Dear Mummy, we’re excited at the prospect of dressing up for this year’s Funk the Family Festival in Hove, Brighton. It is an awesome one-day festival set in the beautiful grounds of Hove Park. The theme this year is mythical creatures and I’m hoping to go as a mermaid.

It’s a chance for families to get their picnic blankets out and listen to some really high quality live music paired with brilliant entertainment from the main stage with a drink in hand.  It’s a very safe environment where kids can wander freely without roaming too far. The main arena is surrounded by stalls and activities for kids to enjoy.

There is a great deal crammed into the day for the whole family and it really is the opportunity for everyone to relax and let their hair down. For 2017 all family activities FREE! These are just some of the cool things we are looking forward to doing at this years festival…

1) Micro Scooters Wacky Races: Micro Scooters are bringing along lots of lovely scooters for big kids and little kids to race at Funk The Family. To celebrate Father’s Day, Dads get to race Mums and children… And one lucky Papa- chosen at random- gets to win an adult Micro Scooter!

2) Cirque Du Funk: We’re looking forward stepping inside the giant, stripy big-top to watch the free acro-balance shows and circus shows. The Circus Project at the festival offer kids the chance to hang up-side down on a trapeze and do hula hooping lessons. There is also a selection of performances from local kids’ dance groups as well as stilt walkers, magicians and brilliant bubble blowers that we are looking forward to seeing.

3) Crafting activities: There are a lot of opportunities for kids to get messy and make things with The Amazing Art Cart, a portable art cart packed with all kinds of creative materials and we can’t wait to make some festival mythical masks or head-dresses. My mummy is looking forward to getting back to nature and learning bushcrafts with Axe & Paddle Bushcraft workshops.

4) Festival shopping: My mummy loves discovering local brands at Funk the Family and Brighton fashion and festival stalls will be there in an abundance and there’s an array of local companies promoting their businesses including nurseries and classes at the festival. Along with some amazing street food vendors there definitely enough reasons to bring some extra pennies.

5) Kids Disco: We’re looking forward to busting a groove at the Baby Loves Disco dance party for parents, babies and kids with DJs spinning and mixing retro floor-fillers. At the party there will also be  soft play tunnels and mats, plus prizes for the best Daddy dancers (as it’s Father’s Day) and, of course, medals for the funkiest kids!

6) Kids Workshops: The Hartbeeps’ interactive workshops for babies & young children at Funk The Family looks really good. Brimming with original songs, remixed nursery rhymes, musical stories, BIG fun characters & colourful themes, there’s lots to do, learn and make-believe.

7) Story Tent: We’re looking forward to chilling out in the new story tent sponsored by Brighton and Hove’s own award-winning, independent children’s bookshop The Book Nook. At the festival some amazing children’s authors and illustrators will attend and read stories. Guy Parker-Rees who has illustrated one of my favourite books ‘Giraffes Can’t Dance’, is heading up the tent. We can’t wait to meet children’s author Abie Longstaff. She was the author behind some of my favourite books ‘The Fairytale Hairdresser’ and my heroine Kitty Lacey.

8) Music Workshops: We can’t wait to see Corin the music man running ‘recycled instrument making’ workshops and conducting big fun silly singalongs for all the family. Corin is a passionate music teacher and recognised musician and I’m hoping to pick up some tips from him.

9) Fancy Dress: We’re looking forward to dressing up this year for Funk the Family and take lots of pictures. Mythical creatures is a great theme and we can’t wait to see visitors participating dressing up as unicorns, mermaids and other wonderful mythic humanoids.

10) Great Music: We can’t wait to see the legendary Jazzie B (Soul II Soul), House Gospel Choir, Jenna & the Gs, Professor Elemental and Rowlf the Dog along with some other great acts.

The prospect of going again this year is really exciting as previous years have been so much fun even when the weather wasn’t brilliant. Tickets are still available for Funk the Family 2017 and we’d definitely recommend it for a first festival experience with little ones. It lands on Father’s Day this year so would make a great present for daddy’s looking to have a beer, listen to great music and relax. There will be some special pampering treats for the dads too!

Funk the Family Festival 2017 is proud to support Whoopsadaisy, Brighton & Hove’s charity for children with cerebral palsy and motor disorders. Tickets are selling out quickly but a limited number tickets are still available. See the Funk the Family website for more details.

Love Bella x