If Devizes’ celebrated FullTone Festival is to relocate to Whistley Road’s Park Farm for next summer’s extravaganza, what better way to give it the rustic feel than The Wurzels, who have just been announced on the line-up?!
If Somerset’s Scrumpy and Western genre has fermented longer than a cider press from folk roots, it’s surely The Wurzels who brought mass attention to it with their number one parody of Melanie’s Brand New Key, The Combine Harvester. The staggering thing about this is, it was in 1976, but what’s more staggering, is people are still singing it today, and likely will be at FullTone Festival on 11th & 12th July 2026!
Organiser of FullTone, Jemma Brown said of the booking, “there’s not much more we can say to that!” But you know me, I’ve always got something to say, and I’m saying that is a fantastic surprise which only remains to add to the already brilliant show the orchestra and guest acts will deliver.
What else we do know at this early stage, is the huge fifty-piece orchestra will play through sets of Holst’s The Planets & Star Wars, a Symphonic Queen with Ricardo Afonso, The Best of Motown, an eighties spectacular and Devizes-own BBC radio DJ James Threlfall will be on the dance anthems.
If I wonder what songs the Wurzels will play, top choice has to be I’ll Never Get a Scrumpy Here, which contains the line, “’Cos you never get surprises livin’ in Devizes,” and spurred my rant column of the same name, you might remember it. I did write to them to ask permission, they were too busy drinking cider to be in any way concerned. I asked if it was sly stab at our brewery, or that Devizes was as far eastward they favour to venture, but they explained it was used because it rhymed! Well, they’re venturing here in July, and if they give us the key, we can all have a brand new combine harvester.
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