The multi-day event - which kicked off in Woodbridge with a sold-out Aswad show at Woodbridge Community Hall on Wednesday 30 August - featured two bumper days in Elmhust Park on Friday 1 and Saturday 2 September.
Ticket-holders enjoyed a mega line-up of both local and international acts; including Jazzie B OBE, founder of iconic act Soul II Soul. The double Grammy Award winner returned to Woodbridge Festival by popular demand after a memorable DJ set in 2021. He was joined by influential UK house, disco, chill out and acid jazz act, A Man Called Adam, for a rare DJ set. Both artists went down a storm, with hundreds of revellers dancing in the sunshine.
Photo credit: Noise of Art
Friday’s headliner was Caswell - a home-grown Woodbridge rising star, who triumphed in a nationwide competition to support Ed Sheeran. She was joined by Lowestoft born and raised producer Nathan X, who interrupted his chart topping remix schedule to return to Suffolk.
Other acts over the weekend included Czech indie dance act Maella, popular local singer songwriter Charlie Law aka Misery Gutz, Ipswich based R&B singer Chloe Luptoon, who was chosen to play by First Light Festival and Notting Hill Carnival's Sancho Panza founder, Jimmy K-Tel. Festival co-founder and renowned DJ, Ben Osborne, closed the park events with a rousing DJ set.
Photo credit: Noise of Art
This year, the art, eco and kids’ zone was also bigger than ever before - including print your own festival t-shirt, dancing, story-telling, crafts, the family read and chill tent and the Anchors Aweigh! interactive trail map. The new Wellness Area, programmed by Chinese medicine and herbalist Steve Kippax, offered massages, yoga, Qi gong and nutrition talks throughout the afternoon. Local novelists, storytellers and poets also took to the spoken word stage on the bandstand to delight the crowds.
Festival goe-ers were well catered for with a food and drink village including Delroy's Caribbean Kitchen, Wygyu Burgers, Fellows Farm, E5 Bakery, local Ice Cream, Mr Bees Craft Beer, Saltpeter Wines, The Table’s Gin Bar and Suffolk Coffee Pod.
Broadcasting live from events in Elmhurst Park, ITV News Anglia described the festival as “a local event with an international flavour… three days of great entertainment.”
Festival co-founder Ben Osborne said: ‘Both Jazzie B and the sunshine made a welcome return this weekend, with many attendees telling us it was our best festival yet. It was great to see so many people out enjoying themselves.’
Woodbridge Festival is in its 11th year, but this is the first time the event has added a second day in Elmhurst Park. The expansion was made possible by funding from East Suffolk Council’s UK Shared Prosperity Fund. The festival is also grateful for funding from Woodbridge Town Council, Arts Council England and Suffolk Building Society.