Bearded Theory 2025

[Flaminglippy]

1 hour ago, Flaminglippy said:

Are they stars?? I thought that at first and thought the same thing...then noticed they seem to be dotted around randomly at the top of the poster as well. 

Didn't have my glasses on and just read the poster again and it literally says 'performing on Thursday'...Jesus, getting old sucks sweaty balls. 

Edited October 11, 2024 by Flaminglippy

[ciderbus]

1 minute ago, Flaminglippy said:

Didn't have my glasses on and just read the poster again and it literally says 'playing on Thursday'...getting old sucks sweaty balls. 

I was just wondering how to politely point out the difference between the asterisks and other bits of the poster design🙂.

So Fat Dog, Molotov Jukebox and a few more further down the bill names so far for Thurs then.  Whoever it is lets just hope its drier than this year!

[philipsteak]

1 hour ago, Gnomicide said:

 

Excellent at Glastonbury a couple of festivals back. This will be the first time I've seen them in the dark for ages. Probably 1996 the last time I went to an actual gig by them but I've seen them 3 times since.

 

1 hour ago, justanotheronethen said:

Saw them a few years back at BDs and they were a machine, really good. They opened with Motorcycle Emptiness and closed with Design For Life which left me grinning 

 

1 hour ago, shoebox said:

I saw them last summer and whilst James' voice is really being put through the wringer these days, they still put on a really crowd-pleasing set. I'd not seen them since about '98 and it was a great hit of nostalgia.

 

29 minutes ago, Flaminglippy said:

Saw them with Suede at Cardiff Castle in the summer and were excellent...lost count of how many times I've seen them over the years and never been disappointed. Fantastic back catalogue

 

Sounds good to me. 

Could well be up for this

[bexj]

Iggy f**kin Pop, that's all

And about 10 other class acts there.  

[CurlyPutz]

Happy with that. Never seen Iggy before so proper chuffed. 

[northernangel]

Do they do day tickets?

A Fruday ticket if Iggy played could be an option on the way up to Leeds if Nova Twins were the day day.

 

From what I've seen, no BT headliners play Glastonbury too

 

[Gnomicide]

14 minutes ago, northernangel said:

Do they do day tickets?

A Fruday ticket if Iggy played could be an option on the way up to Leeds if Nova Twins were the day day.

 

From what I've seen, no BT headliners play Glastonbury too

 

 

They've only done day tickets once, a year I don't think it sold particularly well. I don't thinks there's much chance of it happening again.

[northernangel]

5 minutes ago, Gnomicide said:

 

They've only done day tickets once, a year I don't think it sold particularly well. I don't thinks there's much chance of it happening again.

Probably given all 3 of 204 price release, super early bird and early bird weekend are sold. It's outrageously expensive to be honest now I've seen for what it is so.

[incident]

42 minutes ago, Nobody Interesting said:

Personally I think festivals are a bargain.

I see around 30 bands at a festival and if you say it is £300 that's just a tenner  a band and that takes no account of camping which costs £20 a night upwards in campsites.

We are going to 2 gigs in December in Cardiff over 2 nights and are staying ina  cheap self catering - total cost for 2 is almost as much as BT for 2.

 

Yeah, even at the current (and highest) tier, Bearded is £251.45 inc all fees which in the current market seems pretty reasonable. I know there's festivals that do charge less (in the case of Truck and Y Not, substantially less), but none of those are as appealing to me as Bearded, either in terms of lineup or in terms of the freedom of being able to bring in alcohol and take it where you want. There's also a lot of festivals that charge substantially more.

[onemoresolo]

Having just paid £350 for two tickets to see Springsteen in Manchester, gig tickets have inflated across the board but festivals still represent great value for money. I know the absolute cost is still beyond a lot of people’s means.

[emmanuel]

I guess to each his own, but it is difficult to see 30 full sets. Last year there were about 10 bands I wanted to see (all small), and I figured out that seeing all of them individually (~20 pounds) - with twice the number of songs - would be a better option than the weekend ticket. I'm local and can't take the Friday off due to teaching - so every year it is a bit disappointing there is no day ticket, but I'm happy for those who are more in festival mode than myself.

