the people wandering in.

I've got to the point where I really have to stop and think about how many times I've performed here, both with Sunas and other bands, but it just doesn't matter. It really is something special. There's a phrase I used a few years ago to describe it; the same phrase once used by another guest here, Dougie McLean to describe his local ceilidh.

It's a privileged glimpse of how humanity can ac, given the right circumstances.