In photos: Boomtown 2024 after dark

In photos: Boomtown 2024 after dark
Traffic cones on the sesh. A Donald Trump drag king. Gurning Teletubbies. It’s a mild night at Boomtown Fair, and photographer Bekky Calver was there to capture the action.

The sun has barely set on Boomtown Fair as we dance at the Bad Apple Bar in the centre of the festival site. A 212 x Bonkers mashup is blasting out of the speakers at the ‘Celebrity Beef’ event, run by ‘DJ Gaylord’. On stage, a drag dressed as Donald Trump, complete with ear bandage, is slowly stripping. Next to them, another performer dressed as Azealia Banks in her ‘digging up and cooking her dead cat’ era, complete with machete, dances along with the music, using the weapon to gesture as they lip sync ‘I guess that cunt getting eaten’. Very few, if any, of these words are in the bible I think to myself as I watch on.

Outside of the venue, a mobile DJ booth, (transported by bike) has pulled up. 5 people gather round it and dance to filthy Drum and Bass. Crowds amble past them with groups of people dressed like traffic cones weaving through, eager to get across the site to catch DJ EZ’s set at the Origin stage. The stage, towards the centre of the site’s iconic bowl, is a cross between an Aztec temple and laser show, complete with mycelium and mushrooms growing up the side of it, and is shrouded in fog.

This is Saturday night of the 14th iteration of Boomtown and it is every bit as mad as you would hope. The festival, built around the idea of an alternate reality, features different districts, each with their own individual flavour and look. There is a storyline and theme that runs through each festival, shaping the direction of the ‘town’ for the next event. Actors roam each district, interacting with festival goers who themselves often come in varying shades of fancy dress. Alongside intricate and expansive sets, it comes together to create a molten pool of imagination and silliness, soundtracked by relentless duff duff of bass echoing around the Hampshire countryside. No more is this clear than after dark. We sent photographer Bekky Calver to capture the action.

Find out more about Boomtown 2025 here.

Enjoyed this article? Follow Huck on Instagram.

Support stories like this by becoming a member of Club Huck.

Latest on Huck

Bobby Gillespie: “This country is poisoned by class”
Culture

Bobby Gillespie: “This country is poisoned by class”

Primal Scream’s legendary lead singer writes about the band’s latest album ‘Come Ahead’ and the themes of class, conflict and compassion that run throughout it.

Written by: Bobby Gillespie

Vibrant photos of New York’s Downtown performance scene
Photography

Vibrant photos of New York’s Downtown performance scene

‘Balloons and Feathers’ is an eclectic collection of images documenting the scene for over two decades.

Written by: Miss Rosen

Picking through the rubble: Glimpses of hope in the US election results
Activism

Picking through the rubble: Glimpses of hope in the US election results

Clambering through the wreckage of the Harris campaign, delving deeper into the election results and building on the networks that already exist, all hope is not gone writes Ben Smoke.

Written by: Ben Smoke

US Election night 2024 in Texas
Photography

US Election night 2024 in Texas

Photographer Tom “TBow” Bowden travelled to Republican and Democratic watch parties around Houston, capturing their contrasting energies as results began to flow in.

Written by: Isaac Muk

In photos: “Real life is not black and white” – Polaroid x Magnum Open Call winners
Photography

In photos: “Real life is not black and white” – Polaroid x Magnum Open Call winners

See pictures from the competition organised by two titans of contemporary photography, which called upon artists to reject the digitalisation and over-perfectionism of our modern world, technology and image-making.

Written by: Huck

In photos: Rednecks with Paychecks
Photography

In photos: Rednecks with Paychecks

‘American Diesel’ is a new photo series that looks at the people, places and culture behind the stereotypes of rural America.

Written by: Ben Smoke

Sign up to our newsletter

Issue 81: The more than a game issue

Buy it now