Save Stortford's Music Festival
0% complete
£10,080 raised of £10K
94 donations
Bishop's Stortford's annual music festival, The Bish Bash, is so much more than just an event for music fans.
It is a big hit on the town's community calendar, with hundreds of families flocking to Sworder's Field in the first weekend of May.
But it is a little-known fact that the festival is organised entirely voluntarily by a couple, Twig Smith and Annabel Cowley, at the head of a committee of like-minded people young and old who are driven by a desire to give the town a good time.
They all give up their time, energy and, sometimes, peace of mind for free – the only reward they seek is a family-friendly event which allows them to share their passion for music.
Other than the headline acts, no individual makes a penny from the festival – only the community.
It costs £80,000 to stage the two-day event, and Twig and Annabel need £10,000 by September to start planning the 2020 version. But after this year's was decimated by unseasonal weather, including hailstorms, a big cloud hangs over next year's Bish Bash.
If every person in Stortford gave just 50p, then it could go ahead.
And we at the Indie believe so much in the community value of the festival that we are putting our money where our mouth is by kicking off our £10,000 Save Stortford's Music Festival Appeal with a £500 donation.
What's more, any business that follows our lead will get a FREE half-page space in the Indie.
As Bishop's Stortford grows, this kind of community event is the glue which holds us together. It is priceless, but needs a nominal amount of cash to continue.
While the 2019 festival debts of £3,000 faced by Twig and Annabel are a tough burden for them to shoulder, shared by all those who have enjoyed the fruits of their labour at Bish Bash, they are small change.
Let's band together and Save Stortford's Music Festival.
It is a big hit on the town's community calendar, with hundreds of families flocking to Sworder's Field in the first weekend of May.
But it is a little-known fact that the festival is organised entirely voluntarily by a couple, Twig Smith and Annabel Cowley, at the head of a committee of like-minded people young and old who are driven by a desire to give the town a good time.
They all give up their time, energy and, sometimes, peace of mind for free – the only reward they seek is a family-friendly event which allows them to share their passion for music.
Other than the headline acts, no individual makes a penny from the festival – only the community.
It costs £80,000 to stage the two-day event, and Twig and Annabel need £10,000 by September to start planning the 2020 version. But after this year's was decimated by unseasonal weather, including hailstorms, a big cloud hangs over next year's Bish Bash.
If every person in Stortford gave just 50p, then it could go ahead.
And we at the Indie believe so much in the community value of the festival that we are putting our money where our mouth is by kicking off our £10,000 Save Stortford's Music Festival Appeal with a £500 donation.
What's more, any business that follows our lead will get a FREE half-page space in the Indie.
As Bishop's Stortford grows, this kind of community event is the glue which holds us together. It is priceless, but needs a nominal amount of cash to continue.
While the 2019 festival debts of £3,000 faced by Twig and Annabel are a tough burden for them to shoulder, shared by all those who have enjoyed the fruits of their labour at Bish Bash, they are small change.
Let's band together and Save Stortford's Music Festival.
