Nottingham’s wonderful Splendour Festival goes from strength to strength, thanks in no small part to the man that books the bands…
Hello Anton, so where are you from & where are you at, geographically speaking?
Originally South Yorkshire, but came to Nottingham in ’84 for university and not left.
How did you develop an appreciation of music?
Raiding my much older brother’s record collection, and he took me to my first gig – which was The Specials!! So very much looking forward to them at Splendour.
Who are DHP, what is your role & how did you secure it?
We are a live music & venues company based in Nottingham. I started independently, but joined in 2002 to open Rescue Rooms – I’m now Director of Live for the company – which is much bigger these days.
Where, when & how did the idea for Splendour originate?
We saw the possibility of a larger scale live music event, approached the council – and they agreed…
How much time do you spend on the festival throughout the year?
It’s a year round thing, though most of the booking conversations are in November/December the year before.
Tell us about the venue & how you secured it in the first place?
Wollaton is a beautiful park, in an amazing setting with the hall in the background – we also had a history of doing live events there, so it was the obvious choice for Splendour.
How is your working relationship with Nottingham City Council?
Really good – they recognise how the event benefits the city, and want to work together to make it a success.
How do you choose the line-up?
We always look for a good mixture to appeal to a cross section of people, and then see which artists are available – and of course fit into our budget!
Do you make waves with the local bands?
Yes! We always have the winner of the Future Sound Of Nottingham competition that we do with Nusic opening the main stage – and almost all the courtyard stage plus several of the bands on the other stages are Notts. And it’s great to see when Notts artists go higher up the bill- Jake Bugg being the biggest one!
What have you guys got for us this year?
Lots – it’s all on www.splendourfestival.com
How did you book the Specials, that’s quite a coup?
We’ve actually had them before! But with a great new album they were one of the ones we really wanted.
For someone who has never been to Splendour before, what have they to expect?
A great day of music and fun!!
Will there be a Festival in 2020?
Oh yes!
SPLENDOUR FESTIVAL
Mumble Festivals 