The Park at Eastnor is in the Malvern Hills Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty and parts of it are within a Site of Special Scientific Interest, although the sensitive flora and fauna are not in the part used by the Big Chill. There is also a herd of red deer, which have traditionally grazed the grassland and sheltered amongst the oaks, but for health and safety reasons they are confined to an area outside the event and public camping sites. So Countryfile would have some pertinent questions to ask about the impact of the Chill, and how the park could recover after the event.

The Big Chill agreed to let the cameras in, and the festival director, Melvin Benn, gave the lead interview. He explained how the Chill was motivated to work as far as possible on green principles, maximising recycling and minimising its carbon footprint. He emphasised the effort made after the Festival to clear all litter and the Chill’s Leave no trace policy.

John then came to see me at the Castle, where we could see the site from a distance in the setting of the Malvern Hills. He arrived in an authentic VW Camperbus, a reminder that he had attended an early, if not the first, Glastonbury festival. We discussed how the ground recovered and also the positive economic impact of the Chill on Ledbury and Herefordshire in general. Luckily, Melvin and I seemed to say much the same, and the litter pickers have been covering the ground since the festival closed with Lily Allen’s closing performance on 8th August.

We look forward to the Big Chill’s return in 2011. 

To see the Countryfile progrramme click on to BBCi player - http://www.bbc.co.uk/iplayer/episode/b00tl5fv/Countryfile_22_08_2010/�

The weather, the key factor in determining how the ground fares and the comfort of the festival goers, was good, if not hot. A little rain in the build up period helped to make the grass green, so the Park looked fine. All grazing stock had to be removed four weeks before the start, so we had to mow the grass, in long straight lines, before the set up started, but the trees helped to create a good rural atmosphere, and no-one felt they were on a golf course.

The Big Chill employed a number of local teenagers, but also including the son of Belgian friends of ours, who finished the fortnight speaking much better English, although with a slight Yorkshire accent. A number of businesses in the area also benefited by supplying good and services to the festival, balancing the inconvenience that some will have suffered when the traffic to and from the site was heavy. There were about 30,000 festival goers and workers in the Park altogether, and most of them seemed to be in front of the main stage for Lily Allen’s closing act on the Sunday night. There was a great atmosphere.

We are lucky to have the Big Chill in Herefordshire and look forward to their return in 2011.     JH-B  20th August 2010

The races are divided into a number of categories so almost everyone has a chance to compete. One year, I saw a man on a monocycle but never discovered if he was in a class of his own, though in one sense, of course, he was. The course snakes around the Park and nearby land, with a good mixture of hill work and some water crossings. The races are endurance tests and last 24 hours. This year it all went very well and was a credit to the organisers, and, to some extent, the dry weather, which made the going easier.

As boys, my brother and I used to ride our bikes in the Park too, but with unsprung Raleighs and Sturmey Archer Three Speed gears. Going to watch Mountain Mayhem and seeing all the trade stands reminds us how much off-road biking has developed. I still ride my 40 year old Raleigh, although I stick to the roads as much as possible, with only the occasional downhill run on the grass ……and no Lycra! JH-B