News / Nozstock
The future of Nozstock
In December 2023, Nozstock organisers announced 2024 would be the last edition of the family-run festival.
Nozstock: The Hidden Valley celebrated its 25th anniversary last year, with artists such as Fat Freddy’s Drop, The Wailers, Shy FX, Grandmaster Flash and Bristol favourites MC Gardna and Eva Lazarus on the lineup.
One of the UK’s longest running festivals, Nozstock is a family-run independent music festival nestled in the rolling Herefordshire countryside on a fully working family farm.
is needed now More than ever
“We never intended to finish ever,” Ella Nosworthy, creative director of Nozstock, told Bristol24/7. “We had in our head that when dad retired, my brother and I would do it on our own, and then our kids would take over.”
“And then Covid happened, then we came back in 2021. We thought, ok, we’re back, it’ll be okay. But then it went straight into a cost of living crisis.”
The Covid-19 pandemic and the subsequent cost of living crisis exacerbated an already difficult situation, with prices skyrocketing for everything needed to host a three day festival.
From electrical equipment to paying headliners, home-grown, independent festivals, particularly ones without sponsorship, felt the squeeze.
“We kind of came to the realisation that actually, we would rather go out on a bang and do the festival that we love.”
The 2024 edition of Nozstock promises to do just that: “What we really want to do for the last one is honour the years that have come before it,” said Ella.
“We’re still booking new artists and some exciting additions, because this is our last chance to book some people that we want.
“We have got some things planned to mark it as the last one but I really think our main focus is just honouring what’s come before and appreciating how much that’s meant to people.”
Nozstock has a whole host of activities and areas for the family to enjoy – photo: Alex Avery
How much the festival has meant to people was clear when Nozstock announced that 2024 will see the curtains drawn over the Herefordshire farm.
“The response was amazing,” said Ella. “I wasn’t expecting that, I knew that there would be a core group of people who were upset but I didn’t expect that much or that many people.
“It did make for a really sad day, but overall, all things considered, it does feel like the right decision.”
So what does the future of Nozstock look like?
“I think we’ll definitely do a one day event, a one day Nozstock, just for old times sake in 2025. And then we’ve got ideas for other events that we want to do.
“And then after that, who knows? Maybe we’ll do something completely different, it’s quite exciting because we don’t know fully what we’re going to be doing, but that’s good, because there’s a lot of things that we’ve wanted to do it but we couldn’t take the risk.
“I suppose the overriding feeling is sadness, but definitely optimistic for the future.”
The lineup for 2024 is yet to be announced but tickets for the final Nozstock are on sale now and can be found at www.nozstock.com/buy-tickets-online/
Main photo: Chloe Butcher
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