Forever Young Festival 2023 14th-16th July

techman1

I think the last few years has been relatively good for outdoor festivals, it's a long time since there has been a washout like this. People were lulled into a false sense of confidence about outdoor festivals in Ireland in fields. Because most of the age groups at this festival were in the 50+ bracket they probably won't chance it again ,they are not as forgiving as 20 somethings mucked to the eyes at Glastonbury

Mrs Shuttleworth

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/120862211#Comment_120862211

It's been really unfair this year on outdoor gigs. Weather was scorchio May and early June then the rain started bang on cue with Harry Styles at Slane Castle (I got soaked). Got drenched again at Def Leppard / Motley Crue (Joe Elliot was visibly furious and gave out about the weather several times) and then missed yesterday completely!

seekenee

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/120862203#Comment_120862203

I left for a bus straight after ABC who finished at 10.30 so I'd guess Bananarama finished around 11.30 ish

Mrs Shuttleworth

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/120862269#Comment_120862269

I would have missed them so; I had that same bus booked. Everyone raves about them live which is a surprise as they never toured in their heyday. I think 1000GigGuy on Twitter had their performance last year at Forever Young as gig of the year!!

seekenee

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/120862284#Comment_120862284

I saw them at Electric Picnic once, they were good.

I'd say they went down well last night, there was a big crowd, the rain was well stopped and they would have had a bag of hits

Lad GAGA

Not long back from FY, that was a tough weekend. Was concerned we might struggle to get out today, tractors were towing cars etc. from yesterday. A number of people were leaving yesterday. Never seen conditions as bad. Even yesterday when the weather was supposed to be okish (depending on which weather app you were looking at) we had 3 or 4 massive downpours and 2 bouts of thunder and lightning which led to delays.

Having said that the music was fantastic and the crowd/atmosphere was brilliant especially considering the weather. The atmosphere really is very special, some of the outfits are hilarious. Some brilliant acts (in no particular order), Go West, Tony Hadlee (pure class), Tom Baily, ABC, Bananarama, Billy Ocean, China Crisis, SoulIISoul, Mid Ure and on and on. The only disappointment for me was Andy Bell who should have played more of his 80's stuff (but some people liked him/his set).

Not sure how the event will survive after the weekend (might take a big hit this year)but would be a shame if it didn't survive, and all proceeds go to the ISPCA so a great cause. Time will tell.

kg703

I was one of the unlucky ones - in the hotel in Naas, dressed and heading for the bus when we got the text. 250 euro spent on a hotel for nothing so while I feel for the organisers, it did really sting especially as the gig was going on 10 minutes away anyway. Doubt Id buy a ticket again

scruff monkey

lad on the whine line on radio 1 blasting the organisation of the event.

Mrs Shuttleworth

A lot of angry posters on the FY Facebook page. Mainly at the ad hoc decision who to admit and who not on the Saturday, and no updates on Saturday at all re Sunday. It seems very strange that Saturday tickets would suddenly be allowed access on the Sunday alongside Sunday ticketholders if the reason for the Saturday refusals was health and safety. It must have been packed to the rafters in there yesterday.

Jizique

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/120862376#Comment_120862376

All proceeds to the ISPCA? All? Hard to believe

Lad GAGA

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/120863213#Comment_120863213

All 'profits' from what I understand but open to correction.

Sexual Chocolate

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/120862751#Comment_120862751

Wasn't as packed as you think but obviously busier than Saturday.

Overall even with the weather been as **** as it was I had great craic at it. Tony Hadley was definitely the top performer for me, in fact he should of been the main act on Saturday night. Can't believe Andy Bell didn't play Sometimes 🤷‍♂️

ABC, Thomson Twins, From the Jam, China Crisis and Midge were great as well and for his age Billy Ocean too. Simple Minds and Depeche Mode tribute acts were also good.

The price of food and drink was shocking though, especially the drink but in saying that the Heineken was very nice.

It will be interesting to see what happens next year, I know very little about landscaping etc but I'd assume it will take a long time for the grounds to look normal again.

Sexual Chocolate

Think a nod of appreciation should be given to the lads in the 4x4s and tractors towing many people out today.

