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Updated July 2021
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This site is dedicated in the memory of who inspired me to delve deep into the magic of the free festival and who passed away Sept 3rd 2010. R.I.P. Roger ..... |
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May 22-24th 1981
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Avebury is a good example of the impromtu ,authority hassled and miniscule free festival of the early 80s. It was organised by word of mouth , without any consultation with authority . Attendance was limited to around a hundred, the festival moved from site to site because of harrassment from the police.Eventually the participants dispersed due to police pressure .
However , due to the existence of the Tibetan Ukrainian Mountain Troupe Book of The Road, we have a daily diary that details the entire progress of the festival, which we reproduce here for your enlightenment .
Excerpt from
Tibetan
Ukrainian Mountain Troupe Book of The Road
Tuesday 19th May 9.00 pm
So here we are again back in
the rigours of life on the road , or at least not to it , in a lay bye where
our team of highly trained mechanics are out there where it counts flat on their
backs . Bruno the lunch burger man says we are scaring off his customers , we
don't know what we are doing , where we're going or how we're getting there.
we know nothing .
11 pm. Mystic Tib UK band practice pon yonder hill, experiment new style acoustic
reggae and finger licking shit kicking , then tea and tele in Bobs truck.
Wednesday May 20th 8;30 am.
We moved half of our busses to
the lay bye over the road to keep Bruno happy , but Bruno’s twin brother
Bruno the lunch burger man didn't like where we parked the Beast so he rolled
up his sleeves and pushed it to the other end of the lay bye - Geez, thanks
Bruno !
Thursday May 21st
And so once more , eventually
, by and by anon and thus for hence we all found each other and of a sort, just
about got it together and off we zoomed as fast as a bucket of dead snails across
this green and pleasant and wet land until we hit a roundabout at Oxford , went
round it a few times and then all peeled off in different directions .
The Beast, with an added advantage
of a navigator on board , soon found its way to Moby Dick’s , where the
Lunch bus already was . Next arrived the white van and within a few short hours
we were all together again . As soon as this state of togetherness was reached
(as it sometimes is ) was a big rap and how we are going to work this session
.
| We discussed various plans of action and troupe policies until the sun came up , the birds began singing and it was time for the Beast to split and do an advanced scout trip to suss the ...... |  |
And thus , about lunch time , into the stone circle at Avebury rolled the Beast
and parked in the free car park . Out we all leapt but tho we looked high and
low no free festival did we see . Lots of nice skool girls tho ( he , he , he
)
STOP PRESS
We have just spotted what could well be two hippies . Could this be it ?. Could this be the Avebury Free Festival ? , only time will tell . We have no money so we've got to do something. Geof and Gofer are out at this very moment doing the foot work , but we know all will be groovy as our great sage and onion the daylight llama will blow the smoke in our direction .
Friday 22nd May noon .
Finally on Thursday afternoon
, after Mac went off to lunch another MOT , the Beast rejected a valve transplant
and our telephone box committed hurry curry all over the road , we split the
lay bye and back on the road. Same as it ever was, and ever shall be , road
without end . Amen .
We got split up . down and round and round and round , lunched gearbox triple
lunched electrics , lost found , lost again, leaky tyres and haven't we been
here before sometime ?
May 22nd 9 pm
The reconnaissance crew have
returned and they say they have found the site and its just around the corner
. So we just got going around the corner .
And here we are at the site. Nice site. There's about 10 people, three tents
, a Morris Traveller , green grass , trees, sheep, stone circle, confused land
owner and the Beast , which appears to be stuck - No traction , oh well somebody
put the kettle on !
By and by more people arrived
and by the time the pigs showed up there was about 20 of us. The pigs were a
bunch of bastards, they just want us out of their area, same as it ever was
and now they’re going to wind up the farmer. Half an hour later they are
back with the bewildered farmer and a tractor to two out the Beast and any other
cars and vans that don’t move out as well. So off we all trundle back
to the car park to think about wots happening and blow a few pipes. There seems
to be about thirty of us now and its growing all the time and all we need now
is a site.
