Best of British: T in the Park

Tue 27th Nov, 2007 in Features

Located at Balado Airfield, an hour from Edinburgh and 90 minutes from Glasgow, T in the Park is Scotland’s answer to likes of Glastonbury, Reading and Leeds. Starting off in a Glasgow park in 1994, the festival quickly outgrew its setting and moved to Balado in 1997. T now draws 60,000 punters per day, split across eight stages.

To camp or not to camp?

Organisers made the decision pretty easy at the 2007 event, introducing for the first time Friday night entertainment featuring the likes of Arctic Monkeys, Lily Allen and The Coral. But when you take that out of the equation, it’s a tough choice to make.

The campsite is the biggest party Scotland sees all year and the chance to take your own booze certainly is a nice touch (major sponsor Tenants is the only beer available in the festival arena). Camping also gives you the chance to head back to your tent to change your muddy clothes, as well as a chance to avoid the queues for the bars and toilets.

Alternatively, there are buses back to Glasgow and Edinburgh at the end of each night, taking you back to a hot shower and a warm bed. Avoiding the campsite also means you won’t have to confront what the locals refer to as – œneds’ (non-educated delinquents), who keep themselves busy pilfering booze and trying to set fire to your tent. Waking up to the sound of a security quad bike chasing down a young arsonist may be entertaining but it’s not the most welcome thing at 6am!

Sample the local culture

Hang around the main stage after the Sunday night bill to something unlike anything else on the planet. No matter how many albums the headliner has sold, they’ll always play support to a lone piper, closing the festival with traditional tune Flower of Scotland. With the sound of bagpipes filling the entire venue, the collective voice of Scotland’s misspent youth and 55,000 V signs to the travelling English makes this a once in a lifetime experience.

You also might want to check out what the locals like to drink. While you’ll do well to find anything other than Tennents in the festival arena, drink of choice on the campsite is Buckfast, affectionately known as Bucky. You’ll notice carton after carton of the 15 per cent tonic wine being lugged through the campsite gates as you drag your bags from your car to your tent. But just watch out for the – œflying beer’: it’s never beer – it’s usually because the queues for the portaloos were too long.

Plan your day. On the day

Over here we’re used to having several weeks to plan a Big Day Out. But be careful if you’re planning on seeing 20 bands per day at T. The lineup is always announced due to running order but exact running times aren’t confirmed until the day of the event – so unless you have internet access before heading to the event, you’ll have to fork out for a festival programme or a timetable lanyard. Failing that, you can win yourself a swag of new friends by accosting randoms and checking what time the bands are on.

Scotland the brave

T in the Park always includes its fair share of home-grown acts, giving it a slightly different feel to the festivals south of the border. The Scots have always been a lot closer to their music scene and are fiercely protective of bands the English like to call – œBritish’. Franz Ferdinand, Travis, Idlewild and more recently The View and The Fratellis – the Scottish bands always go down a treat at Balado. Even The Proclaimers. Especially The Proclaimers!

Sing along. And BYO flag

The Scottish have the bizarre habit of singing along with everything. Lyrics, guitars, basslines and even drums – they’ll always find a way. While you’re at it, check out the flags. While some of us go to a festival to see bands and enjoy good times, it seems a lot of Scots get more out of waving a flag. And it doesn’t have to be a Scottish flag; political activist groups, football teams, obscure Central Asian nations – as long as it’s a piece of cloth attached to a stick.

The mad rush for tickets

Organisers have cashed in on recent successes and put tickets for the next year’s event on sale before you’ve had the chance to scrape the mud off your wellies. The remaining tickets go on sale in March the next year and sell out in a matter of minutes. If you’re planning on heading over, beware of ticketmaster.co.uk – they don’t like Australian format phone numbers, so phone sales are definitely the way to go.

Want more info on T in the Park? Or help planning your trip? Check out these sites:
www.tinthepark.com
essential festivals

Here’s a glimpse of what to expect on your trip…

Check out Franz Ferdinand’s triumphant homecoming at T in the Park 2004 (complete with flags):

And see Kasabian inspire a mass sing-along at T in 2006:

…and T favourites Oasis back in ‘02:

Amped? Ready to rock it at T in the Park? Grab your air guitar and rock out at some of the UK’s top summer festivals next year. Virgin Atlantic earlybird fares to London from $1760 including taxes. Click HERE to book now.