Ricosruffneck

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/120863448#Comment_120863448

How much was the Heineken? Not 7.50?

fillup

From their socials

8€ for a Heineken

And a whopping 7€ for a 330ml can of Moretti

#foreverrobbed

Mrs Shuttleworth

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/120863448#Comment_120863448

Great to hear that those who managed to go still enjoyed it. The weather is so unpredictable. Earlier today it was beautiful and I was saying to myself the organizers must be doubly raging - but now it's bucketing out of the heavens in Dublin!

Jizique

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/120863264#Comment_120863264

Easy to ensure very little profit after a suitable management fee and sundry charges

Phishwax

Whoever runs this event sounds like a right arse

riccol1966

We camped this year. I think the biggest issue was a) not using the Goff's entrance as they did last year, leading to a 1.5hr delay getting into the grounds and b) the lack of gridded walkways from campsite to toilets and food area. A 5-7min walk was taking 25mins in the muck, and this was serious muck. Organisers need to remember that camping takes the most effort, so you need to make things a little easier for us lot, otherwise we won't be back.

Lots of people sleeping in cars on Saturday night as their tents just couldn't cope with the deluge earlier that day.

But the music was yet again fab, and brought smiles to our faces. As mentioned by previous posters, Midge Ure, ABC, Billy Ocean, Soul II Soul, Tom Bailey, Squeeze, Cry Before Dawn, Tony Hadley and Qween tribute act were in top form. Andy Bell ... Mmmm, not enough songs that everyone knew for a closing act on Saturday night.. leaving out "Sometimes" was baffling indeed.

We left after ABC, as we'd heard the Sunday closer Bananarama last year (brilliant) but we still needed a tow from the rescue vehicle to get out of the car park mud. I dread to think how long it took people to leave on Monday.

Last year we got the sun, this year the rain. Hopefully lessons learned for future years.

Lad GAGA

Fully agree with riccol 1996 and also really enjoyed D Mode and the Simple Minds tribute band as mentioned by Chocolate. Actually wasn't too bad getting out yesterday, a few cars were being towed but there were one or two 'pathways' that people could drive through to get to the 'road' leading out. Never seen my car so dirty even the guy at the car wash asked me what happened my car 😂😂

Hotblack Desiato

I don't think those bar prices are bad at all.

A couple of weeks ago I was at Kraftwerk in Trinity, it was 7.50 for a Heineken / Orchard Thieves in there so very little difference. 7.50 for a White Hag Atlantean at FY is pretty good (it's stronger)

Incidentally I got a pint of Moretti in the Lombard Bar just before going in to Kraftwerk, that was 7.50 as well. 7.00 for a small can of Moretti at FY is pricy but there were plenty of other choices.

You can always brave the campsite and bring your own drink along.

Pretty bad if they didn't have any walkways around the busy areas like toilets etc. At the very least they could have put down a load of straw when it looked like the weather was going to be bad, that would have helped a bit. But outdoor gigs in Ireland are always taking a chance with the weather.

Ricosruffneck

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/120865763#Comment_120865763

It's water yeast and hops (and some other bits) that are mass produced in a factory.

It's pretty bad.

adrian522

"We are cheaper than most events and most Dublin Pubs"

Eh, No you are not. You are more expensive than most events and significantly more expensive than most Dublin pubs.

odyssey06

More variety, but prices more expensive than St Annes and Malahide events.

Heineken was €7.50, Islands edge was €7 and wine was €8.

Boooourns

Could you bring your drink from the campsite into the venue?

Hotblack Desiato

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/120865802#Comment_120865802

Does it transport, chill, and serve itself?

This is as stupid as comparing the price of a can of beer X in Tesco with the price of a pint of the same beer in a pub.

SteM

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/120866741#Comment_120866741

Yeah, it's a ridiculous comparison. Still, not sure how they can seriously charge €7 for a 330ml can of Moretti though. If that's cheapest they can sell a 330ml beer for they shouldn't have bothered putting it on the menu tbh, it's not like it's a craft beer or anything.

Ricosruffneck

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/120866741#Comment_120866741

I read the fest was charging 7 euro for a 330ml. Were the bar people paid or was in exchange for ticket and camping? All important factors.

