Toast Festival

What's the best way to experience Antipodean culture? Some 14000 people flocked to Olympia’s great hall last weekend to find out. And what was arguably the largest celebration of Australian and New Zealand culture to hit the Northern Hemisphere was an event not to be missed.

This is the eighth year of the festival and athough a Toast virgin I was quickly tempted by the prospect of wine tasting, food sampling and an impressive music line-up. 

Tourists and travellers alike came to sample new world fares.  One eager Brit who had recently returned from a year away in New Zealand said all she wanted to do was sit back with a bottle of Monteith's finest lager and listen to Opshop.  And the main focus was the music :  the legendary Australian performer Jimmy Barnes kicked off the show on Friday night, Saturday’s headliners were Supergroove whilst Opshop and Just Jinger rounded off the event on Sunday.

I must confess that I was new to all of these artists and although I missed Jimmy Barnes I loved Saturday’s bands.  The music was good and this was obviously the main reason why people had forked out £30 for their tickets ( not including food or wine .)
Maybe a drink or tim tam could have been included  -  particularly with the pressures of the current credit crisis. That said, the Lehman Aid scheme was a great idea , entitling Aussie, Kiwi and South African ex-employees to a free ticket and a drink.
 
 Toast festival started out as a very small New Zealand food, wine and music event set up by a nostalgic New Zealander in Syon Park.  Five years ago she sold it on to Brand Events, they introduced Australia day and the word spread.  This was the first year of Toast South Africa. 
In previous years the festival was outdoors, last year at Fulham Palace, but as music has increasingly become its main focus, there’s more demand to have it indoors, hence this year’s event at Kensington Olympia ( even if the acoustics weren’t all that.)

The interactive sports stalls were popular with  a couple of celebrity appearances including former Wallaby Justin Harrison, current All Black Dan Carter and former New Zealand captain Zinzan Brooke.  The snowbombing stall stood out ; I even won a t-shirt after completing a half-minute ride on a rodeo-style game that involved standing on a gyrating snowboard on an inflatable mat.

Out of the three days Saturday was the best :  more punters, more stalls and a better vibe as people relaxed into their weekend.  Supergroove's performance was stand-out and I’ll be checking out their website for more details.
I was tempted to try a few wines to enjoy with the music, but, at a fiver a glass, I stuck to the beer.

However, any quibbles are onlyh minor. The festival is definitely worth a visit next year if you’re keen to sample the Antipodean music scene, but save up a few pennies if you want the food and booze to keep flowing.  To quote the Lehman Aid slogan: “‘cos life doesn’t always have to be bitter”.

Friday 26th to Sunday 28th September – Toast festival at Kensington Olympia.
 Laura Balfour

More info: www.toastfestivals.co.uk
www.jimmybarnes.com
www.myspace.com/supergroovenz
www.opshopmusic.com