The 2018 Marlow Town Regatta and Festival takes place this weekend – the 16th and 17th of June. It is 18 years since the original Marlow Regatta moved to Dorney Lake, which led to the creation of a new event for us in the town – Marlow Town Regatta and Festival! So the event is coming of age, and there are a few exciting changes for this year.
We will run a separate article covering the Festival day on Sunday, so here’s out outline of what is going down on Saturday!
Saturday – Town Regatta and Concert
Saturday 16th June is the traditional rowing regatta…with some exciting added extras! Proper rowing races, entry badge required to get into the enclosure , dress code applies until 6pm. Entry to the enclosure will be by traditional Subscriber Badge. Online ticket sales have closed, but there may be some left to buy on the door – subject to availability, and it’s quite possible they will sell out – so don’t hang about! Picnic pitches for siting gazebos have all sold out, but there will be an area where you could sit on a blanket etc, but it’s quite small.
*IMPORTANT* The evening will have an all new concert (no dress code), but this does require a wristband to access, and this is available to purchase separately to the daytime enclosure ticket.
The Rowing
The order of racing can be found on the Marlow Rowing Club website with races running from 8am through to gone 6pm.
New for this year are a couple of races with real local interest – head to head challenges between Great Marlow School and Sir William Borlase School. Boys will race at 2.30pm and the girls at 3.30pm. Presentation at 4.15pm.
The grandstand by the finish line is also being re-introduced to provide easier viewing of the rowing.
Food and drink
Inside the enclosure there is the Riverside Bar, operated by Marlow Round Table selling local ales, wines, spirits and champagne, and of course Pimm’s. All profits go to local charities -so dive in!
A number of food stalls will be onsite, and this year they are all grouped together, to make life easier!
- Mozarella Nation – pizza
- Mr Singh Curry King
- Marlow Part Planners – paella, slow roast pork burgers and more
- La Kordun – sweet and savoury crepes
- Camper Cafe – coffee etc
- Villani Group – traditional burgers etc
There is also sit down dining in the “Riverside Dining“, hosted by Sojo Kitchen (although this was pre-bookable only)
Entertainment and music
For the kids, there will be an inflatable slide and bouncy castle. Then of course there is a whole load of music!
- From 1pm, 3 locals bands will play, who have been chosen as part of Marlow FM’s “Up Next” competition. These will be:
- Kanvus
- One World Less
- Christina Cameron
- 4.30pm Interkoola – a superb and very popular Marlow based band playing indie, britpop and rock covers.
Then in the evening (a separate wristband is required, remember)
- 6-7.00pm: Abba’s Angels – one of the country’s top Abba tribute bands,
- 7.30-8.30pm Three Minute Rockstar, the superb local “live band karaoke” meaning any of you could be live on stage in front of the Regatta crowd!!!
- 9.00-10pm Toploader – the headline act, with two million album sales to their name and a string of top 20 hits both home and abroad.
Traylen’s Funfair
This brilliant and popular fair runs in parallel to the Town Regatta & Festival, basically filling up the rest of Higginson Park. For many, especially kids – this is what Regatta means to them! Opening times
- Thursday/Friday 5-10pm
- Saturday 12-7.30pm
- Sunday 12-7pm
Well… that’s most of it covered, we think – have fun everyone!
(The ultimate resource for all things Regatta, of course is the official website: www.marlowtownregatta.org )
