After The Fireworks, I Am Going To Wrestle A Bear*

Every year, Derby has a massive outdoor classical concert in Darley Park. It is apparently "the UK’s biggest free outdoor classical concert". And it is great, as long as it doesn't rain. If it rains, people go anyway, but instead of 30,000 people sitting on grass having nice picnics and drinking wine, it becomes a sea of umbrellas and soggy people. This year, the theme is Astronomy, and they are doing John Williams' Star Wars and E.T. music, as well as 2001:A Space Odyssey and Bohemian Rhapsody. For some reason, they seem to do Ride Of The Valkyries every year, no matter what the theme, and this year is no different. The best part is the firework finale. The sky across Derby is lit up with tons of gunpowder and fire, and on the few occasions when I've elected to stay home, I've been able to just look up and watch it all from my window.

This year, there's stuff going on for the entire weekend of the 4th to the 6th September, as part of Derby Festé. There are street parades and parties, weird puppets, a ceilidh in the marketplace, "a giant drumming human mobile"(I can't wait), some jazz, and then NO PARKING are taking over Deda with their latest exhibition 'Buildings Without Walls'. Hello Hubmarine have teamed up with them to present the Feste Wrap Party on the Sunday night, after the fireworks. I'm going to be reading a story as part of TTO along with Biff and Nath, Joe and Jonezy will be doing amazing things with words and microphones, as will Mike Wilson, and there will be music from Bell Hagg Orkestar, FUNfun, Dulcinea and The Dust Collectors. There's even a foyer band AND a puppet show!

I'm going to try to write a special story for it. I have a week. It might be about buildings, fireworks or bears, or all three. I'm excited!


*I am probably not going to wrestle a bear.