The Big Chill is a multimedia festival, bar, club and record label dedicated to transforming the spirit of our times.
The Big Chill offers a highly evolved, all-round experience that is completely unique, with a wide variety of music and performance, art, comedy, dance and film; technology and its relationship with nature; identifying artists and nurturing their creativity. It is about energy, community and fun.
The Big Chill does not have a defined ethos, as such, but Big Chillers have been gradually shaping its feel and flavour over the years through input and involvement.
The story so far...
Founded by Pete Lawrence and Katrina Larkin in 1994, The Big Chill has grown from humble beginnings into a highly-respected organisation.
From its genesis as a Sunday all-dayer in Islington's Union Chapel, and an outdoor event the following summer which saw 700 people gather in the Black Mountains on the Welsh borders, The Big Chill's main annual event moved in 1998 to Dorset’s Larmer Tree Gardens as 'The Enchanted Garden', where it established its reputation as one of the most innovative new events over the next five years, as the number of Big Chillers grew from a few hundred to 5000.
After a one-off event at Lulworth Castle in Dorset in 2001, The Big Chill upgraded to its new home, the Eastnor Castle Deer Park in the beautiful setting of the Malvern Hills in Herefordshire in 2002. It has since upped its numbers to 35,000 in 2007 whilst retaining its intimacy - principally by word-of-mouth recommendation - ensuring that those who come to the event recognise and respect its unique atmosphere. The community lives on throughout the year through our bars and, of course, this website and its associated forum.
The Big Chill also runs a record label, releasing newly-discovered artists and compilations. And with The Big Chill taking its ethos worldwide with events in India, The Greek islands, Cairo, Helsinki, Budapest, Prague, Australia, New Zealand and Japan we are spreading the chill-out vibe all over the world.
Big Chill Artists
Music is a key part of our ongoing vision. The Big Chill follows its own musical instincts, and is seen as a tastemaker. As early as 96, Melody Maker described the festival line-up as "full of the messiahs of new music", and many of those messiahs, given early exposure at our events, have now built substantial followings - notable examples being Zero 7, Gotan Project, Royksopp, Tom Middleton, Mr Scruff, Lemon Jelly, Fila Brazillia, Talvin Singh, Bent, Amy Winehouse and Goldfrapp.
Our music policy tends to be anti-genre pigeonholing, as we encourage our DJs to play broad and varied sets. At a Big Chill event, you can expect to hear everything from classical to dance music, including folk, jazz, hip-hop, world music, funk, soul, blues, pop, lounge and ambient.
The Big Chill celebrates creativity in all its forms. It has been at the sharp end of audio-visual developments since its inception, as well as incorporating spoken word, dance performance, film and a wide variety of visual art for the nocturnal Art Trails at our summer events.