Doesn't take away from my main point. It's too much. 6 euro yeah perhaps, 6.50 hmm.

It's been a steady increase over the past few years. The marks up don't match with reality.

Hotblack Desiato

Why are you concentrating on the 7 euro for 330 can, which I already said was bad value. There were lots of better options.

6 euro for a pint at a festival? for real? There are already plenty of normal pubs in Dublin charging more than that.

This sort of whinging is completely pointless.

Stillill42

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/120867661#Comment_120867661

It's not whinging, it's a valid query. Or should we not query the constantly spiralling cost of these things? You seem to automatically accept that a pint in a field in a plastic cup should automatically cost more than it does in a pub. Why is that? You reckon transport, chilling, labour costs more to set up in a field? The 330 ml price was outrageous, the rest are still open to question. Writing the previous poster's concerns off as 'stupid' is a bit condescending.

odyssey06

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/120867661#Comment_120867661

I posted the prices for outdoor events this summer elsewhere which were not cheap, and the Forever Young prices were higher.

Hotblack Desiato

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/120867923#Comment_120867923

Can you show us any instances where a festival or outdoor gig served pints cheaper than a pub?

A pub doesn't have to hire in all the equipment to run a bar and doesn't have to have generators etc. Or pay the festival organiser for the right to be there.

The previous poster was, to be frank, making a stupid comparison. Yes, mass market beers are quite cheap to brew. But then you have excise duty, VAT, packaging, transportation, refrigeration. That's just to get a can or bottle on to a supermarket shelf. A pub then has to pay for staff, licence, electricity, rates, insurance, etc. etc. all of which are expensive in Ireland. A festival has extra costs too, as above.

@odyssey06 50c more in most cases. It's not intended to be a cheap weekend given ticket prices, but putting on an event like this in Ireland is enormously expensive. Weekend campers could always bring their own drink into the campsite.

It's funny how the drink is causing uproar but not the food, don't festivalgoers eat?

odyssey06

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/120868194#Comment_120868194

I posted a comparison with other outdoor events in Dublin which showed it was more expensive. Putting on events in eg Malahide park would also be enormously expensive.

Not everyone attending was camping and campers had to pay to camp.

So it seems entirely reasonable to point out that even by the standards of outdoor events it was extra pricey.

I think at those prices elasticity is going to kick in and they would sell more at lower price. So they may be shooting themselves in the foot.

adrian522

I get that prices at gigs and festivals will be more expensive than pubs, but don't go claiming that you are cheaper than other events and "most Dublin pubs" when it is just not the case.

Jizique

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/120868263#Comment_120868263

At least the "profits" all went to a good cause

Dreamweapon

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/120868194#Comment_120868194

Nobody has posted food prices so we can't comment/compare.

I'm sure though that everybody just assumes the food was an outrageous price as that has always been the case at festivals, but even moreso post-covid. I'm certain some crowd was charging €20 a pizza at ATN last year! Personally, i'll vote with my wallet every time. Extortionate pricing? Not getting my custom.

fillup

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/120868459#Comment_120868459

No free flow on site so if u want a drink u have to pay those rip off prices

Also they weren't permitting food or snacks to be brought in from campsite or at point of entry so if u did want to eat you'd have no choice but to eat what's on offer. I've never heard of a festival having a food policy, It's pure "squeezing the last euro out of ur punters" tactics imo

Wasn't there myself BTW, just going bh what they posted on socials

Sexual Chocolate

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/120868459#Comment_120868459

One of the food vans, The Cheesy Chip (I think) was about €6.50 for a garlic/curry pour-over which seemed to be the norm but were charging an extra 50c for card payments.

All Bar Chicken was €11 for chicken tenders or €14 if you wanted chips with that however the tenders from there were probably the nicest I've ever tasted......