[northernangel]

6 hours ago, Nobody Interesting said:

Personally I think festivals are a bargain.

I see around 30 bands at a festival and if you say it is £300 that's just a tenner  a band and that takes no account of camping which costs £20 a night upwards in campsites.

We are going to 2 gigs in December in Cardiff over 2 nights and are staying ina  cheap self catering - total cost for 2 is almost as much as BT for 2.

 

I've got 4 bands I'd see in that lineup or make a point of seeing, £250 then a other £35 for parking as well would be madness for me personally. 

 

I don't think it's so much festivals are a bargain, it's that gigs are a rip off. I've finally used a TM voucher from nearly a year a go and its taken a whole to actually use that for a gig I actually think it worth the money.

 

I dont know who your gigs are but there are a lot of gigs out there that will cost more than what many bands that Bearded Theory book do.

5 hours ago, incident said:

 

Yeah, even at the current (and highest) tier, Bearded is £251.45 inc all fees which in the current market seems pretty reasonable. I know there's festivals that do charge less (in the case of Truck and Y Not, substantially less), but none of those are as appealing to me as Bearded, either in terms of lineup or in terms of the freedom of being able to bring in alcohol and take it where you want. There's also a lot of festivals that charge substantially more.

 

I've definitely had better value by a mile going to Y Not for example. £140 currently for a weekend is almost unbeatable value with £190 to add the Thursday. Bearded reminds me though for a lot of it as like a mini 6 music festival with some side bits and 6 music is probably my least listened to radio station.

[incident]

6 minutes ago, northernangel said:

I've definitely had better value by a mile going to Y Not for example. £140 currently for a weekend is almost unbeatable value with £190 to add the Thursday. Bearded reminds me though for a lot of it as like a mini 6 music festival with some side bits and 6 music is probably my least listened to radio station.

 

Yes, Y Not is cheaper. But it's not £140 or even £190 - I tried to be honest and include all fees in the price I quoted, so if we're talking like for like, Y Not £206.50 for a 4 day ticket. The real difference in price between the two festivals is £44.95.

 

For my taste on both the lineup and the various other aspects that I'd value, Bearded wins out and it's usually not even close - this year less so, but next year is looking like a full on return to form. Whereas Y Not would need to announce something pretty special to tempt me, and so far they've shown no sign of doing so.

[northernangel]

23 minutes ago, incident said:

 

Yes, Y Not is cheaper. But it's not £140 or even £190 - I tried to be honest and include all fees in the price I quoted, so if we're talking like for like, Y Not £206.50 for a 4 day ticket. The real difference in price between the two festivals is £44.95.

 

For my taste on both the lineup and the various other aspects that I'd value, Bearded wins out and it's usually not even close - this year less so, but next year is looking like a full on return to form. Whereas Y Not would need to announce something pretty special to tempt me, and so far they've shown no sign of doing so.

 

Y Not 3 days is currently £152 is pretty solid value. BT before a lineup came out still is £250, even at early bird, £240 minus the cost of a Thursday which is naturally a very watered down day and nowhere near the cost of £100. You are correct, it is £206.50 for a 4 day but you get a stronger day plus you could take £20 off that for the tier 1 price equvalent of BT's early bird making it around £64. In reality though that differene of £45 is probably more than most of those acts under the headliners are going to charge for their own gigs and they are full length gigs. The Darkness for exmaple are charging £45 which is more than Yard Act charged for a gig in Leeds buy £12 and they are taking Ash as support who are probably going to do a similar sized set.

 

Of course it comes down to value for you, I don't think I've seen a BT lineup that is probably worth attending. I've always found the drop of from when they have had better headliners to the undercard quite heavy. 

[beau1]

Regarding the price, I was a little surprised to see Bearded at the £250 mark. I'm sure it was only £160 when I went in 2023. We got them fairly late on in Feburary too.

 

A £90 price hike in 2 years does seem a lot, even with the hyper inflated prices of tickets right now.

[Gnomicide]

18 hours ago, northernangel said:

Probably given all 3 of 204 price release, super early bird and early bird weekend are sold. It's outrageously expensive to be honest now I've seen for what it is so.

