Review: PARTY AT THE PALACE, Linlithgow

Party at the Palace is a music festival with one hell of a view. It's a truly stunning site for a festival, situated on Linlithgow loch with the palace as the backdrop.

Though the town is well connected via train (only 20mins from Edinburgh and 30mins from Glasgow) I would suggest maybe looking into the pre-bookable buses run by Happy Bus as Scotrail seem to be unable to cope with the demand for trains at the weekend during the Edinburgh Fringe and it has a knock-on effect when the trains are already full pulling into Linlithgow.

The organisation of the festival is to be commended. Set times were issued online weeks ahead of the event (unlike some events that require you to pay for a programme upon entry) along with a detailed site map.

It's very much a family festival (children's tickets are heavily discounted) and there's a dedicated section with inflatables that doesn't allow alcohol in. One drawback of the chilled atmosphere here is the sheer volume of foldable camping chairs that you have to wade through on your way to and from the main stage.

The early acts on the main stage were Train Weans, Molly Hall, Definitely Oasis, Republica and Roachford. The lineup has been expertly curated to keep the crowd interested as they were all pretty upbeat and played a mix of original material and covers. There is also a smaller Second Stage towards the back of the site that has an extensive lineup throughout the day if you're looking to discover something new.

I was pleasantly surprised to find I knew far more songs by Midge Ure than I thought I did and thoroughly enjoyed his set. With hits such as "Vienna" , "If I Was" and "Breathe" Ure prompted many a singalong in the sunshine in the early evening slot.

At the risk of this review turning into a detailed weather report, you cannot deny that the Scottish weather definitely plays a huge part in an outdoor event. Despite earlier warnings for rain, most of the day had glorious sunshine with one very light shower. Minutes before KT Tunstall's set it was announced that the performance was going to be halted due to a weather warning for thunder and lightning. I suppose if there's lightning- a metal structure really isn't where you want to be standing.

I'm mostly mentioning the weather drama because it is relevant to the organisation of the festival. Health and safety was a priority and they kept everyone informed as well as they could that the show would be going ahead shortly. After an hour delay, KT Tunstall took to the stage and played a blistering set with her girl band. With a good mix of the oldies "Black Horse and the Cherry Tree", "Other Side of the World" and "Suddenly I See" and tracks such as "In This Body" and "The River" from latest album Wax. As a fan, I could talk at great length about Tunstall's easygoing stage presence but I'll try and control myself. It's abundantly clear though that this is a woman who bloody loves a festival crowd.

The evening is rounded off by The Charlatans who opened with "Weirdo" and were excellent headline material. It was particularly lovely to see the number of parents who had clearly brought their wee ones along to see their favourite band.

Party at the Palace has to be one of the top family-friendly festivals in the country and I wouldn't hesitate to return- regardless of the weather.

Party at the Palace is a two-day event that will return in 2020 with early bird tickets available from Monday.

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