A pure love of retro music and a passion to keep it alive and kicking sparked the phenomenon that is now Chilfest.
What began as an idea at a barbeque with friends, turned into a festival legacy that has been enjoyed by thousands of music lovers for more than a decade.
Hertfordshire’s much-loved boutique festival, the brainchild of our festival director Steve Butcher, has firmly established itself as the must-go-to summer party for family, friends and music-lovers of all ages.
Set in the idyllic Chiltern Hills, Chilfest’s stage has been graced by a multitude of musical legends from the 70s, 80s, 90s and beyond, as well as being hosted by some iconic household names such as Keith Chegwin, Sally James and Pat Sharp.
A knock-out opening year
Our first ever Chilfest in 2013 set the bar high with an impressive bill that included the X-Factor band Little Mix who had just achieved global success – it was a real coup for us as an independent festival.
Little Mix were joined by some 80s heavyweights including Tony Hadley, Howard Jones, Rick Astley, Midge Ure, Hazel O’Connor and Carol Decker, all of whom packed a mighty punch in launching our Tring festival.
It proved to be a hit with the crowd too, who could enjoy some fantastic music on their doorstep in a relaxing family-friendly atmosphere.
A personal dream come true
It was a sentiment shared by our festival director Steve who immediately started preparing for the next year, despite Chilfest originally being planned as a one-off event.
Steve said: “When I first started Chilfest in 2013 as a one-off event, little did I realise that six years later, it would become an annual celebration for 80s music lovers. That first year was such a phenomenal success and a personal dream come true for a self-confessed 80s obsessive like me that I just had to do it again and again and again.”
It was the start of an amazing journey for Chilfest who have continued to attract big names from the music world onto the Hertfordshire stage.
Headline acts
Some of our standout headliners over the years have included synth kings OMD (2017 and 2023) whose enthusiasm onstage is as electric as their music, and The Human League, another electronic success story whose hits including Don’t You Want Me and Mirror Man always captivate the crowd.
Other bill highlights include a magical set from UB40 featuring Ali Campbell (2016), who brought a sunshine Reggae set with classic hits including Red Red Wine, Kingston Town and Food For Thought.
The wonderful Billy Ocean took the audience on a wave of nostalgia in 2015 with mega hits including Suddenly, When The Going Gets Tough, Red Light Spells Danger and Caribbean Queen.
Our festival took a Celtic turn in 2022 with headliners The Proclaimers walking 500 miles with the Chilfest faithful, sparking a highland fling in the crowd who were jigging to their Gaelic grooves.
Taking the crowd on a theatrical extravaganza in 2024 was Soft Cell’s Marc Almond who is the consummate showman, heading the bill with classics such as The Days of Pearly Spencer, Tainted Love, Say Hello, Wave Goodbye and many more.
Musical milestones
The Friday night of our 2015 festival has gone down in history as a boogie night to remember with a hot line-up of disco and soul sensations. Sister Sledge headlined with a party set like no other, inviting eager fans to join them on stage to dance to He’s The Greatest Dancer. Also on the bill that night were Shalamar, Odyssey, Shakatak and Jocelyn Brown, all creating a dream soul line-up.
In later years, we’ve used the Friday night of Chilfest to showcase fantastic tribute acts, as part of a Totally Tribute night, such as Noasis, Ultimate Elton, Rule The World (Take That) and I’m Every Whitney.
Chilfest is constantly evolving and bringing something new to the audience, which in 2024 saw the launch of our Chilfactor competition which gave up-and-coming bands the chance to perform on stage, demonstrating our ongoing support for unsung music-makers.
There’s no doubt that our festival has stood the test of time, each year coming back with renewed vigour and determination to ensure our Chilfestians make lots more musical memories. Chilfest – simply the best.
