Festival favourite
Our guide to Green Man
When is the festival?
Green Man Festival 2018 opened yesterday and runs until Sunday at the Glanusk Estate in Crickhowell.
Who is performing?
This year’s festival is headlined by The War on Drugs, Fleet Foxes and King Gizzard & the Lizard Wizard.
Other performers include John Grant, The Brian Jonestown Massacre, Grizzly Bear, Cate Le Bon and Tamikrest. Public Service Broadcasting also return to Wales after making their concept album, Every Valley, in Ebbw Vale.
The second wave of acts announced were: Floating Points, Anna Calvi, Black Angels, John Maus, Joan As Policewoman, Simian Mobile Disco w/Deep Throat Choir, Wye Oak, Susanne Sundfor, Kelly Lee Owens, Rolling Blackouts Coastal Fever, HMLTD, Pictish Trail, Sweet Baboo, A Hawk and a Hacksaw, Nubya Garcia, The KVB, Lucy Dacus, Snapped Ankles, Sacred Paws, The Murlocs, Lost Horizons, Bas Jan, Ed Dowie, Spinning Coin, Group Listening, Accu, Fenne Lily, Adwaith, Sock, and Aadae.
Comedy-wise, the line-up is as eclectic as ever with Phil Wang, Tom Wrigglesworth, Rob Deering and Pat Cahill leading the charge.
What else is happening?
With 10 areas to explore, there’s plenty to do for every festival-goer.
Mountain’s Foot holds the main stage, while Far Out will feature a mix of high energy performances.
The relaxing Cinedrome, in which the attendees seeking a quiet escape can watch a number of different films on the big screen. The programme this year is awesome as ever and includes, This is Spinal Tap, Paddingon 2, Stand By Me and The Shape of Water among others.
Smaller artists capturing Green Man’s ethos can be found in the Walled Garden, and a fusion of science, art and nature is located in Einstein’s Garden.
And as always there’s going to be a pop quiz with music experts Pete Paphides and Bob Stanley.
Those looking for a quiet retreat can find one in Nature Nurture, The Courtyard and Fortune Falls, with each area featuring a mixture of local beers and ciders, yoga and mindfulness workshops and hot tubs (one’s even on top of a double decker bus!), as well as the natural beauty of the Welsh countryside.
The family friendly festival has two areas specifically for younger guests, with the Little Folk area featuring activities and entertainment for young children, and Somewhere hosting a number of workshops in the creative arts aimed at a teenage and young adult audience.
The Settlement is the campsite for guests with Settlers Pass tickets, and features a stage curated by an act or organisation from within the Welsh music industry. This year’s programme is orchestrated by Cardiff’s Clwb Ifor Bach.
How do you get there?
By car:
Car parking is available on site and directions to the site itself will be signposted by temporary signage.
Park and Ride:
A Park and Ride service will be located a few miles from the site and a shuttle service will be running from 10am-1.30pm until Sunday, and 6am to 2pm on Monday.
By train:
The nearest train station is located in Abergavenny, where a shuttle bus will be transporting festival goers from 10am-11pm today, 9am-10pm on Sunday and from 6am until the early afternoon on Monday.
By coach:
National Express will be running
dedicated coaches to the Green Man Festival from 15 locations around the UK.
Disabled Access
Green Man has a number of services and facilities available for disabled attendees.
Most of the site is a grass surface and spread over a distance, but there is a Tarmac road, hardstanding and trackway for ease of access. Bear in mind that there is still grass that is necessary to cover as you enter each area.
Mobility scooters are available for hire.
Ticket schemes are in place for personal assistants, accessible campsite vehicle passes, accessible car park passes and viewing platform passes.
For more information on the disability access on site, as well a how to apply, visit the Green Man Festival’s information page.
Food and Drink
A number of stalls serving fresh, locally sourced ingredients will be dotted all over the site. There will be dietary specific options available, including vegetarian, vegan and gluten-free.
Old favourites like The Cheese Truck will be back at the Walled Garden, The Tea Stop will be back and The Grazing Shed will be back with their burgers.
An affordable meal scheme will be put in place that means everyone can get an adult meal for no more than £5.
Participating traders will display a sign if they offer this deal.
While alcohol can’t be brought into the festival site by guests, there are eight bars around the site that will be serving a variety of beers, ciders and cocktails that should sufficiently whet your whistle.