First aired in 1986, an impressive 682 episodes have been transmitted of Casualty over the last 23 years and it is an award winning, flagship programme of Saturday night BBC television. We can all instantly recognise the theme tune and although the series is set in the fictional city of Holby, we all know its real name is Bristol. Things are not all well in camp Casualty at the moment though, as the latest of the BBC’s big plans of action is to move this much loved Bristol based series over the Severn to Cardiff, creating a huge debate among fans, staff and cast of the series.

The main reason for this move has something to do with BBC’s ambitious new vision of creating; “a radical shift in the whole set up of broadcasting,” according to Jana Bennett, Director, BBC Vision. The ultimate goal of the BBC Trust is to create a more diverse BBC that spreads itself across the country and therefore better represents the people of the nation, as everyone within the UK is involved in funding it. In order to accomplish this target, the BBC Trust has brought in a new decree that at least 50% of BBC will be out of London by 2016.

But how does this effect Casualty, as it is already out of London? Well, BBC has planned to create seven ‘centres of excellence’ around the country, clusters of specific creativity in certain regions. The chosen areas are Glasgow, Cardiff, Belfast, London, Birmingham, Salford/Manchester and Bristol; however, the BBC would like these areas to each have a particular focus of importance, for example BBC Bristol will build on its existing Natural History Unit and will continue to be the centre of excellence for factual programming whereas Cardiff, currently home to Dr Who and Torchwood, will build upon its drama and entertainment and hence the potential move of Casualty to the city.

If this move is to go ahead, it could affect Bristol in many ways. The many benefits Casualty brings to Bristol include a reported £24.7 million a year boost to the South West economy, the programme creates jobs and training opportunities for local technicians, writers and actors and it helps attract other broadcasters and film-makers to the area by helping to put Bristol on the map as a centre of excellence for film and television production.

At the moment, an average episode of Casualty consists of a 10 day shoot, 6 days in the studio and 4 days on location. These locations are normally Bristol based using iconic locations like the Clifton Suspension Bridge, Thekla, Park Street and even your street or school - we can all remember the excitement of seeing the big, grey casualty food bus parked somewhere and immediately knowing an episode was being filmed – but with the move to Cardiff, Casualty makers will have to decide whether to make the costly and timely commute across the border or whether to begin morphing Holby city into an entirely different location based in Cardiff, whilst bearing in mind both Dr Who and Torchwood have had to begin commuting across the country to other regions as they have swiftly used up the recognisable locations within Wales.

As with all important decisions like this, there are also the financial circumstances to consider and not only will Bristol loose the valuable boost to the local economy but it will cost a substantial amount to build a new set/studio and either relocate or pay the commuting costs for the show’s cast and crew who are all currently Bristol residents and might be reluctant to move, as Derek Thompson (better known as Charlie Fairhead, the longest standing character in the programme) points out; “I’ve been a resident of Bristol for the last 22 years and the common feeling within Bristol is that people don’t want Casualty moved, not with any hostility towards where it might land but there’s a notion that Casualty represents the West Country in a lot of its story lines. This is where it’s based. Why go and record the Bristol culture somewhere else? They will lose the roots of the whole thing if it goes.”

On the other hand, a move will give Bristol based companies an opportunity to extend themselves across into Wales, but at what cost? Fears are that with the potential move of such a large programme, what ripple affect will it have on BBC Bristol and whether this will be the beginning of the end for BBC Bristol based drama?

www.bbc.co.uk/casualty

Kyle Brown

We walked through the stifling heat to the Bristol Academy hoping that as it was no longer the “Carling” Academy, we might be able to procure a decent beverage. No such luck; we were stuck with Strongbow. But no matter, as the glass doors to the stage area were opened, the crazy gypsy sounds of the support act, Paprika Balkanicus hit us.

As the name suggests, they play traditional music from the Balkans and Eastern Europe and I’ve never seen such an enthusiastic reception for a support act. The crowd were going beserk; clapping, jumping up and down and I think even doing a little conga in one corner. The guys are from Romania, Serbia and Slovenia and play violin, guitar, bass and an accordion. The music was fast, lively and tempo-tastic and the guy on the accordion moved his fingers faster than you’d believe!

After a break, the six piece funk fusion band of The Cat Empire came onstage and my first thought was; ‘My, what an attractive frontman,’ followed by; ‘Gosh! Doesn’t the drummer look young’. They started slow but soon launched into my favourite song How To Explain before an impressive A capella performance from Harry, which later on in the concert when he’d maybe got too Arabian with it, lead me to the hilarious comment; ‘Oh, that’s why they’re called The Cat Empire.’ Felix, the lead, played percussion as well as singing and had moves and smoothness that were deserving of a 50s style mic, suit and hat.