There was very decent variety of food vans down there in fairness.

riccol1966

Perhaps we are not usual, but for us the festival is about the music, not the beer. In 2019 the bar queues were appx 15mins. Last year the queues for the bars meant a wait of up to 30mins to get served. So we had one round of drinks then, and after that stuck to drinking water (freely available on site). This year we didn't even bother with the beers, because at €9 for a pint, it made more sense to have water and spend €13-€15 on our meals, which, quality wise, were ok. Again, not really important, as FY is about the music. As far as I recall the rules on not bringing food and drink into the arena have been in place since the first FY in 2019, its on the ticket and its on the website, so that's a moot point. Don't like the policy.. don't come. And, in truth you can easily enough pop out of the arena and grab something in the londis shop, if you're on a budget. Typical price was €10 for 2 sandwiches. Higher than normal but not arena level price.

Here's the thing about FY, the typical attendee is not interested in nabbing your gear, pissing on your tent or getting high or drinking to excess... we're passed that. Most of the people who attend, from what I can see, just want to have a good time and sing along to the music. There's no crushing, no hassle, it's just a much more relaxed vibe than you'll get anywhere else.. and that's the very reason our daughter would not chose this, instead preferring EP or Indiependence or basically anything more 'edgy'. Horses for courses.

seekenee

Pizza was 14 euro (with toppings). it was delicious.

bodhrandude

Did anyone get to see Neville Staple, did he do any of the Specials classics.

Sexual Chocolate

Another statement realised from Sharon

Hi everyone,

Well what can we say, that was a weekend we will all remember, but not all for the same reasons. I know a large number of you had a brilliant time despite the weather, your posts and anecdotes have been just fabulous after such a testing weekend, thank you.

And for a large number of you, the decisions made around safety at the event meant you missed out on the Saturday at Forever Young. I personally hated having to do that to you, it wasn’t based on anything other than a directive from the safety team, as the site could not take a large influx of additional customers on the Saturday. 

I have added further information/explanation at the end of this email, for those affected, to try and explain the rationale behind this very difficult decision. I assure you that it was not a decision taken lightly, it had nothing to do with cost or value of tickets, it was to minimise the risk of very serious accidents occurring on site. No one could risk that, we have a duty of care to protect you, our customers. It was as simple as that, I'm truly sorry. I am working to bring key Saturday artists back next year to try and look after those who missed them. Genuinely if there was any option of doing things differently I would have. 

Regarding further queries around the site, I have added detail of those also below, hoping it will provide clarity, as a lot of misinformation has circulated on social media. 

I hope you understand Forever Young is your festival, we put a huge effort in to make it the best weekend possible, for you to enjoy, and it’s devastating to us that this has happened and people feel let down. 

We will respond to all queries as quickly as possible, but we are a small team so please bear with us. We will look after everyone the best we can, and as promptly as we can.

All requests need to be received by Friday 12th August. 

Many thanks for your patience

Sharon x 

Contrary to the misinformation being shared on social media, on the Monday before the event, the event management team ordered in additional resources due to the forecast. Even on the Friday, Met Eireann- who we have a direct line to, gave a prediction of 2ml of rainfall for Saturday, which the site would have held. Unfortunately more than 12ml fell, 6x the predicted rainfall. Nothing could have prepared the ground for that persistent deluge. We use the top event safety company in the country, their expertise and experience is unrivalled. We held a crisis meeting between all the relevant bodies at 10am, and as the rain showed no sign of letting up, it looked very likely the festival would be cancelled. 

The safety team assessed the site in detail, and their conclusion was that the arena would not be safe if the numbers exceeded the camping/hotel package holders combined numbers. The arena was structured to be safe for 15,000 people in normal conditions. This is a number calculated on the available exits to safe spaces, should there be any major incident in the arena. With the ground conditions slowing up any potential exit, the number had to be halved. Sadly that meant that anyone due to arrive on the Saturday, above that number, could not be safely admitted. 

It was a horrible decision to have to relay to you all, but we had no choice, I am so sorry. If you imagine that this hadn't been made, and an incident occurred, people could have died. No day out is worth that risk. We had to chose safety knowing the huge upset it would cause. It was deemed that closing the event and trying to vacate the event in such unprecedented conditions was a more significant safety issue than continuing with the reduced numbers. 

The gates were instructed to only admit campers and hotel package guests. If anyone else got in, this should not have happened. We are reviewing CCTV to try and ascertain if there is any truth to the reports that others gained entry. 