By this time it was getting late
and starting to rain, so we decide to move to a site they used in 79 a couple
of miles away . Here we go again trundle , down the road, full up with furry
freaks and ruck sacks to a lay bye on top of a hill with a copse of trees. By
the time we all settled in there is about 50 of us and a free food kitchen ,
although the site is very bleak and the wind cuts a path wherever it wants .
So we put the great pink parachute up as a wind break and send around the free
tea, um and get very stoned. Its all groovy as ever and the Beast seems to be
central admin offish , but that's groovy as we can file anything under lunch
.
Saturday
May 23rd 2pm.
News recently arrived of a more
sheltered and groovy site down the road in the shadow of Silbury Hill . which
is the huge prehistoric man made hill - England’s Great Pyramid ?
So shortly after breakfast , a few pipes and a few more pipes ,we made ready
to move.
Most everyone else made off before us , but eventually with a little push off
we went , full up and full volume boogie on down the road. We wound gracefully
into the new site and parked up on the hard next to the round with a nice little
paddock affair behind us . Lots of good vibes and sunshine flying about , although
its still quite a small gathering , but from what we've been told its the most
that's ever happened at Avebury and from little Acorns and all that who knows
? . We don't . But I'll just go and dig a shit pit so the paddock doesn't get
fouled up !
Sunday May 24th 10 am
Alas and woe is me for I did
miss out on digging the shit pit as Geoff beat me to it , but alas again for
not many had time to admire his handiwork for shortly after we opened up the
free tea kitchen in rolled the pigs and told everyone to fuck off or else !
They being very offensive and scaring everybody off . So every one else is heading
off to the next imaginary site . Unfortunately the Beast is going nowhere as
our driver is up the pub . So we are just sitting blowing joints and looking
at the pigs sitting in their car looking at us waiting for us to disappear,
although I’ve told them that we just aren't that magick ( unless we want
to be )
By and by Greame returns and off we boogie fool up and fool vol with Police
escort at rear.
Any info to add- well don't just sit there ! Contact us
Free festivals and small fayres held in the United Kingdom between 1967-90.
1967-69.
1970-79 |
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Main list of Free festivals 1970-1985
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We are proud of the contribution we have made to Andy Worthington's sociological history of Stonehenge and the free festival scene in the UK .This new book gives a fascinating insight into the various counter cultural obsessions with the Stones and provides a variety of new perspectives to many of the key events surrounding the Henge such as the Battle Of The Beanfield and the more recent attempts hold a celebration at the Stones during the Solstice.
Find out more about this great book by clicking on the image on the left and visit the Heart of Albion Press web site . |
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Sending details of a small book I've just self-published which might be of interest to some readers of your admirable site.
I have featured the book and its contents on one of my blogs too:
With many thanks in advance John Kruse
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Related Articles
The aroma of a free festival -by Roger Hutchinson
Dome construction instruction sheet (download-140k)-by Roger Hutchinson
Travellers Tales Convoy Steve's tale of how the freaks outsmarted the fuzz at Greenham common.
Zorch -House band for the free festival set ? A fanzine page on the UK's first electronic band .
Tibetan Ukranian Mountain Troupe-surreal pranksters of the Traveller community .
Acidia Lightshow Lightshow for Windsor festival and Stonehenge in the 1970s.
Traveller Daves Website - Chock full of of free festival photos !
Many, many thanks go to Roger Hutchinson , Big Steve , Roger Duncan, Celia, Will , Chazz, Jeza ,Chris Hewitt ,The Fabulous Time Tortoise , Peter Piwowarski - ( 70s music site/photos ) Martin S, Steve Austin ,Traveller Dave, Herb, Tim Brighton, Vin Miles, Haze Evans , Noddy Guevara, Chris Brown, Janet Thompson, David Stooke, Gary Gibbons , Nigel Ayers, Rich Deakin ,Glenda Pescardo,Justin Warman,Brian F, Steve Bayfield, Kev Ellis, Paul Seaton and many other minor contributors for their help in providing the archival material related to these free festivals which has at enabled us to construct the site .
Any info to add ?-well don't just sit there , Contact us