Down in the firey pit beneath the stage it was so crowded that even our belly buttons started to sweat so we made our way up the stairs for some air. It would have been amazing if the gig had been outside. The band must’ve been melting under the lights though I suppose their used to it coming from the land of Oz.

There was an impressive keyboard solo and later, with that little more space to dance, we swayed eagerly to the “oom pah pah” sounds of The Wine Song and danced vigorously to The Chariot. I didn’t even mind when they inserted a little Billie Jean into it.

The atmosphere was lovely, the band were lovely and the gig was heaps of fun!

www.thecatempire.com

Sophie Collard

This amazing street party, celebrating Bristol’s Afro-Caribbean influences, attracts around 65,000 people to Portland Square and the streets of St Paul’s every year so get yourself down there and joint in the community carnival! Don’t miss the stunning procession of home-made costumes in the afternoon and be sure to get yourself some Jerk Chicken!

www.stpaulscarnival.co.uk

Photos: www.crushimages.co.uk

If you can’t make it on the day, then contact Lucy on 07858136087 or email: lucypjones@live.co.uk

After last year’s stunning, twisted fairytale, Red Man, FairGround Theatre return with a trilogy of one act plays written by Adam Peck. Following three relationships through themes of memory, time and death, the trilogy promises to be a stirring watch, created by one of Bristol’s most ambitious and exciting new theatre companies.

www.tobaccofactorytheatre.com

Everybody loves Glastonbury Festival: People spend months saving up, hours sat in-front of a computer frantically clicking refresh and pulling their hair out and then will quite happily spend 9 hours sat in gridlocked traffic, all for the chance to enter a tented city where the rules of society are just a little bit different, a bit freer, and to sit monged off their faces in the sacred circle, contemplating life and sipping Glasto’s holy water (aka. Brothers Pear Cider – festival strength, naturally). 2009 was my third visit to this very special corner of Somerset and after negotiating the usual travel rituals, me and our entourage of 13-odd had one of the best, soggiest and downright most enjoyable festivals of our lives! Unbelievable!!

Whatever your fuel for life, across its seemingly infinite amount of stages and fields, Glastonbury provides more than enough entertainment for everyone; be it fantastic new or old music of literally any genre, circus, comedy, cabaret, theatre, literature, dance, art, sculpture, free-love, escapism, experiencing something new, surrealism, socialism, socialising, mesmerising…Why can’t life always be like this?

Making any kind of “to do” plans at Glasto is unwise and nigh on impossible; the best thing to do is have two or three targets for places to be each day and the rest of the time just go with the flow (as my sumptuous Sunday afternoon in the Circus Field proved). One of my “must sees” for this year though was my favourite new band, Slow Club. Of all the current crop of new folk-pop bands, Slow Club are foot-stamps and hand-claps above them all but while the likes of Noah & The Whale and Emmy The Great geared up for their main stage shows, Slow Club had to contend with an unattractive slot on an inaccessible stage. They don’t let the strictly limited capacity of The Guardian Lounge hold them back though and after inspiring the gazing crowd up onto their feet and into a euphoric frenzy of dancing during Giving Up On Love, the talented duo charge outside to give the fans who can’t get in a delicious acoustic performance of Christmas TV under the grey sky – the perfect antidote to the bad weather.

Somewhat foolishly, this year we pitched-up our tent in the heart of the site right next to the Hare Krishna marquee. This did come with the advantages of being lulled awake every morning by the gentle meditation of their monks and regular free meals but did mean the rest of the time we had to contend with the constant apocalyptic beats of The Glade, loud enough to give Michael Jackson a headache. This is Glastonbury’s biggest criticism, that it’s got too big for its wellies and intense (in-tents….ha!), and often the sheer amount of people and never-ending noise can get too much. I nearly cracked at one point: tired of having to queue to eat, queue to drink, queue to shit, queue to wash and often queue to just walk, and fearing for my life as the intense heat fermented the disease ridden piss/mud swamps, watching someone shitting metres from my tent was the last straw and I had to get away.

Thankfully then, this year we had the beautiful addition of the Lounging/Viewing Area; a new field they’ve opened on a valley side high-up above the site. If you’re prepared to make the effort to get there, you’re rewarded with lots of breathing room on a luscious, peaceful hillside and stunning views of the entire festival site and the surrounding countryside. It’s a long needed and fantastic addition to the festival and the view means you can try and get your head around the scale of everything. As I gazed out across the ten or twenty stages in view, each buzzing with energy and people, I was in awe of the sheer organisational power on show and applauded those who make it happen every year. The fact that by then the sun had come out to stay helped matters no end – it’s amazing what effect the weather has on everyone’s spirits!

