Whitby Goth Weekend

Summary

Whitby Goth Weekend is an alternative music festival held in Whitby. The event consists of two nights of live bands (Friday and Saturday) at the town's largest venue, The Spa Pavilion, and three days (Friday, Saturday and Sunday) of alternative trade stalls at the Spa Pavilion, Whitby Leisure Centre, and Whitby Brunswick Centre.

The term "Whitby Goth Weekend" is sometimes used as a generic term to describe events during the week in Whitby as a whole, although the name of the event and its associated logo are registered trademarks of Jo Hampshire of Top Mum Promotions.

History

The origins of WGW are in a meeting of around forty of Hampshire's pen-pals in 1994. The first meeting was held in the Elsinore, public house in Whitby which with the Little Angel continues to be a meeting point during the weekend. Hampshire said Whitby was chosen for its Dracula connections, although probably more so because the connection had already fostered a sense of acceptance on the part of locals and businesses rather than any inherent romanticism regarding the location.

The festival was held yearly until 1997, when it became twice-yearly in April and October. It has grown into one of the world's most popular goth music events attracting around 1,500+ attendees from across the UK and beyond. The main event is held in the town's largest venue Whitby Spa Pavilion (known as the Spa) and the Bizarre Bazaar 'Goth Market' is also held there and at Whitby Leisure Centre and the Brunswick Centre. Access to the Spa in the evening requires a ticket and live bands play on both Friday and Saturday from 08:00 until about midnight.

The Metropole was often used as an overspill venue for the Spa, with bands due to play the next evening/or playing from the previous evening. In recent years it has been used as a venue for the markets as well as the clubs, Manic Monday and Sexy Sunday. RAW Nightclub and Abbey Wharf are used for official fringe events, and other venues including The Resolution, The Rifle Club and The Metropole are used for unofficial events.

For many years there was an 80's night held at Laughtons, a genuine venue from the 1980s. The night would traditionally end with the song Vagabonds. In 2010 this venue became a Wetherspoons Hotel, but the lineal descendant of the 80's night continues to take place on the Sunday night.

The "weekend" starts during the day on Friday and fringe events are held on Thursday, Sunday and Monday including club nights, markets, and a charity football match between visiting goth team Real Gothic, and local team Stokoemotiv Whitby. During the October/November event there is an independent custom car show, 'Whitby Kustom' in the grounds of West Cliff School. There are also several "meet ups" aimed at goths with a particular interest, e.g. Lolita Goth.

Newbies who have not attended the event before, are referred to as "Whitby Virgins". To help introduce them to the event, there is a WGW Virgins Meet Up on the Friday morning at the Spa.

Over the years there have been several "traditions" that have come and gone. Some of these include the Net.goth meal, as well as the traditional Monday evening beach party, which included a bonfire and occasional fireworks.

Economy

The event results in booming business for the town in general, with the weekend contributing £1.1 million per annum to the local economy.

Sophie Lancaster

The October 2007 festival was dedicated to the memory of the murdered Goth Sophie Lancaster (who had attended three Whitby Goth Weekends) and a collection of more than £3,000 was raised from various events to fund a memorial bench to her in the town.

Recent times

Since 2013 it is now possible to buy either a weekend ticket, or a single Friday/Saturday only ticket.

In the mid-2000s the October weekend on or near Halloween began to attract large numbers of non-goths in Halloween, horror, historical, fantasy and Sci-Fi costume. Including buskers and street entertainers, which has led to an increase in photographers and large crowds.

In recent years, the weekend has attracted other alternative subcultures, including Victorian vampires, rockers, punks and members of the steampunk subgenre. Some regulars consider it is no longer a purely "Goth" weekend. It was acknowledged by Jo Hampshire in the 2014 Whitby Goth Weekend Guide, that in order to survive the event would have to diversify into other areas that have influenced Goth.

Concerns have grown about disrespect being shown to the graves in St. Mary's Churchyard by photographers using them for photographic purposes which has resulted in a petition to have the area closed during the event, an action that Whitby Goth Weekend fully supports. The Bram Stoker Film Festival, which also takes place in the town, have rehashed the proposal to build a film set graveyard which photographers would be charged to use.

Whitby Goth Weekend acts by year

(*) indicates headline act for each night/event