Standon Calling might be the UK’s most wholesome festival. Many of the music fans wandering around the parched Hertfordshire fields are families or teenagers. They cheer on the kids taking part in a fancy dress parade, fly through the trees on zipwires, and splash around in the swimming pool. There are fairground rides. Yoga sessions. Massages. Karaoke. And even though the heatwave means the annual dog show is cancelled, there are still dogs everywhere, meaning a cuddle with a friendly pooch is never far away.
That’s not to say Standon doesn’t also have an excellent music lineup, of course. There are plenty of familiar faces alongside the fresh, from the Noughties nostalgia of Razorlight and the Sugababes to full-blown Madness. A record-breaking heatwave provides plenty of good reasons to take refuge under the shade-covered stages, such as the Laundry Meadows, where newcomers such as Lime Garden and English Teacher lure in the crowds from early doors. This year, Standon Calling has honoured its commitment to the Keychange gender diversity pledge: 54 per cent of artists on the billing are female or non-binary.
