Chilling with authors at the first Well Read at Wasing festival deep in the heart of the West Berks countryside
Wasing Estate has been on a journey of wellbeing, turning its grounds into a space that allows visitors to unwind and reconnect with nature and themselves. And @newburytoday’s Sarah Bosely discovered an instant feeling of calm walking into the ancient woodlands that became home to the inaugural Well Read at Wasing at the weekend.
It was a literary festival with a difference, promising ‘words, wisdom and wellness’ to all who visited, pitched their tents and stayed for the two days. And it succeeded on all fronts.
The festival was curated in conjunction with Hungerford Bookshop, which had an on-site reading nook and a pop-up bookshop in a woodland yurt.
The bookshop’s Emma Milne White said: “The first Well Read festival exceeded expectations and was everything we hoped it would be.
“We loved listening to carefully chosen authors talk by the lake or framed under the woven wooden arch of main stage.
“The backdrop was birdsong and - despite the forecast - rays of sun streaming through the trees.
“It was a relaxed and inspiring day, full of laughter.
“Our pop-up bookshop in the yurt was busy with people browsing and buying books on nature writing, health, gardening, fiction and wellbeing, as well as beautifully illustrated children’s books. And festival-goers loved being able to chat to the authors as they signed their books under the trees.
“I am already looking forward to next year!”
Carved wooden stages hosted a weekend of conversations about the natural world, within the rhododendron woodlands, with guests including Clare Balding being interviewed by Hannah MacInnes and Hugh Fearnley-Whittingstall reviewing the morning papers on the Sunday.
Other topics covered by the authors and speakers included unprocessing your diet and how animals heal us.
Breath workshops, woodland mediation, live music and children’s bushcraft were also on offer to the hundreds enjoying the weekend retreat, while folk singer Chiara Gilmore and Gui Alves provided musical interludes.
There was plenty for the children to do too, with story time in the reading nook, forest family dancing and nature art workshops.
And for the brave among the crowds, including our own Sarah Bosley, the estates’ wild swim and sauna were also open.
“The tranquility of the secluded lake, which was a refreshing 18 degrees, belied its proximity to the hustle and bustle of nearby neighbours Thatcham and Reading.
“Bookings of hour long slots saw groups of strangers becoming friends as they strolled between dips, lazed in the sun – when it broke through the clouds – on the wood decking or sat in the wood-fired sauna in the trees.
“And for those really wanting to immerse themselves in the spirit of Scandinavia there was a cold bucket shower for when they had finished.”
There was seasonal fire food to feed the body too, with ‘rainbow budda bowls’ and soup on offer for lunch and vegan chilli or Wasing Estate beef chilli for when the sun went down on the Sunday evening - all washed down with mead, cider, hawthorn wine, mocktails and kombucha.
