onionbagblog

Having skipped the #thamesfestival in recent years, I returned this weekend for a celebration of the grand old river. Rather than observe any aquatic events, I seem to become caught up in a glorified handbag sale, stretching from County Hall al the way to Blackfriars.

Slightly unfair, and I’m sure if I were more organised, and if the crappy festival website wasn’t so shoddy, then I would have been able to refine my river events to actually reflect my love of water.

In an age where any gathering is deemed a dreaded festival, it did leave me wondering if we actually do need the #thamesfestival. The Barclaycard branded Freedom Stage (ha!) had a half-decent line-up, but it really wasn’t anything to do with the river.

The rest of the festival itself seemed to consist of a shopping mall, selling the usual low-end tat, or high end overpriced cup cakes. The psychogeographers amongst you would no doubt be able to deduce some meaningful conclusion from the tat situated towards the Lambeth Bridge end, and the chi chi offering upstream towards Blackfriars.

But it wasn’t really ethical handbags that bought me to the banks of the river. I was in search of some filthy, barely legal, raunchy, North London pure Rockabilly filth, in the form of the outrageously talented Kitty, Daisy and Lewis.

I last saw the Camden kids up at Finsbury Park as part of the Love Music, Hate Racism festival – pah! A proper festival with a pertinent message. With GCSE’s now firmly behind them, the simply brilliant K, D & L didn’t disappoint down by the Thames.

It was weird to see the cult of the London quiff kids now emerging in homage to K, D & L. 50′s Americana came to the South Bank, as well as the ever present elderly London Elvi dancing duo. Freaks.

@richardgallon almost broke out into a jive; @Darryl1974 buggered off to deepest Kent for a wedding.

Cripes.

I didn’t stay around long after the close of K, D & L’s set. Countryfile beckoned back at SW8 base. But it was quite a carnage that I left around me at Jubilee Gardens. Half the punters were half-laced before sunset.

Ah – I see. So *that’s* what the #thamesfestival is all about. Fine work, Old Father. Fine work.

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