Our second Bonfest saw a very special year for the festival team, this being their 20th year and it being the year that the legendary Bon Scott would have turned 80 years old.
Having had such a great time last year, my sister and I had booked our tickets (and bell tent) early, hoping to have another fabulous weekend away. Bonfest, you most certainly did not let us down. It was an absolute blast!
Friday Night: Settling In
Out of work sharp, we hit the road to Kirriemuir. While last year I drove, reserving my right to leave at any point, this year I was chilled out and happy to be driven, confident that I’d be staying put until Monday when I’d be forced back into the real world again.
We arrived, unpacked the car and got set up in our tent. Lessons learned from last year, the main things being that it gets pretty chilly overnight and that you are not far from your car, we’d pretty much packed our beds! An extra sleep mat and a duvet each, in addition to sleeping bags, led to a much more comfortable night.
Tent sorted, we headed out for the evening. A small festival, the campsite being next door to the main tent meant we did not have far to go! First up, pizza, then the bands:
A great start to the weekend! It’s not often I’m happy to be awake after 9 pm on a Friday night these days!
The mood here is great, really friendly and very relaxed. Having thoroughly enjoyed our night it was back to the tents, housed in a secure area, access only with the camping wristband, while others headed off to catch the Happy Bus to Dundee or walk up to town. Things settled pretty quickly and we were asleep before midnight! Party on!
Wide Awake Club
I was first awake, up at my usual time of 6 am ish. Surprisingly on my walk to the loo there were quite a few others on the go, either sitting outside enjoying the early morning fresh air or like me, slightly blearly eyed and planning a return to bed. Conscious of not waking everyone else on site, I smiled good morning rather than talking aloud.
Back in the tent, dozing and waking a couple of hours later I went to get us a cup of tea ahead of starting the day. Sadly this was not to be, the queue long and not moving very quickly! After about 10 mins of chat I gave up, heading back and sharing my disappointment with the neighbours in the adjacent tent. They very kindly boiled some water and had a cuppa ready for us on return from the shower. Legends!
Breakfast at Pathhead Farm
Having discovered the delights of Pathhead Farm last year we were excited to return for breakfast proper. We arrived to find they’d just had a power cut and had no electricity! Absolute troopers, the gas was still working and they managed to keep the breakfast coming alongside complimentary cups of tea. This got us off to a great start. The staff here are brilliant, so warm and welcoming, and keeping going with the big crowds and sparkie on site was no mean feat.
Long Way to the Top
A lazy start to the day was just what was needed in so many ways. Leaving Pathhead suitably refreshed, we wandered up to the town with a brief stop off at Bellies Brae to check out the stalls ahead of the parade. Having stood in the centre last year for this we decided to follow the lorry round the route. Volunteers advised that it started at the fire station; not far ahead of the start the fire engine left, I’m guessing to ensure they’d be in a position to respond to any emergency, the town centre itself grinding to a halt.
The band (Elle Diablo) started up and the lorry started rolling. We joined the wee group walking along behind, very quickly being separated as more and more people joined the parade; I could now totally see more why a bloke at the start was holding onto his wife’s handbag like reins! I caught up with my sister and we managed not to totally lose one another again.
The music blasted out and it was great fun to be amongst such a happy group of people and to see the huge crowds gathered.
Coming to a standstill in the centre of the town, the band belted out a few songs to great support before the lorry started rolling again.
We continued to follow it round, finally getting stopped as it turned off to cease the parade. Excitement over, we headed for the Town Hall for a bit, then out for a coffee to try and wake us up ahead of evening. Looking for a local café, one of the local Rotary volunteers kindly walked us to his recommended place, another example of the great hospitality of Kirriemuir. I’d enjoyed a brief rest of my eyes while in the Town Hall, my napping skills never ceasing to amaze my sis!
Saturday Night: Top Stage
We saw three bands over the course of the evening:
Asomvel, reminiscent of something my stepson would like (not really my cup of tea);
Ricky Warwick & TFH, my first encounter with them;
Chris Slade Timeline, my favourite of the evening. The band were very tight and Chris shared stories from his musical career, playing the music he’d enjoyed on the road as drummer with a number of bands. It was self indulgent to a degree, but given he’s pretty much ages with my dad I think that’s permissible! I do enjoy a good story!
It rained on and off throughout the evening resulting in a very dubby entrance to the tent and very muckit boots! I began to wonder if I should have packed my wellies!
Sunday Fun
Fear not, we awoke on Sunday to find folks on site breaking up hay bales to soak up the water and muck. Ingenious! These folks in Kirriemuir really do know how to run a festival!
Another great breakfast at Pathhead Farm saw everyone in a more relaxed state. The electric supply was functioning as normal, the coffee machine at full pelt, and some delicious fresh pancakes cooking to go with it.
We stopped at Bellies Brae again and were invited to play Top Gun by the local cadets as part of their fundraising endeavour. I gracefully allowed big sister to be Maverick taking on the supporting role of Goose.
High Voltage in the Town Hall
We watched Riff Raff play, were not quite so taken with Automatic Kafka and joined the exodus in favour of coffee, returning for the excellent band, High Voltage. These folks know how to put on a show and had a great crowd in attendance. We saw them play last year and they surely must be headed in the direction of the main stage next year!
Final Night: Reef and Live Wire
Pretty tired by now, we got ourselves ready for the final night. Thankfully there was no more rain so we were able to sit outside between bands.
Reef played a great set. The one song of theirs I really know (as I’m sure we all do) is ‘Place Your Hands’. However, they were very slick performers and it was a good gig. I was grateful of the loan of the foldable camping stool I’d been given as my legs were feeling their age!
The final act of the festival was Live Wire, an AC/DC tribute band and they brought the house down with so many big tunes! What a great atmosphere and so much fun!
Thank you volunteers!
The festival is organised by Kirriemuir music charity, DD8, and is run by volunteers. What an amazing bunch of folks they are! To have kept this going and growing so successfully to what Bonfest is now is amazing. Having celebrated their success and given a resounding applause for them all, the night was rounded off by folks signing the banner for Phil Campbell’s band; scheduled to play, sadly this didn’t happen due to Phil’s passing. This was yet another kindness from the Bonfest ‘family’.
Thank you Bonfest! Thank you sister! What a great weekend. I didn’t think for one moment that Bonfest 2026 could surpass my expectations but it really did! So much fun, so many laughs!
Bonfest, thank you, thank you, thank you!
Clare, happiest outdoors! 