Milk Fest 2016

Sam Easton, Van Susans, Valerio Lysander, Alibi, I am Aquitane, Box of Frogs, Lee Golledge, The Good Ship Band, Carly Bryant, Raft, Milky Negro, Tarot

In celebration of all the good things in life, we hope you’ll enjoy our four-day full fat festival over the August Bank Holiday weekend. After all the fun of last year, Milk Fest is back and better than ever. Kicking off on Friday 26 August, we’re planning a long weekend of fun all the way through to Monday 29 August. It’s set to be a feel good feast of fun for the whole family.

We’ve put together a programme that showcases the cream of Kent, with music from top local talent and fabulous food and drink from some of our wonderful providers. From cocktails to hot dogs, face-painting to theatre, there’ll be something to put a smile on everyone’s face.

To mark the occasion, we’ll also be putting our Full Fat Festival Top back on tap at just £3 a pint. A tipple or two of this bespoke Kentish bitter, crafted just for us by Old Dairy Brewery, is sure to get you in the party mood. So bring a rug, make yourself comfortable, tuck into some fine festival fodder and enjoy the tunes!

FRIDAY 26 AUGUST – SUMMER SPRITZERS & TWILIGHT TUNES

Milk Fest kicks off at 6pm on Friday night with some very special summer spritzers, colourful cocktails created to make your evening sparkle. Let your hair down and have fun with a flamboyant Flushed Flamingo, an exotic Tipsy Toucan or a raucous Pickled Parrot. As the sun sets over the Terrace, there’ll be music from singer/songwriters Chaz Stapley and Sam Easton, followed by some fiercely good folk rock from the Van Susans. A perfect start to your long weekend!

SATURDAY 27 AUGUST – FAMILY DAY AT THE SEASIDE

Grab your flip-flops and settle into a deckchair on Saturday while the kids enjoy the bouncy sandcastle, face-painting and buckets of fun in the sandpit. Alongside all this there’ll be jolly entertainment from Beautiful Creatures Theatre, making a splash with an interactive walkabout performance hosted by Applause Outdoors. Have a peek inside the Octopot for a larger than life seafood surprise that’s guaranteed to delight!

If all that leaves you feeling peckish, tuck into sizzling sausages from the full-fat festival BBQ menu, which will take centre stage on our Terrace from midday to 9pm. Of course, no trip to the seaside would be complete without a chilled cornet, so listen out for chimes of British summer heralding whippy ice cream…

There’ll be a feast for the ears, too, with acoustics from Daniel Rimmer, Valerio Lysander, Alibi and I am Aquitaine, before Box of Frogs and Lee Golledge rock us into the evening!

SUNDAY 28 AUGUST – HOMEGROWN & HANDMADE FAIR

Festival fever continues in Sissinghurst on Sunday with our ‘homegrown and handmade’ fair showcasing some of our favourite suppliers. Sample some of the fine Kent produce featured on our seasonal menus from Moons Green Charcuterie, Claire’s Bread, Kingcott Cheese, Wylde & Shrub, The Potato Shop and Kent Crisps.

This top grub happens to be complemented nicely by Bardsley Farm’s fruit juices and Anno Distillers’ artisanal spirits, while local florist Astilbe & Sorrel will be turning out some pretty posies. Meanwhile our full-fat festival BBQ will continue to cook up chargrilled treats. What better way to while away your Sunday?

Running alongside this artisan fair, there’ll be performances from Ramblin’ Rags, Kyla Stroud, Jack Standen, Nick Eve and The Good Ship Band, with Carly Bryant and Raft bringing the night to an exuberant conclusion.

MONDAY 29 AUGUST – VILLAGE FETE THEN DANCE TIL LATE

It’s not over yet! On Monday, you can’t miss the Sissinghurst Village Fete, one of Kent’s most glorious summer events, combined with the hotly-anticipated dog show. We’ll be there, pulling pints from the ‘pop up’ Hopper Hut bar. And at the end of the fete… we’ll be keeping the party spirit alive back at the pub, with Happy Hour from 5–7pm and pizza in the Dining Room (!), for one night only…

There’ll be tunes from Caleb Howard-Almond and Milky Negro, followed by the super cool Tarot Rats and Jet Black Bees. Join us for the Bank Holiday’s last hurrah – and dance your socks off because summer comes but once a year!

We’re lucky to be part of a wonderful local community, so we’ll be raising money all weekend for village organisations, including Sissinghurst’s Trinity Church.

Disabled Facilities: Disabled access, disabled toilets