Forest Live is an event taking place at various forests in the UK. Delamere Forest, Thetford Forest, Cannock Chase Forest and Westonbirt Arboretum.
Delamere Forest is a natural amphitheatre in the largest woodland in Cheshire. The forest is a mix of Conifer and Broadleaf woodland attracting over 750,000 visitors a year. It is a beautiful, peaceful environment, except when Forest Live takes place!
This year at Delamere Forest they had Fatboy Slim, Skunk Ananasie and Garbage, UB40 featuring Ali Campbell, Bitty McLean, The Kooks but I am here tonight for McFly, with Remember Monday and Twin Atlantic as support.
Remember Monday and Twin Atlantic are on first
It is a HOT evening. I have arrived early because I want to see Remember Monday. ‘Who’ you may ask?
Remember Monday are on stage first. Charlotte Steele, Holly-Anne Hull and Lauren Byrne. They are a country pop girl group who appeared on The Voice in 2019 and represented the UK in the Eurovision Song Contest 2025 with the song ‘What The Hell Just Happened’. Dougie and Danny of McFly have been writing songs for them this year. I enjoyed watching and listening to them.
Next we have Twin Atlantic on stage, a Scottish alternative rock band from Glasgow. Not my music, but the crowd loves them.
McFly make quite an entrance
Half hour break and then McFly enter the stage, but only after about three songs are blasted out into the crowd, including YMCA – they are getting their audience hyped up! Even the security are excited and dancing.
It is 22 years since ‘Five Colours In Her Hair’. They have had seven UK number one singles, ‘All About You’, ‘Star Girl’ and seven top ten albums with over 10 million sales.
There is a very wide age range, from babies to elderly – everyone knows the McFly songs and are here to sing along with Tom Fletcher, Dougie Pointer, Danny Jones, Harry Judd.
Many people are wearing McFly t.shirts and I am sure many have been to their concerts before tonight.
From the start, the massive LOUD speakers that are across the middle of the stage with flashing lights are full on. When the lads walk on the crowd go crazy! The place is packed, you could not squeeze anyone else in.
Getting good pictures of the lads is not easy!
With the flashing lights filling the background and the lads running around the stage it is difficult to get good shots but I do my best in the short time I am allowed. I aim my camera at Dougie, wearing dungarees, and he disappears to the back or far end of the stage. In all the years of photographing him I can tell you he obviously hates having his photo taken because he always does this! I am relentless and will get you some decent shots.
Sorry Harry I can’t see you on the drums which is why I have no photos of you.
Danny is wearing all black – he must be boiling. Tom is wearing dark colours and I have to look again – he has a moustache – no shave it off. How many of you prefer him with a moustache?
The show is full of energy, running around, hit after hit. The crowd are so close you can feel the heat radiating from them. Add to that their excitement – we must be hitting 40 degrees!
Tom Fletcher is a genius. He writes so many hit songs, books for children, music for Paddington – the list of his talents is long. Only this week I heard that Tom was diagnosed with bipolar disorder – he admits that he has always been highly emotional, with mental health extremes of up one minute and down the next. He also suffers from a rare autoimmune condition called uveitis, which causes inflammation on the inside part of the eye. How do you manage Tom? And he is a husband, and father to three boys.
Worn out after the show, but what a show it was!
The show lasts for 90 minutes – I am worn out and need a cold shower , a couple litres of water to drink and a lie down.
What a great night!
All pictures by Deborah Law
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