During the weekend, other memorable performances came from Bloc Party, Dizzee Rascal, Kasabian and Kate Walsh and I particularly enjoyed watching Metric as they fulfilled their Glasto dream, Jimmy Shaw’s adrenalin pumping guitar solo on Gold Guns Girls putting the “Herculean majesty” of Zeus Springsteen to shame. The standout show that everyone was most worked-up over though was definitely the reformed Blur’s Pyramid Stage Sunday night headline performance. Their show was everything I had hoped for and more and the mass sing-alongs of Tender and The Universal that carried on all through the night was the perfect way to close out Glastonbury 2009. “Shaaaamone Motherfucker!!”

In Pictures - Glastonbury Festival 2009

www.glastonburyfestivals.co.uk

Matt Whittle

Festival Review - Glastonbury 2009

Matt Whittle & Ian Bradley - www.ianbradleyphotography.com

French anti-folk surrealists GaBLé are back in typically playful mood with a new mini LP. Touted as a response to Daniel Johnston’s Hi, How Are You?, I’m OK is a genre-blurring mix of the folktronica of Tunng, the leftfield beat poetry of Bonzo Dog Do Dah Band and the deconstructionist pop of Moldy Peaches.

I’m OK continues in a similar, if less cohesive vein to last year’s critically-acclaimed Seven Guitars With A Cloud Of Milk with an English-speaking narrator spinning surreal, macabre poetry around a haphazard musical collage. The lyrics are thematic signposts which point all ways at once, leading nowhere. As on the title track, a delightful ditty that bursts into being with an optimistic chorus before a list of random objects is reeled off by the dead-pan narrator including the mystifying trio of; “Dove; Guillotine; Teeth.” As your brain struggles to piece together the links between the words, it must do the same with the music, connecting the disparate elements of folk, jazz, electronica and rag time.

There is a mid-album sojourner into the darker instrumental territory of their Semineoproantintiantifolk album with the twisted beats and throbbing strings of Violons, Riots And Satan and Arms And Nose, Arms And Noise. Whereas the excellent closer, Sans Du Feu Dans Mes Mains is a warm Super Furries-esque swell of psychedelia.

The album’s thirteen tracks are over in a mere 22 minutes but then these songs have no right, or in fact need, to extend beyond two minutes. They are part realised narratives, playful glimpses of musical phrases rather than a conscious attempt to reveal a whole.

Existing simultaneously as a breath of fresh air and an overwhelming belch of many flavours, I’m OK is an album of contradictions, whirring and clicking between postmodern playfulness and a mildly irritating irreverence towards form. In small doses, I’m OK is a happy chaos in a world full of dark insanity.

www.myspace.com/gableacute

Tom Spooner

Keynsham Music Festival is one of the most successful free music and arts events in the South West. Set in the beautiful riverside Keynsham Memorial Park, this family event attracts some of the best bands and performers in the area. With four stages, stalls, a creative arena facilitated by local artists, delicious food, real ales, organic cider and a commitment to be either local or Fair, this is a day out not to be missed.

The festival is a free event but they do ask for a £2 donation from all adults.

www.keynshammusicfestival.co.uk

Jack Peñate takes to the stage at 9pm to raucous applause, his full band now consisting of 2 saxophonists, a drummer, 2 guitarists, 1 keyboard player, 2 backing dancers and Jack himself who amongst this crowded stage still manages to make those infamous dance moves your dad would be proud of look cool. He has a snare drum and hi-hat set up for him to bash away on and his set begins with the title track from his new album, Everything Is New.

The fact the crowd consists of so many teenagers surprises me. The appeal could be Jack’s chilled out attitude and fun live shows – when crowd security move it to stop moshing, Jack begs them not to kill the show’s vibe and back off. With applause the set continues and when Jack stage-jumps during Second Minute Or Hour and it doesn’t look like they’ll get him out, he gets smothered with kisses from everyone including 15 year old lads losing themselves in the moment, but Peñate keeps up a cheeky grin.

Peñate, described as “the missing link between Jeff Buckley and Justin Timberlake”, squeezes in quirky, jerky tune after tune in a mixture of newbies and old classics including Spit At Stars, crowd favourite Torn On The Platform and Have I Been A Fool, all spread out amongst new tracks Give Yourself Away and Let’s All Die. Although the new songs didn’t provoke as much of a reaction from the crowd, this could be because people haven’t had time to learn them word for word yet. Rest assured after his performances at many of this summer’s festivals, we’ll all be singing the catchy-as-hell Be The One.

Tonight’s encore tracks Body Down and the brilliant Tonight Today just exhibit Peñate’s ability as a songwriter and amazing live performer. He might not be particularly groundbreaking but his songs are a catchy, light relief. Bring on his set at Glastonbury this weekend; I’ll be rivalling the teenagers for his attention in the front row!

www.jackpenate.com

Lucy Jones