My high point of musical year

The whole event was comfortably the best thing to happen in Lancaster since the same people brought us Hacienda Classical on the same spot two years ago.

It was weird seeing the park where we take our sighthound Walter for his daily zoomies transformed into a proper festival with three stages, food stalls, bars and even a silent disco on the site where we, er, scattered our first dog Ashton’s ashes in 2011.

Over the three days, around 15,000 people attended the daytime events, as well as the bands and DJs in the evenings.

I can’t think of any event in our city that draws such massive crowds – possibly The Dukes’ wonderful plays in the park over a six-week run.

But that’s about it.

Thankfully the weather didn’t let us down and the Mediterranean sunshine played its part.

And the brilliant news is that it’s coming back next year on May 17 to 19.

Fantastic.

It’s just what Lancaster needs.

And if they feel like booking The Strypes to play in my backyard, then I’ll gladly tip up a few quid to cover their fee.

Like the keano-beano, hiker-bobble-hat that I am, I booked our tickets at 10.06am on December 7, 2017.

Daughter #1 and boyfriend saw Ocean Colour Scene, Embrace, Cast and loads of others on the Saturday, while the boss and I partied like it’s 1989 at Hacienda Classical on Sunday.

Mike Pickering, Graeme Park and the Manchester Camerata even played LFO by, er, LFO which this middle-aged retired raver hadn’t heard in public since 1991.

It was brilliantly organised and Williamson Park is a phenomenal place to hold a festival.

And as a veteran of roughing it at festivals in the mud and the cold and the filth, after it was all over it was so lovely to float home and climb into a nice warm bed.

Thank you to everyone who played a part. It was magical. See you next year.