A record-breaking amount has been raised at a popular Dorset music festival for children’s cancer charities.
Teddy Rocks Festival which takes place at Charisworth Farm, near Blandford, has raised an impressive £145,269.
Festival organiser Tom Newton started Teddy Rocks in memory of his younger brother Ted who was diagnosed with a rare form of bone cancer, Ewing Sarcoma, and sadly passed away in 2010, aged just ten years old.
He said: “It's fair to say that Teddy Rocks Festival has been a journey since its beginnings back in 2011 in the back room of The Greyhound pub in Blandford.
“We have always known what the festival is capable of and we have worked so hard over the last 13 years to get to this point - 2024 is a huge milestone in the history of the festival.
“We are thrilled to be raising the funds that we always knew we were capable of and since moving to the new format of booking tributes and other favourites, we are beyond excited to see what the future holds.
“We are already seeing record breaking numbers of tickets being booked for 2025 and truly believe that this is just the start of things to come.
“A huge thank you to the crew, all our volunteers, all of our sponsors, suppliers and artists. We are incredibly proud of the festival and we know how important these funds are having first-hand experience of losing my little brother Ted. Teddy Rocks has a really important job to do, it’s more than just a festival.”
The festival which is now in its 11th year donates 100 per cent profits profits directly to charities that support children with cancer and research. The charities benefiting this year are Teddy20, Bone Cancer Research Trust, Young Lives vs Cancer, George’s Rock Stars and Alfie’s Wish.
To date, the initiative has raised more than £690,000 and this year saw a bold move to book a huge variety of tribute acts, as well as established favourites to raise as much money as possible for the charities.
The line-up for this year's event, held in early May, included Five, Atomic Kitten, Liberty X and DJ Sammy, as well as tribute acts including Live/Wire (AC/DC), Oas-is (Oasis), Qe2 (Queen tribute), Guns 2 Roses (Guns ‘n Roses Tribute).
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