Big Green Gathering cancelled due to police & district council pressure:

[Ground Elder]

This is from an email to shareholders -

Since August, we have taken the best possible legal and financial advice, and until recently we had unanimously decided that the best possible course of action for the preservation of the company and event, and to safeguard the interests of its creditors, investors and ticket holders, was to place the company in administration. This would have meant that we would have been legally protected from bankruptcy, the whole board would have stepped down, and the company would have been run for a 12 month period by a firm of accountants appointed as administrators, to enable it to get back on its feet.

However, the advice we received has recently changed, and our potential administrators, London-based firm SPW(UK) LLP, have now told us that it will be in their view better for us to remain out of administration, at least for the time being. Although the collapse of this year's event has left us with very substantial debts, none of our creditors is so far petitioning for the company to be compulsorily wound up, nor does there seem to be any immediate likelihood of any of them doing so, as this would be an expensive procedure which not be in anyone's financial interest to pursue. Although going into administration remains a possible fall-back option, we have been advised that this should be kept as a last resort, and that, since we now have a credible recovery plan, we can legally continue trading with a reasonable hope of getting ourselves out of the hole which we are presently in.

The less than convincing recovery plan -

Our recovery plan has, in essence, two principal elements: firstly to pursue legal action for compensation from the authorities who engineered the enforced cancellation of this year's event, and secondly to hold one or more BGG events in 2010 which will eliminate the majority of our debts by enabling our ticket-holders and traders to use the tickets and stall pitches for which they have already paid.

 

[William of Walworth]

Less than convincing recovery plan indeed, given the major role the BGG organisers' own incompetence played in giving the Police and Council an excuse to enforce cancellation ....

 

[free spirit]

soooo.... I wonder where they're going to be getting their capital from to pay the upfront costs for a 2010 event then, as they'll not be able to rely on virtually any upfront cash from ticket sales or stall pitch fees (coz they've already had it and spent it).

tbh investing in it just wouldn't be a commercially sound idea, so they'd need to find one or more rich benefactor to make it realistic unless they actually do manage to sue someone.

 

[William of Walworth]

Did anyone read this article concerning ticket refunds, in yesterday's Money Guardian?

Some (all?) of those who bought 2009 tix direct from the BGG organisers having problems apparantly ...

Well worth a read. If the article's accurate, the BGG organisers don't come out of it looking at all good

There was an interesting follow up to the above article in Saturday's Money Guardian (14th November), also by Rupert Jones, but I haven't managed to find an online version on the Guardian's website yet ... hopefully it will get indexed eventually or maybe some other Urban can find it?

 

[London Eye]

According to the Big Green Gathering's website, they held their AGM on February 21st in Tisbury, Wiltshire.

Did anybody attend, or does anybody know anyone who attended?

Their phone line is now dead and as far as I know no one who asked has got a refund. So to paraphrase the infamous words of Bob Geldof, "Where's our fooking money?"

I had to bump this because I think they have taken the piss in dropping all contact and not even making an attempt to explain.

Shame on them

 

[Ground Elder]

I'm a shareholder and don't know much more. The following were posted on the shareholders' forum after the AGM -

Elected as directors:
Steve Muggs
Linda Benfield
Jonathan Cainer
John Davis
Steve Judd
Shane Collins
Andy "Festival Eye" Smith

Decisions on legal action, liquidation, administration etc left to directors' discretion.

and this from John Davis

I think I can speak for all of the board when I say we are committed to working together to revive the fortunes of the BGG and to this end we have already started laying plans. You will hear more through this channel very soon as I, for one, hope we can bring everyone together and make real the fantastic potential the BGG has. The only way this will come about is with everyone's support and backing.
... and before you ask, yes, we intend to do all within our power to pay everyone back, either in full, in part, in kind, but somehow.

 

[William of Walworth]

Lots of discretion left to the directors there!

There's nothing there to go on really, and if I was owed any money by them, I'd be concluding I'd most likely have to whistle for it.

My guess is that any starry eyed talk of reviving the BGG is over optimistic pie in the sky.

 

[London Eye]

Jonathan Cainer the astrologer? I know he saved Sunrise festival a few years ago with a personal donation. And Shane Collins? Wasn't he a former Green Party activist?

The thing that gets me is the total lack of even an attempt to explain or keep people up to date on the website. Even a message saying we cannot answer calls until such time... or once again asking us to be patient...or something. But cutting the phone line and making a half-hearted statement that the money will be returned (not on the website but to shareholders)...that's just poor. I know the festival was for a good cause, I know there was controversy over its cancelling, but it all seems a bit too murky to me and the continued silence can only arouse suspicion at who was really to blame. Really disappointing.

But thanks for the update anyway...

 

[William of Walworth]

Cainers's going to have to dig REALLY deep I reckon into his admittedly capacious astrolo-wibble funded pockets, to get BGG out of this hole .... I don't know how much he gave Sunrise, but surely BGG would require much more.

Shane's always been involved with the BGG, but I'd be surprised if he has much personal money to help them with.

 

[wayward bob]

our friends who paid direct to the festival have apparently just had their money back. at last.

 

[pedroskie]

our friends who paid direct to the festival have apparently just had their money back. at last.

When you say that your friends got their money back, did they by any chance pay via Netbanx ? We are still waiting for our money back, we were recently contacted by John Davis who said it may be possible to get our money back if we sent him the details of our NetBanx transaction.
Still waiting.....

 

[Ground Elder]

From Saturday's Guardian -

http://www.guardian.co.uk/money/2010/apr/03/festival-ticket-refunds-money-back

 

[William of Walworth]

That Rupert Jones article is a follow up to another BGG-relevant article (from November) by the same journalist ...

(I may already have posted this link last year, earlier in the thread, but just in case I didn't ... )

 

[shaneC]

Hopefully by now anyone who bought a ticket for the BGG 2009 has either had a refund or more likely got a ticket swop to other festivals.
Due to the police shenanigans in 2009 we have had to start a new CIC to put on the Green Gathering in 2011, which honoured about 300 2009 BGG ticket holders. If anyone still has not had a ticket swop then do get in touch with me (Shane Collins, one of the Directors of the new CIC [email protected]) and we will honour your ticket for the Green Gathering in 2012 - 2-5th August in Chepstow. Otherwise tickets are now on sale via the website www.greengathering2012.co.uk. We are trying to keep the tickets as cheap as possible to allow everyone to attend. This year we are operating a ticket price escalator where the tickets start at £65 in December and go up £5 per month. They will be £100on the gate so book early. Last year was great, we are back on the map with the same ethos as before but just over the Severn Bridge and so dealing with a much better Council and police force.

 

[editor]

Good luck with this year's festie!

 

[Ground Elder]

It was great to back at the Green Gathering last year - I'd have happily spent the whole summer watching the moles burrow around my feet, sitting around the fire and having dinner delivered to the door by the Krishnas . I love it, faults and all. It's on a stunning site, with ancient trees, ruins and a top views.​

Think I'm going to have to miss it this year as it clashes with a local event we're committed to, which is really disappointing

 

[pennimania]

I didn't even know it happened last year - and it clashes with Belladrum

arse