 

10 hours ago, northernangel said:

 

I've got 4 bands I'd see in that lineup or make a point of seeing, £250 then a other £35 for parking as well would be madness for me personally. 

 

 

Arguing a festival is outrageously expensive because you only like 4 acts doesn't really work, does it? Not value for money for you, yes but not as a sweeping statement. 

 

I watched 34 full sets at Bearded last year (I was there from Wednesday), plus quite a few other partial sets, silent disco and other entertainment. With the addition of being able to take your own drink in, I find it tremendous value for money. 

[northernangel]

1 hour ago, Gnomicide said:

 

 

Arguing a festival is outrageously expensive because you only like 4 acts doesn't really work, does it? Not value for money for you, yes but not as a sweeping statement. 

 

I watched 34 full sets at Bearded last year (I was there from Wednesday), plus quite a few other partial sets, silent disco and other entertainment. With the addition of being able to take your own drink in, I find it tremendous value for money. 

I generally think Beared Theory isn't a big enough booked festival across the board with large enough overall acts to warrant £250, compared to many other festivals of similar price or less. The difference is probably that it just isn't a festival for me, the undercards just don't seems that strong compared either. See it hasn't been discussed that you can take your own alcohol into the arena, obviously that adds to the value and puts a different perspective on it. Just not for me though. I genuinely think it's rare I'd be going to a full length festival weekend now anyway apart from Glastonbury and trying European options that are less in cost. I generally can't be bothered with it all. 

I think in fairness though, a lot of Beared Theory attendees probably look out for The Park lineup at Glastonbury and it's probably most least visited main stage. I think I've watched two acts on it in all my time there, maybe 3 when Michael Eavis appeared.

[IndiePoppyJock]

I think BT is great value, even though I’m usually less excited by the main acts and get a lot of enjoyment out of Maui Waui type bands.

Lovely Eggs are my highlight on the list, although I’ve seen them quite a few times anyway. 
 

If anyone feels that BT is not for them due to lineup, cost or whatever, then maybe this forum thread is also not for them. The line up and costs are not going to change, so what’s the point in moaning about it if you’ve already made the decision not to go?

[incident]

46 minutes ago, Nobody Interesting said:

More like Woodsies and Other for most BT bands I would say.

 

Yeah, and Avalon

[Paul ™]

northernangel is doing a great trolling job here, best not bite.

 

IndiePoppyJock sums it up well.

[Kaboom Boxer]

Has anyone got any experiences with taxis/Ubers out of Bearded Theory each evening? I’m toying with the idea of booking an AirBnB in a nearby town like Branston, Elford or Fradley and just ride sharing in and out each day but don’t want to commit without knowing the logistics. 

[elgatonegrofabricwardrobe]

Festival cost breakdowns are a complete and utter waste of time. Every single element of it is subjective. 

BUT while I'm here I might as well say that the price they charge for a well run festival, in beautiful surrounds, almost entirely free of dickheads and usually with some very good acts across the site...I think the price that they charge is more than justifiable. 

That's just my take.

[Stillill42]

35 minutes ago, elgatonegrofabricwardrobe said:

Festival cost breakdowns are a complete and utter waste of time. Every single element of it is subjective. 

BUT while I'm here I might as well say that the price they charge for a well run festival, in beautiful surrounds, almost entirely free of dickheads and usually with some very good acts across the site...I think the price that they charge is more than justifiable. 

That's just my take.

I'd agree with that. An absolutely individual thing. For the festivals that manage to stay away from the invidious creep of commercialisation and populist unimaginative lineups, I'm prepared to fork out a reasonable chunk. Never been to Bearded Theory but only heard good things about it, I was at Green Man last year, EOTR the year before, both magnificent, all trying to stay true to a laudable principle of what makes a good festival, they deserve support, hefty price tag notwithstanding. 

[shi]

Lots of good points on here. Festivals have got bloody expensive. 

Used to do 3 or 4 a year. Down to 1 or 2 now. 

Theres nothing more guaranteed to turn me into a moaning old git than looking at the prices of gigs now. It's ridiculous.

624 quid to get the family through the gate is probably a bit much for us , sadly. 

[shi]

Deleted 

Edited October 13, 2024 by shi