THE Hanwell Hootie Music Festival received the green light to continue its tradition of providing one of London's largest rock festivals for free in the heart of West London.

Given the go-ahead a mere 7 weeks ago by the council, unconventional methods were found to adapt to the lack of preparation time and money.

Despite the set-backs, festival director and co-founder Andy McRobbie is certain this will make for a unique 2021 festival experience.

T-shirt tickets

The rock festival, which has offered free entry since its inception in 2013, has come up with a unique way of addressing financial difficulties it's faced due to the pandemic.

The Hootie team have opted for a T-shirt entry policy, where punters must purchase a custom 'Hootie in the Meadow' T-shirt for £10, to gain entry to the festivities.

McRobbie said he hoped this unique concept would allow the festival to maintain its 'free' status, whilst addressing its loss of sponsorship from Covid.

He said: "We thought, how do we raise money but keep the idea of it being free.

"What better way than a T-shirt. You go to a festival, you buy a t-shirt you, you go see a band, you buy a t-shirt, so why not make that the ticket?

"We don't think anyone else has done it, and in that way, we still feel that we're offering something for free.

"The festival is the free part, what you're paying for is a solid piece of something."

McRobbie stressed the t-shirt will not be a throw-away item, but a well-designed "piece of history".

However, customers will not be able to see the final design before the day, in order to avoid the circulation of copycat shirts.

McRobbie said that, unfortunately, this was a real risk.

He said: "We've had bad experiences in the past. Because we offer everything for free we've had rogue venues suddenly use our branding and charging people to get in and making money off the back of us.

"We knew that if we released images, people would copy them and try to make a buck out of it.

"So we are saving the design for the day, it's really cool, I'm looking forward to people seeing it."

McRobbie did reveal the garment will feature the Brunel Viaduct, Marshall logo, and categorically "no Times New Roman".

Hanwell's rich history of rock

The festival was set up in dedication to the late Jim Marshall, nicknamed "The Father of Loud" and founder of the Marshall amplifier.

Born and raised in Southall, Marshall started a small music shop on the Uxbridge Road, Hanwell, frequented by the likes of Jimi Hendrix, Pete Townshend and Ronnie Wood.

McRobbie remembered writing to Marshall 10 years ago, telling him of his wish to celebrate the company's history and the big names that have come from it.

The four co-founders put on the first festival in 2013, with 2020 being the first year they've had to call the event off.

McRobbie said: "It's always a really happy and positive vibe, we are really supported by the community and everyone cherishes it.

"People will be surprised by the community feel but also how good the music is, it's not just Dave with a banjo, here you can have a community vibe and incredible music that you would hear and read about in NME.

He added: "It will be a proper festival experience but with home grown talent to showcase people from the area as well those who are emerging, so people might recognise the people on stage too.

"We also have some of the best bands in the UK coming from as far as Leeds, Manchester and Brighton, to come to Hanwell of all places.

"I think people will be surprised by the rich cultural heritage that exists in this tiny West London back water."

Due to Covid restrictions, the festival is at half capacity this year.

McRobbie said: "We've become a victim of our own success in the past. Every single venue is jam packed, sometimes it's quite hard to see the band you want if you're not there quick enough."

A musical comedy stage, youth stage set in a giant igloo and beer from a local brewery will feature at this year's event.

There will be an afternoon session from 12 – 5pm with a more family feel and an evening session from 6-11pm, which promises to be more "gritty".

McRobbie's one's to look out for include the bands, Avalanche Part and St Agnes, as well as Hanwell born and raised Gemma Rogers and local boys Sterling Press.

Hootie in the Meadow will take place Saturday 18 September.

The event is located at the Viaduct Meadow, Hanwell, UB1 3ET, a short walk from Hanwell Broadway.

You can check out the line-up Here.