THE fiercely independent Nozstock festival, which takes place next weekend, August 1 to 3, near Bromyard, caters for festival goers of all types, from the veteran festival aficionado through to those newly infected with the festival bug. It has evolved from a gathering of 50 friends into an intimate musical odyssey joining the dots between pop, ska, folk, funk, soul, indie, drum & bass, psytrance, house and a whole lot more. It is now firmly established as one of the country’s leading boutique festivals.

The Hidden Valley has nine stages, many nooks and crannies and is set around a ramshackle Tudor farmhouse. The Orchard Stage is set at the foot of a natural arena on the side of the gently sloping valley. Alongside the farmhouse is the Garden Stage, which provides a more eclectic line-up, turning electronic by sundown whilst a converted cowshed, the Cubicles, pushes out thumping bass and dubstep through to the early hours.

The festival is truly home-grown and hand-made – with a small army of supporters helping to create the wonderfully themed environment each summer. Nozstock is the quintessentially British festival – a little bit eccentric, a lot of fun, full of wonder, enchantment… and a touch of magic.

The line-up at the prehistorically themed festival is fittingly mammoth: altrock/hip-hop kings Fun Lovin’ Criminals, hip hop legend Roots Manuva, funk-rock revolutionaries The Heavy, pop sensation Charli XCX and energetic ska-rockers Sonic Boom Six are all taking on the Orchard Stage, and they're joined by legendary genre-crossing DJ/producer Eddy Temple Morris and a techno lover’s dream collaboration in Dense & Pika over on the Garden Stage To get the fans roaring with excitement on Saturday night, the legendary Andy C will be bringing his whole crew for a RAM Records takeover of the Cubicles.

But it's not just about the music - headlining the comedy tent is award-winning duo Cardinal Burns, highly acclaimed for their character comedy and sketches, both live and on TV. Bringing more laughs is Pat Cahill with the unpretentiously surreal and absurd outlook that's won him numerous awards and put him firmly in the 'one to watch' category.

For details of the full line-up over the weekend, visit nozstock.com