July 8, 201015 yr Bez has posted some stonking close-ups :wub: :wub: Looks like others were disappointed not to be there too Dot: http://img96.imageshack.us/img96/7880/97820922.jpg Thanks to Vasil on D for this. (This is from Sky by the way - he didn't say but I recognise the format) Thanks munchkin
July 8, 201015 yr Thanks everyone for the news and pix brought over ... This one of Marys' just made me smile so much..he's quite the superstar these days..but seeing this..well..he's also still very much Will isn't he? :wub: i do love him. :wub: http://i177.photobucket.com/albums/w230/MaryW_2007/Sittingonstage.jpg Edited July 8, 201015 yr by Sweetwilliamfan
July 9, 201015 yr Author Just catching up after being out all day yesterday. Sounds like an exceptional evening. Still recovering from seeing Bez's pics. :wub: Wonder if he'll get his request & be there again next year.
July 9, 201015 yr Thanks for the Absolutely Gorgeous Pics.... :heart: Munchkin..Thanks, :) looks like I am in good company... :D Dot.x :dance:
July 15, 201015 yr Nice.. Pop star Will Young proved this year's Henley Festival had the X Factor when he wowed fans on the opening night of the five-day event on the banks of the Thames. The former Pop Idol winner performed a greatest hits set for festivalgoers at the event, which is traditionally held the week after the Henley Royal Regatta and has been running for more than a quarter of a century. While revellers dressed up in finery and strolled the immaculate riverbanks sipping champagne and picnicking on boats, a selection of high-profile musicians sparkled on the floating stage. Top cuisine was offered by Albert and his son Michel Roux Jr. at the Roux at the Riverside, billed as Europe’s largest à la carte restaurant, and Heston Blumenthal provided gastronomic delights at the Hinds Head at Henley to offer diners a perfect culinary treat. Assisted by excellent and sunny weather, the black tie event offered visitors an eclectic range of music, including pop, jazz, classical, folk and opera. Stars such as bass-baritone Bryn Terfel, violinist Nigel Kennedy and pop phenomenon and Boyzone star Ronan Keating had audiences packed to the rafters as the atmosphere became electric. Will Young said: “It was amazing. The crowd were fantastic and it was great to be performing where my family grew up. The audience were very up for it, and by the end we were all partying together. They enjoyed all the songs, I hope, but my favourite one was a Ray Charles cover ‘Hit The Road Jack’ and ‘Leave Right Now’.” Gill Mitchell, CEO of the Henley Festival, said: “This is our 28th year, and we have about 4,500 people coming every night. We fund a music therapist for brain injury clinic Headway in Henley and we do loads of work with children in the arts and music field in Henley, and we do lots of special schools work. Every penny we make goes to our charity and is donated back to the community. We aim to do about £1.3 million in turnover, but it costs us a lot of money to put this on.” Other entertainment included The Resident Company of Roving Eccentrica, who provided a mixture of street theatre and comedy acts as they roamed the site, and a solo opera singer held crowds in sway as she sang for her supper. Celebrity revellers included Blind Date host Cilla Black and Reading Football club chairman John Madjeski. Henley resident’s John McQuilkin and wife Wendy, were also in the crowds. John said: “We came to see Will Young as he was the main attraction. This is our first visit here and we wanted to take in the atmosphere for tonight and it’s really great, it’s a very relaxed atmosphere.” Wendy added: “I love Will Young and his music and everything about him. The good weather helps and it’s just a lovely atmosphere and people have come out to enjoy themselves.” http://www.oxfordjournal.co.uk/index...ents&Itemid=16
July 19, 201015 yr Mary on Devoted has just posted this - will find out where it's from - but great comments :dance: Young, the Pop Idol winner, had his audience out of their seats dancing and he was allowed an extra 15 minutes on top of his scheduled performance time. Stewart Collins, the festival’s artistic director, said: “I think everybody was overwhelmed by him. He was so relaxed and played up his local boy connection.” Young, who is related to the Brakspear brewing family, made a point of sinking a pint of beer on stage, to the delight of the crowd. Mr Collins said: “We give headliners 75-minute time slots but Will was on for about 90 minutes because he was enjoying it so much. It’s nice when an artist feels so comfortable.” He singled out Young and violinist Kennedy, who performed the music of Duke Ellington specially arranged for strings and orchestra, for praise. Mr Collins said: “All the main events went spectacularly well but there was a particular connection between the audience, the venue and those two artists. We always knew we had a strong line-up and thought we would see its effect at the box office and this was compounded by the great weather.” http://www.henleystandard.co.uk/news/news.php?id=784819 Edited July 19, 201015 yr by munchkin
July 19, 201015 yr That's a wonderful write up Munchkin!.. :cheer: Loved reading that...so thats why hew could fit in Evergreen..how brilliant. His reputation for being a great live performer is growing rapidly with each event..no wonder he's in such demand. :wub: next year he will be lucky if his feet touch the floor :lol: I have a feeling there may be more than just summer gigs next year.. :dance:
