Home Events Camp Good Life: the festival with a doggie manifesto

Camp Good Life: the festival with a doggie manifesto

7th April 2022

This September, at the end of a long-awaited festival season, comes Camp Good Life, a small, expertly crafted festival on a breathtaking historic site – with a doggie manifesto! It runs from 16-18 September 2022 at the Hawarden Estate in Flintshire, North Wales.

There are many reasons why Camp Good Life is different to other festivals – and, best of all, is that dogs are not simply tolerated, they are encouraged. We all know that they are the best of us, especially after the past two years, so dogs are welcomed all over Camp Good Life. Water points and dog snacks will be widely available and there will be lots of friendly faces to say ‘hello’ to.

Back by popular demand, the Incredibly Clever Canine Circus returns to Camp Good Life this year for untold canine hi-jinks. Ever wondered if your dog harbours a secret desire to be a star, or is the World’s Greatest Diva in need of the perfect place to showcase their myriad talents? Roll up to any of our circus sessions together and, in just one hour, ringleader extraordinaire Deborah will conjure the most incredible spectacle out of each and every participant, whatever their prior experience!

Camp Good Life’s dog manifesto:

Dogs are our friends. We respect them. We believe in liberty for all dogs; the right to attend our festival and to be cared for as welcome guests.
We believe in leads, but we offer our dogs the space to stretch their legs and their souls, to roll, to show off, to sniff everything and to pee on trees.
We offer our dogs the right to choose their friends regardless of colour, size or smell. We offer them the right to poo where they want and we agree to clear up after them.
We promise to lay on amazing entertainment for our canine friends; to encourage them to dress up, to show us their tricks, to dive, to race and to pose. We promise to reward them with snacks and rosettes.
In return, we ask our canine guests to behave, to be considerate to all humans and to stay away from music tents at night.
We offer dogs the right to join us in our kingdom of beauty and love.

In non-canine news, this year, Camp Good Life joins with Caught by the River and Heavenly Recordings to present a line-up of quality and eclecticism that is unrivalled for a festival of its size. Among the artists confirmed are one of the country’s most consistently brilliant songwriters, former Pale Fountains and Shack frontman, Michael Head & the Red Elastic Band; multi-instrumentalist and songwriter Laura Groves; a very rare live solo  performance by Ivor Novello award winning songwriter Simon Aldred, aka Cherry Ghost; and multitalented H. Hawkline.

As the music line-up is confirmed, Camp Good Life announces the first spread of chefs who will take to the festival’s giant open firepit to prepare and cook beautiful dishes to be shared by the audience. Among the hosts of intimate, communal Campfire Cooking Sessions will be:

Cornwall mainstay Emily Scott, whose new restaurant Emily Scott Food opened at Watergate Bay in 2021
Chef, author of several books (another due in May) and long-time cookery teacher at the River Cottage, Gill Meller
Leith’s-trained chef, recipe writer and food stylist Olia Hercules
Environmentalist and group chef director at THE PIG Hotels, James Golding
Double Food Book of the Year author Mark Diacono, whose The New Kitchen Garden also won Garden Book of the Year
Award-winning chef, restaurant owner, activist and author Tom Hunt
Recipe writer, cookbook author and Great British Bake Off semi-finalist Flora Shedden
Serial Yotam Ottolenghi collaborator and co-writer of Ottolenghi Flavour, Ixta Belfrage
Champion and driver of British Caribbean culinary culture, Marie Mitchell
Co-founder of Bristol’s Bib-Gourmand-holding Root restaurant, Rob Howell.

And to celebrate the sheer quality of the food line-up, every festival ticket includes a voucher for a free meal every day, an unprecedented festival bonus that Camp Good Life is exceptionally proud to instigate.

Another confident claim is that Camp Good Life is equipped with the most magnificent toilets and showers in the history of festivals; proper loos and plenty of them. If the thought of festival toilets makes you haver over buying a ticket, clear your mind of these doubts and concentrate on the great cultural offerings all over the festival. These khazis are exemplary, put-your-mind-at-rest, beauties and we are happy to accept all challenges from home and abroad.

Wherever you are, you are never far from everywhere, meaning that if you want to take in a talk on eels, immerse yourself in the history of Wales, jump in the lake for a swim, relax by the lake and then leg it to the Caught by the River tent to see Michael Head, it’s all easily accomplished and you won’t miss the artists you want to catch, at close range in a remarkable setting.

Camp Good Life in a nutshell:

Dogs inordinately welcome.
Music curated by Caught by the River and Heavenly Recordings, with acts performing  throughout the day and long into the evening.
Line-up of writers, experts and assorted thinkers, curated by Caught by the River
Celebrated Campfire Cooking Sessions hosted by top class chefs.
Craft tent, featuring makers ranging from print and pottery to clothing and blacksmithing.
Bar-side marquee featuring DJs in the evening.
Talks in the tiny Victorian Tea House.
Paddle boarding and wild swimming – not to mention dog diving – on the lake.
Intimate Feasts and Food Masterclasses, hosted by some of the best cooks and chefs around.
Always something for children and adults to see, hear, enjoy and explore.