There have been many queries over the siting of the toilets in the standard campsite. There was a large number of toilets in standard camping, considerably more than was required for the numbers (we never provide the regulation number as we want to provide the best we can for our customers). The standard camping area was split into campervans/caravans area and the camping/tent area. The toilets were mapped to be in the middle of the 2 areas- see map. However the area around where the toilets were sited and the access route became flooded, which meant they were inaccessible to the cleaning trucks. You cannot have toilets in situ that can't be cleaned, it’s against the regulations and would be very unpleasant for our customers. Therefore the toilets were moved to the far end of the standard campsite where they could be regularly serviced.

After Friday’s rain, with the Met Eireann prediction of less rain for Saturday, I requested the team move the toilets back if at all possible, however, as the rainfall worsened it became evident this was not possible. We know this meant a longer walk than people would like, however the toilets were sited in the standard campsite, as required.  

I designed Forever Young from a customer perspective, I go over the site designs meticulously from a customer perspective, to try and give the experience I would want at the festival myself. I requested that all facilities were as close to each area as possible, and all parking was as close to each area as possible. All these changes do cost extra to provide, but a design that I hoped would improve the experience for our customers. 

Unfortunately the weather beat us this year, and decisions had to be made that were far from ideal, but necessary. Whatever we did, there were people that would be disappointed. I run Forever Young for you, and for animal welfare. These issues have cost us our first clinic opening this year, and that is devastating. Please understand, the weather forced these issues, we all lost out because of it. I will do my best to make it up to you in 2024. 

Sexual Chocolate

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/120872815#Comment_120872815

Missed that one. He played early I remember right.

Lad GAGA

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/120872815#Comment_120872815

I got to see him and he was excellent, the crowd really enjoyed him. From memory he did play a few specials songs. In fairness most of the performers were really good the only disappointment for me was Andy Bell.

Genuinely feel sorry for Sharon and it looks like it will go ahead next year. I'm sure there will be big lessons learned form this year, more so than previous years. I know a lot of people won't go next year but I got the sense from a few people I was talking to over the weekend that they would definitely go back next year. Most, like myself, have been going since the first festival and really enjoy the uniqueness of it. I was actually surprised at the number of visitors from the UK. The music, the crowd and the venue make for a great few days. Now if only the weather would behave itself......

seekenee

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/120872815#Comment_120872815

Yes, he did Gangsters, Nite Klub, Message to You Rudy, Ghost Town, Monkey Man, Guns of Navarone, Long Shot kick de Bucket, plus Lunatics Have Taken Over The Asylum

Goldengirl

Thanks would have liked to see him .

Never got back on the Sunday because if the weather .

Btw on the subject of drink prices we paid €8 for Heineken and €9 for wine ..more than Malahide and St Anne's. Still you have to have a drink, we all know , and so do the organisers.

Next year I will be the one in the waders . :)

Fanirish

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/120867923#Comment_120867923

Why yes transport, chilling, labour costs and setting up a bar in a field are much more expensive than a pub with that infrastructure built in and which operates 364 days a years.

its not rocket science that setting up anything in a field for a weekend come with additional costs beyond those of your local pub, hence a slight premium per pint to offset the extra costs.

Nugget89

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/120888864#Comment_120888864

€8 for a pint, €9 for a wine, and €7 for a can is not a slight premium. It's robbery.

LilNiall

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/120888864#Comment_120888864

Absolute rubbish....the reason for the inflated market at gigs is a very limited closed market for punters and hence bars can up the prices and people would pay.

Similar to a bag of crisps being €3 at a gig. Please explain the excess costs for transport, storage etc of a box of Tayto.

crl84

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/120888864#Comment_120888864

Everyone understands that prices are going to be more at a temporary venue in a field than a pub.

The issue is claiming that €8 a pint is reasonable under the assertion that they're "cheaper than most events and most Dublin pubs", when that is demonstrably untrue, so either they're an utter moron, or they're deliberately lying. And knowing the usual festival PR spin, it's almost certainly the latter. Most Dublin pubs are not charging €8 for a pint of Heineken. 99% of Dublin pubs are charging less than that.

So they're full of sh1t.