Oxfam at Reading Festival 2006

Festival reveller, Ben Toone, let's us know what he thinks about Oxfam's presence at Reading.

''The crowds were manic, thank God for the stewards pointing us in the right direction!'' ''Hopefully the Oxfam video had an effect on the 40-60,000 strong crowd at the main stage.'' Hot Chip - my highlight of the Carling Stage.

Having been to V festival a couple of times I thought I knew what to expect when I came to Reading, but the anarchy on arrival made it quite a different proposition. The crowds were manic, and the mixture of packed tents from entrenched revellers and confused festival arrivals trudging with camping equipment seemed like bedlam. Thank God for the stewards pointing us in the right direction!

Friday morning I emerged and surveyed my surroundings. Oxfam was pretty prominent on site, with the logo emblazoned on stewards’ jackets and information posts, and with the charity tent central on the main through way to the arena. It’s a shame Oxfam didn't have a dedicated campaign tent at Reading; visiting the tents and signing up to campaigns at my previous V festivals in Chelmsford and Stafford have been a regular feature in my itinerary. However, the Oxfam volunteers with their clipboards did a sterling job mixing with the festival crowd - particular hats off to the fellows in the lab coats.

The Oxfam presence was felt further with the broadcast of the campaign video between bands on the main stage. This fitted in well between the streams of music videos and safety announcements, yet was punchy enough to get the message across. Taking 'Pressure Point' by The Zutons as its theme, the video worked well to highlight the depressing reality for those living in poverty. For example, it reminded us that developing countries are tied to their debt – they are paying back twice as much in interest than they get in aid.

It also reminded us about the need to pile on the pressure to make sure the government keeps the promises made at the G8 in Gleneagles. Hopefully the video had an effect on the 40-60,000 strong crowd at the main stage who had turned out to see memorable performances by the Yeah Yeah Yeahs, Belle and Sebastian, The Futureheads, Feeder, the Arctic Monkeys, Kaiser Chiefs and headliners Franz Ferdinand, Muse and Pearl Jam. These were all amazing, although my personal favourites had to be Hot Chip on the Carling Stage (see pic).

I had planned to steward before my girlfriend (bless her) got me tickets for the festival and, given the impressive hard work and enthusiasm pressed upon me by this year’s volunteers, it’s definitely an option I'd consider in the future. It may have to be Leeds rather than Reading though - the bonus of the Oxfam dance tent is too hard to resist!