Radio 2 in the Park: Cups, Camping and the Local Economy

As an Events Management student in Stirling, getting to attend BBC Radio 2 in the Park in the city where I study made this weekend feel a little different.

I was invited along for both Friday and Saturday, which gave me the chance to experience the event, meet other publications and speak to some of the people and businesses working around it.

And, as always, I wasn’t just there for the music.

Friday Night: The Pre-Party

I arrived on Friday just as the Red Hot Chilli Pipers were getting started. Security was a breeze, and I collected my press accreditation before heading in.

Friday was the DJ Pre-party rather than the main festival, creating a more relaxed start to the weekend before the main event got underway. The stage was kept busy throughout the evening, with different DJs and presenters bringing their own style to the crowd. I caught DJ Spoony’s Good Groove set, which had a great feel to it, with the crowd getting into the music and enjoying the atmosphere. This was followed by part of Gary Davies’ Sounds of the 80s set, which brought a strong nostalgic feel to the evening.

I also got the chance to watch Rylan’s set, which was something I had particularly been looking forward to. His appearance added another fun moment to the evening, and it was clear that the crowd were enjoying themselves. Little did I know that this would not be the only time I would see Rylan across the weekend.

Unfortunately, I had to leave at around 9:30 pm to make my connection home, meaning I missed the last part of the pre-party. Even though my time at the Friday event was limited, it gave me a good introduction to the atmosphere of the weekend and the mix of music and entertainment the event had to offer.

Saturday: The Main Event

Saturday was a completely different atmosphere. Walking into the grounds, you could immediately feel that this was the main festival day. The crowd was building throughout the afternoon, with people arriving for completely different artists, but all sharing the same space beneath Stirling Castle.

The main stage had a really varied line-up: Texas opened, followed by Lulu, Jack Savoretti, ABC, Emeli Sandé, The Script and Chaka Khan. There was also a separate DJ stage running throughout the day, featuring Tony Blackburn, Shaun Keaveny, Paddy McGuinness, DJ Spoony, Gary Davies, Jo Whiley and Rylan. I managed to catch Rylan again on Saturday.

For me, The Script and Chaka Khan were two of the biggest highlights of Saturday. But one thing I really noticed was how different people’s favourites were. Some people were there for the big headline acts, others were there for the 80s music, while some were clearly there just for the atmosphere and the chance to see several familiar names in one day.

That’s one of the things I enjoy about festivals: you can have thousands of people standing in the same field, but everyone can walk away with a completely different favourite moment.

Meeting Another Events Management Student

One of the nice surprises of Saturday happened right at the beginning of my night. I met another student from my college who is also studying Events Management.

It was great to meet someone else from the same course at an event like this. We’re both learning about the events industry in the classroom, and we’re standing in the middle of a major live music event, experiencing it for ourselves.

It made me think about how much you can learn from actually being at events rather than just studying them.

The People Behind the Festival

For me, festivals aren’t just about what’s happening on the stage.I also met up with other publications, including Brig Newspaper, and spoke to some of the businesses and people around the festival.

I came across CEC Ice Cream, a familiar festival name I’ve seen at Boomtown and other festivals.

I also had a good chat with Indi, a really down-to-earth guy from the Glastonbury area who was working at Tom’s Shop.

Tom’s Shop hires out phone chargers for £25, with £5 back when you return it. It’s one of those small services that you don’t really think about until you’re several hours into a festival and your phone battery is dying.

Festival Prices

The food surprised me slightly. It was a little cheaper than some festivals I’ve been to, though still around what I’d expect at a large event.

Drinks were more typical festival prices: a can of AU Vodka cost around £8.50 and a bottle of wine roughly £32

Cup Returns and Recycling

What I really liked, though, was getting £1.50 back for every plastic cup returned.At the end of sets, you could see people and families with young kids frantically running around the stages, collecting the fallen cups and taking them back. I even joined in myself, bagging £15. It was quite cool to watch. Rather than people leaving their cups on the ground, there was an incentive to return them.

I was really impressed by the recycling initiatives around the site, like the wire sculptures for crushing cans into and quite a few recycling points dotted around.

Does a Day Festival Benefit the Local Area?

This was something I found myself thinking about during the weekend. Radio 2 in the Park is a day-and-evening event rather than a camping festival.

I can understand the argument for this from a clean-up point of view. There’s no huge campsite to clear afterwards and no tents or camping equipment left behind.

But does not having camping also mean the local area misses out on potential income?

People staying for several days could spend money in local shops, restaurants, pubs, taxis, hotels and other businesses. With a day festival, many people arrive, enjoy the event and then head home.

I’m not saying one approach is definitely better than the other. But I think it’s an interesting question: does removing camping make a festival easier for the local area to manage, or does it also remove some of the economic benefit that festival visitors can bring to the town?

My Stirling Weekend

Stirling is only around 45 minutes from home, so on Friday I had to leave early enough to catch my connection. Saturday was different. I stayed until around 10pm and got a taxi home afterwards.

At the end of the night, I ended up having a singalong to ‘I’m Gonna Be (500 Miles) by The Proclaimers with the crowd heading back towards Starbucks, before getting a lift back into town. It was an expensive-ish night, but it was definitely an enjoyable one.

For me, Radio 2 in the Park wasn’t just about seeing Chaka Khan, The Script or Rylan. It was about experiencing a major event in the city where I study, meeting another student from my course, catching up with other publications, speaking to festival businesses and seeing how a major event fits into the wider community.

And that’s probably what I’ll take away from the weekend most.

Festivals aren’t just about the artists on the stage. They’re about the people, businesses, workers, visitors and communities that all come together to make the event happen.