Leeds Castle Concert Accessibility Review

This is an accessibility review of the 2022 Leeds Castle concert.

Leeds Castle is one of the loveliest castles in the UK. No, it’s nothing to do with Leeds in Yorkshire. This one’s in Kent. The castle is built on an island in the middle of a lake, surrounded by beautiful grounds full of trees and flowers. The grounds host a concert every year, so as I was staying in the county for the week, I decided to go.

Performers

Performing was the Royal Philharmonic Orchestra, who obviously plays classical music. But beforehand, a swing orchestra called Down for the Count warmed up the crowd. They played vintage songs from the swing era in their own style, which was fun to listen to. I think the crowd was already quite warm at this point because of the summer sun, but you know what I mean.

Leeds Castle concert Accessibility

The accessibility of the concert was good in my opinion. The grounds of Leeds Castle are easy to drive through in my powerchair as there were paved walkways, and the grass is pretty smooth and easy for me to drive over.

There was an enclosure for disabled people to sit which was in line with the stage but behind the seated area. I had a pretty decent view. There were big screens showing the performers even though we weren’t right in front of the stage. It didn’t really matter. Thankfully all the people who sat in front of us stayed seated for most of the performance, so my view wasn’t obstructed.

The video below shows a panoramic view of the disabled enclosure and the crowds sat behind it on the hill.

A couple of accessible portaloos were a short distance away, which were adequate. Still, it probably would have been helpful to have a couple more and have them closer to the disabled enclosure.

When booking the tickets, I had to contact the organisers to ask if carers went free because it did not have this information on their website. I was told that carers got ½ price ticket which is better than nothing. But it would be much better if they had this information online. I wouldn’t have known this if I didn’t contact them.

The car park was nearby, and as it was on a golf course, the grass was exceptionally smooth, which was a pleasure to drive on. It was a short distance from the disabled enclosure, so we didn’t have too far to walk.

The performance

I thought the performance of the Philharmonic Orchestra and the soloists were brilliant. The orchestra played classics like Nessun Dorma, Elgar’s Pomp And Circumstance, and the sailors’ hornpipe. It was all very British, and the crowd were waving Union Jacks, which was great. The theme of the evening was “British garden party”, inspired by the Queen’s platinum jubilee. So many people were wearing Union Jack-themed clothing and flags. There was even a lookalike of Queen Elizabeth II sitting on a throne, which you could have a photo taken with and of course, I did. 

During the half-time interval,  the crowd was treated to a display by a Spitfire, which flew over the grounds a few times and made some loops in the sky.

The orchestra could do disco as well as play lots of classical music. At the end of the night, the orchestra played a few pop songs like Abba’s “Dancing Queen” and “Reach for the Stars” by “S Club 7”, which the soloists sang. At this point, people got up and danced in front of the stage, which was fun to see.

As a finale, there was a big firework display (Video below). The fireworks were going up as they were singing the pop songs, which was great to watch and listen to at the same time.

Conclusion

The Leeds Castle concert was a great experience. I’d never been before, but I was down in Kent for the week and thought it looked good, so I decided to go. It was the highlight of my week! Accessibility was good. Although they need to put accessibility information on their website so that disabled people have all the information they need, such as discounted tickets for carers. We shouldn’t have to contact them to find out about this stuff.