With post lockdown blues now a distant memory, hundreds of people found their way to the Morley Beer Festival this year to feel like part of a community once again (and fill themselves with locally brewed beers and ciders). Both days were filled with revelry and cheer. And while the weather may have turned as the festival went on, the spirits of the people certainly did not.
Despite its title, the festival was a largely family focused affair. Just after getting my wristband and making my way into the main area I saw a school load of children playing with diabolos, balancing boards and different ground mats for various games. I might have been fooled into thinking I had stumbled on a playground, if it weren’t for the adults nearby reposed on deck chairs and bails of hay sipping away at their new favourite Norfolk brewed beverages. And of course the serene singing from the fine Serena Grant. Everyone was focused on amusing their friends with the newest happenings, savouring the company of the bubbling friend in their hand and losing themselves in the shared feeling that permeated everything. Not a single thought turned to the darkening clouds overhead.
I took the strongest cider they had and ventured to the other parts of the festival. Here there were a plethora of activities for people of all ages to enjoy. Dads were showing up their teenagers at archery, sisters were outscoring their red-faced brothers in footy drills and all the kids clambered to the top of the inflatable hill only to be sent tumbling down by a swinging wrecking ball (a toy one thankfully). Beyond that there were plenty of shops for buying all sorts of gifts. A few of these were almost too tempting not to buy, with one nifty little item calling out to me in particular.
My only regret is not staying longer, but for the short time I was there I had a better time than I had expected… I had expected a small bunch of locals gulping down watery beer in a tattered marquis. My ignorance was laid bare before my eyes at the spectacle of this event. It proved that in a world of doom and gloom, small communities can come together to do something special even still. And if that something special is whacking the rat, sipping cider in the Sun or listening to the local artists sing their hearts out then I think that’s more than enough. Suffice it to say I will be attending the next Morley Beer Festival if all goes well and I’ll certainly be spending a great deal more time there than I did. I would highly recommend anyone else to do the same.