July 19, 201015 yr POP star Ronan Keating took the opportunity of his appearance at the Henley Festival to thank fans for supporting him during the breakdown of his marriage. Keating was on a flying visit from Australia where he is filming a version of the hit TV series, The X-Factor. He flew back down under on Monday morning after headlining the festival on Sunday. The former Boyzone star, 33, told hundreds of mostly female fans: “These past seven weeks have been scary and dire for me. Thanks for all your support.” Keating left his wife of 12 years, Yvonne, 36, because of his relationship with a dancer on his boy-band comeback tour last May. His short set at Henley — he was only on stage for just over an hour — seemed muted and restrained, as if he had other things on his mind. He was whisked up to the floating stage in a Mercedes car along the towpath flanked by security people. And at the end of the evening he was whisked away again in the blink of an eye. In the interval in between arrival and departure he sang with an air of professional commitment that somehow lacked engagement, though there was no faulting his strong voice and almost rigid determination to give people their money’s worth. His fans at Henley were there all right in their hundreds but there were empty seats in the grandstand. Keating had nothing like the impact of last year’s Beatles tribute band. Henley Festival people actually like to rock and although his set included some belters, it seemed to me there was a surfeit of heavy, emotional ballads. Of course, Keating is Irish and this shone through with the Celtic twists and turns in the songs, interspersed with favourites. He sang his top pop tunes, Tomorrow Never Comes and Time After Time, to acclaim but what was striking was that in his performance there was no trace any longer of the boy-band star. Keating is now an accomplished balladeer whether he likes it or not. He appeals to an audience that loves soft rock and big production country and western weepies. There was no doubt that the audience enjoyed his show greatly but there was not the fire of a rock concert or the true intimacy of a big romantic singer on show here. Keating is a big name and the kind of star performer — like Will Young earlier in the festival — that organisers can now attract. I would personally like to have seen a little less rushed performance and more connection between star and audience. http://www.henleystandard.co.uk/media/photos/190710/main/100792.jpg THE first night of the festival got off to a cracking start with crowds dancing and singing along to Will Young’s energetic performance. Although the Pop Idol winner’s music is not to my taste, there’s no denying that he’s a great live performer. He told jokes and anecdotes to the crowd, playing up his family connection with Brakspear Brewery. He even downed a pint on stage, much to the audience’s delight. Before the headliner began, I enjoyed a cocktail or two in the Water Pavilion floating bar, which is run by this year’s sponsors Patron Tequila. I browsed some of the over-priced art, which included a statue of a horse made out of seashells, before finding a good spot to view the floating stage. Will kicked off his hour and a quarter long set with toe-tapper Switch It On and he was accompanied by a five-piece band and two female backing singers. There were many songs that I — and obviously much of the audience — did not know, but Will regained the crowd’s support with classics like Light My Fire, Leave Right Now and an encore of Evergreen. Surprisingly, Will managed to fit in several costume changes, ranging from a red military-style jacket to a neon-lined jump suit. He charmed the festival-goers by shaking their hands and even took a photograph of himself with one star-struck fan who had managed to fight her way to the front row. http://www.henleystandard.co.uk/news/news.php?id=784010
July 19, 201015 yr Author I so love those reviews. :dance: :yahoo: A year is certainly a long time in the music business. :lol: Edited July 19, 201015 yr by truly talented
July 19, 201015 yr Although the Pop Idol winner’s music is not to my taste, there’s no denying that he’s a great live performer.Comments like that I can live with - we know he's not to everyone's taste - obviously - but don't denigrate his talents if you just don't like him. Will kicked off his hour and a quarter long set He actually ended up doing 90 minutes so that was obviously based on the 'standard' time allowed :P Thanks BYM&Ms. Wonder what sort of reviews, if any, we'll get about Kenwood :lol: Edited July 19, 201015 yr by munchkin
July 19, 201015 yr He actually ended up doing 90 minutes so that was obviously based on the 'standard' time allowed It seems even the promoters are starting to see that they need just that little bit more Will to complete the night :lol: I bet they wish they had him doing the closing night as well...he would of packed it out for them...AGIAN :lol:
July 26, 201014 yr Thanks to Steffana on Devoted for finding this: :dance: Classy and carefree HENLEY has become a by-word for elegant riverside events, but this festival strikes a wonderful balance between culture and carefree fun. It was my first taste of Henley Festival – which ran from July 7 to 11 –but the opening night has made a convert of me. It is certainly a classy event thanks to a black-tie dress code, giving women the chance to wear their best evening frocks, but the mood is anything but stifling and formal. In fact, as soon as the lovely Will Young (pictured) walked on to the floating stage, without ceremony, ladies’ kicked off their heels to stand on chairs or danced in the aisles as dusk fell. Headliners during the rest of the festival included Welsh Bass-Baritone Bryn Terfel, violinist Nigel Kennedy, the stars of West End musical Queen, and Ronan Keating. But on the opening night, the self-assured Pop Idol star proved himself to be a true entertainer. Young seemed totally at ease, bopping about on stage, and in between songs he regaled the crowd with seemingly spontaneous anecdotes, such as his grandfather’s penchant for Carol Vorderman. The presence of members of his family gave the gig a more personal feel and this was reinforced by the intimacy of the stage, which was strikingly close and had no barriers to separate the crowd from the singer. This led to an unusual – and highly amusing – sight of several women clad in evening dresses attempting to storm the stage at various times. But an evening at Henley Festival is much more than a headline act and the entertainment continued well into the night at the festival’s various venues, after a sparkling firework display. Strolling around the festival enclosure, the grounds were dotted with sculptures, including wire figures by Rachel Ducker and woodwork by James Golding, while several galleries exhibited work by a range of artists in various styles and media. Before Young took to the stage, those who chose not to splash out on a meal at one of the various plush eateries – which this year included Heston Blumenthal’s Hinds Heat at Henley – laid out picnic rugs, or even picnic tables and chairs, in the car park. It is not a cheap festival, and bubbly is the drink of choice, but the nectar tastes all the sweeter on a balmy evening in such sumptuous surroundings. http://www.basingstokegazette.co.uk/leisur...y_and_carefree/ Edited July 26, 201014 yr by munchkin
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