When 39-year-old Ella Hammond realised her worsening cancer would prevent her from ever experiencing Glastonbury, she decided to bring the festival to herself instead.
Ella, from Marden near Maidstone, had dreamed for years of going to the iconic music event and was overjoyed when she and her friends finally secured tickets for 2024. But as her colon cancer advanced, doctors told her she was too unwell to make the trip.
While staying at Hospice In The Weald in Pembury, Ella experienced a sudden lift in spirits. Her parents, Maurice and Rita, visited her the next morning to find her sitting up with a notebook and a whiteboard, excitedly planning what she called “Ella Fest.”
Held on her husband Stuart’s family farm, the mini-festival was filled with thoughtful touches Ella had organised herself. Local bands performed during the day, DJs played sets inspired by Glastonbury headliners, and a nearby sanctuary even brought goats for guests to meet. Friends created handmade wristbands, set up a flower-covered backdrop for the DJ booth, and hired a converted VW campervan as a photo booth so everyone could take home memories from the day.
The celebration was lively, colourful and full of joy—exactly the atmosphere Ella had hoped for. Surrounded by loved ones, she got to experience her own version of Glastonbury shortly before passing away a year after her diagnosis.