Back in 2012 we chatted to Rich Bryan, organiser of Bearded Theory, about his background and the motivation behind this great event. You can read what he had to say HERE. We were duly fascinated and sent an FFA Reviewer along to discover if the festival was half as good as it sounded on paper …. Our guys actually found it twice as good! Read our review of the fabulous 2012 festival HERE.

This is a festival that consistently punches above its weight in quality, facilities, professional attitude and line-up. Not least on the value for money stakes. With a 2013 line-up including Levellers, Reverend and the Makers, and a special appearance by Stiff Little Fingers amongst countless others, and all for a measly £79 - who could argue.

This time around we quizzed Rich on the timeline to Bearded Theory – its past, present, and future …. Some interesting insights, particularly about the nuts & bolts of festival management – here is what the man had to say:

FFA - How would you define the development of BT over the last six years; was it a planned strategy or more organic?  

I don’t think we had any great plan to be honest; around 2008-2009 we didn’t have a clue really what we were doing to be totally honest! (laughs)…. We learned our lessons very quickly in 2009 because things didn’t go well. From that experience we got the opportunity to either fold very quickly – we lost money with the tornado at the time & the results of that and other things….we were financially devastated. Or, we could work against the problems and push it in the right direction. We chose the latter because we thought we still had something to offer... So we decided to improve all round, particularly on the overall management and went a lot more professional on the back of that. If the 2009 things had not happened, we probably would not be doing it again… The 2009 thing made us operate more professionally and to be honest that’s the reason we are still going – and quite successfully!

FFA - The relocation to the National Trust’s wonderful Kedleston Hall simply adds to the gravitas of the festival – would you agree?

The actual acreage is about 800 acres, which is huge and of Glastonbury proportions…. It certainly allows any plans for growth and we’ve also gained a permanent event licence there… Our strategy is that we’ll never go above 10,000 and it’s nowhere near that of course. We tweaked the license last year to overcome some minor problems in the first year relating to noise emissions, and we’ve tweaked it again this year. But it was very minor. … We’ve a great relationship now with every local authority – we are made very welcome and always improve in line with the authorities recommendations. This is one of the biggest problems running festivals actually... At our previous location before Kedleston, it had a smaller, five thousand, capacity licence and although it’s the same legal jurisdiction and legislation from the local authority – we were given such a hard time by certain departments… Our relationship with Amber Valley licensing has been very supportive and I believe we have returned their trust. Although there are more constraints with Kedleston Hall as the venue holder – understandably to a degree considering the place is so beautiful - we’ve actually found it much better from a licensing perspective at Kedleston Hall!

FFA – Is there anything that the public, walking through the gates, may not immediately notice this year but will have a significant impact?

We always develop it and try and improve it – last year for the first time we brought in a site manager that’s used to managing events like Reading & Leeds festival; she managed the night time shift for us… So if there were any problems she just dealt with it… This year we’ve brought in another manager, again who’s used to managing major events, and he’s doing the day shift. So now we’ve extremely experienced professional people providing 24 hour coverage on site management… We’ve improved the roadways – we’ve hired in over a mile trackway, not just to support every structure on site but also into the campervan field and the car park... Finally, we’ve also now got a Labour Response Team which we’ve never been able to afford before. So this is a team of plumbers, electricians, and the like, and they are all on call 24-7. So that’s going to be quite nice for us... We’ve thrown into the camp site another security office, undercover Police, decoy tents, increase in security presence and better perimeter patrols. This is to deal with any tent theft issue – we probably make a bigger deal of it that we need to – we had a small number reported last year – but just one is too many … so we are going to do everything in our power to get hold of the scrotes and deal with them appropriately!

(FFA Says - Hear Hear!! Although a minor problem in the scale of the UK festival population – Theft is non-the-less a reality at virtually all events these days, and whilst remaining primarily a personal responsibility issue, it was a pleasure to discover a festival that not only recognises this global problem but is taking further pro-active steps to minimise it. Well done Bearded Theory!)

FFA – What about the weather!

At Kedleston the drainage is already there – It is a benefit of Kedleston, plus the actual river running through the site actually has relieving capacity so the site will never flood… We’ve also got cancellation insurance of course! … Also, we’ve hired a massive area locally so if for whatever reason we can’t use the car parks we’ve contingency to park locally off site.

FFA – Is 2013 the best line-up ever?

I liked 2010 personally, but this year, particularly for the ticket prices, it’s the best we’ve done. We’ve done some really ambitious things… We are flying a band in from Los Angeles and another from Australia – The deal with the US based band was about a year in the making. Their agent told us we only got the deal because they were sick of us! … It’s a one-off show – it’s costing an absolute fortune but I think it will be worthwhile… As they are Irish we were hoping they still lived there but no – it’s the States! (laughs). It’s probably just an Alternative Ulster quipped FFA to no applause!

FFA - You appear to have done it again Rich in providing, pound for pound, one of the best value festivals in the country? Assume you would not argue against that!

I’m really biased so I probably wouldn’t argue with you (laughs) …. We’ve replaced the Waters Edge Stage from last year with the Lock Inn stage this year. It’s basically the same size marquee as we used to have our second stage in, with a PA system as good as our second stage and literally we’ve spent quite a lot of money on that... I think the line up my colleague Rob has put on in that tent is absolutely astronomical... Leading on from that – that’s where some of my favourite acts are on this year; Billy Vincent – absolutely outstanding. Police Dog Hogan are also brilliant. I don’t book those acts – I only book the main stage – so I was delighted! Citizen Fish & Macka B are probably the two I’ve go for personally; plus the Levellers of course.

FFA – Where do you see the festival in 6 years’ time?

SIX Years! I’d be pleasantly surprised if it’s still going! I’ve a life outside the festival but I’ll be doing all I can to keep it going… In six years’ time people may get fed up of us anyway! But if we can we’ll keep in going – doing it the right way as we are doing now where it’s being done ethically and we can continue to put on decent values… I still haven’t finished – I’ve still got so many bands I want to stick on – I’ve already got my 2014 wish list! (No hints!)… We take it from one year to the next and I’ve got enough in me to do another year… I always say every year I’ll never do it again – and then do it again every year! (laughs). So we could be going in six years’ time or longer... I’ve got to balance a career against being a festival organiser. 

In 2014 the biggest change will be that we’ll be moving it to the bank holiday at the end of the month... It’s a bit daft really that we are a family festival and currently people have to take their kids out of school… So that’s one change already.

I may also get to socialise a little more this year – now I’ve got proper site managers! (laughs) …. But we’ll wait and see!

Listening to Rich’s professionalism it’s no wonder that for many, Bearded Theory sets the benchmark for many of its peers. Derbyshire will be buzzing again this May!

Bearded Theory 2013 at Kedleston Hall Park, Kedleston Road, Derby, Derbyshire, DE22 5JQ - Fri 17th to Sun 19th May 2013 - Adult camping tickets from £79

Full Details HERE.

Article by Barrie Dimond