The Big Feastival 2016: Jamie Oliver and Blur's Alex James celebrate five years of their foodie festival in The Cotswolds

TV chef Jamie Oliver and Blur bassist Alex James have joined forces to showcase the best of British food, live music and family fun over the August Bank Holiday weekend in The Cotswolds.
The Big Feastival: foodies can head to Alex James' farm in The Cotswolds for a weekend of live music, tasty food and family fun.
Sophie Warner21 July 2016

This year, when The Big Feastival once again takes over Alex James' farm in The Cotswolds, the event will be celebrating its fifth birthday and a hugely successful run to date.

The bank holiday bonanza from August 26 to August 28 offers the chance to sample the delights of award-winning street food carts, including London-based French-American stars Le Bun, Devon-based sandwich specialists The Cauldron and Birmingham burger connoisseurs Original Patty Men.

But there's plenty more to do if you prefer taking a healthier approach.

The Healthy Living Zone is designed to inspire wellbeing and healthy living. Two designated stations, The Wellness Kitchen and The Action Station, will host fascinating Q&A sessions, energising workouts and inspirational talks for festival revellers.

Festival-goers can catch cooking demonstrations from top chefs such as James Oliver, Tom Kerridge and Gizzi Erskine

TV presenter Fearne Cotton, who launched her first cookbook Cook Happy Cook Healthy this summer, will be on hand to offer her tips on a balanced lifestyle.

Head to the NEEF Big Kitchen Stage to see the likes of Jamie Oliver, Nathan Outlaw and Tom Kerridge showcase their professional culinary skills. Demonstrations begin at 11.30am on Friday morning and 10.30am on Saturday and Sunday morning. Get there early as the seats will fill up on a first come, first serve basis.

The Art of Dining pop-up is back once again to offer an immersive feast with a fairytale theme. Each dish has been created with a classic children's fairytale in mind. The Princess and The Pea, Hansel and Gretel and The Gingerbread Man will all be on the menu.

Tickets for 'The Fairy Tale Feast' experience are priced at £55 for adults and £20 for children and are only available for the lunchtime sessions. You can buy bolt-on tickets from the website.

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For those who prefer the more hands-on approach, there are interactive cookery schools for the adventurous and tasty food and drink master classes.

Budding chefs can join in with the NEFF cookaholics cookery school and learn various new cooking skills to take home.

Sessions will be filled up on a first-come-first-serve basis, and are included in the price of your festival ticket.

Alternatively, head down to the Weber Grill tent to take part in a 30 minute BBQ cook-a-long session before enjoying your culinary masterpiece. Free tickets will be available on a first come, first serve basis.

Skinny Jean Gardeners will be taking a break from Blue Peter and bringing their Sow & Grow workshops to help inspire a new green-fingered generation. Children can pop along to sow and learn about the different types of seeds - simply just turn up.

Finally, cheese fanatics should head to Alex James' Cheese Hub to discover his world of fromage. His range of artisan cheeses will be on offer to sample and buy - some of which are made on the farm.

The hub also hosts an all-day cocktail bar with special guest DJs during the evening.

There will be a whole range of different street food stalls to try over the weekend

But it isn't just a weekend for foodies. Uptown Funk DJ Mark Ronson taking over the main stage to provide the musical entertainment. Rock band The Kaiser Chiefs, rapper Tiny Tempah, veterans The Proclaimers and X Factor star Ella Henderson will also be making an appearance.

Camping tickets are sold out but day tickets are still available from the website.

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