CAMRA’s Sussex Branches are organising a joint beer festival with the Bluebell Railway. It is scheduled for 10 to 12 September. At the time of writing, (mid-July), it is one of just seven festivals approved by CAMRA and will be the largest in the south east. It will feature 90 cask ales and up to 15 ciders and perries, predominantly, but not exclusively, from Sussex. Hopefully there will be an offering from every local brewer.
It will run from noon to 9.30pm on the Friday and Saturday and noon to 4pm on the Sunday. Takeaway containers will be available, and any remaining beers will be available at half price from 2pm on the Sunday.
The venue will be held in the engine shed at Sheffield Park station (see photo) and an adjacent marquee, with tables and seating provided in railway carriages next to the engine shed. Live music will be provided on both evenings. In addition, a full steam railway service will be operating, with cask ale also available both in the buffet car and at the historic refreshment rooms at Horsted Keynes station.
The festival has been carefully planned to provide affordable transport links to the railway so that visitors can easily reach the event and return home by a sensible time, whether you are planning an afternoon visit or an evening one, or indeed the whole day. There is even a camp site opposite the event with hot showers and flushing toilets.
For those visitors planning to come from towns in Sussex, West Kent or East Surrey, there will be a bookable coach service; see www.bluebell-railway.com for details. For visitors coming from London, there will be an all-day shuttle bus from Perrymount Road, adjacent to Haywards Heath station, which will run to Sheffield Park station. Seats need to be booked in advance, also through the Bluebell Railway website (see below). The first service leaves Haywards Heath at 11.35am (Sunday 12.05pm) for the 20 minute journey; departures are then approximately on the hour. Return services to Haywards Heath run every hour until 7.50pm, with a final service when the event closes at 9.30pm, (3.35pm on Sunday).
On the Friday, Southern Railway advance tickets are available from London Victoria to/from Haywards Heath at £5 each way or £3.30 with a railcard – an absolute bargain! Thameslink from London Bridge to Haywards Heath costs £16 for a weekday off-peak return and £12.50 at weekends (£10.55 and £8.25 respectively with railcards).
Alternatively, if you would like to include a steam railway ride in your day out, you can travel to East Grinstead station (via East Croydon) and join the Bluebell Railway there. There are trains leaving at 11am and 1pm each day, with an additional two afternoon services on Friday and Saturday. Return services to East Grinstead station arrive at 3.10pm and 5.40pm (5.10pm on Sunday). On the first two days, there is an absolute treat for railway enthusiasts in the form of a very rare night time steam train service. This leaves the event at 10pm, arriving at East Grinstead at 10.40pm, in time for the last train back to London.
Admission to the festival will cost £5, including a pint glass and a programme. Tickets can be booked, along with the shuttle bus, coach and steam train services, at https://www.bluebell-railway.com/special-events/ from late July.
Overnight camping can be booked separately at www.ousemeadowcampsite.co.uk.
Further information can be obtained by emailing the CAMRA Brighton & South Downs branch contact at jamiechooper@hotmail.com.
Jamie Hooper
