festival | ameliaflorencesimmons

When it comes to surfing in my family, my dad is generally the go to guy. I spent many childhood summers spent sitting on Cornish, French and Portugese beaches watching the main man on the water, but I never really *watched* it properly.

So when an invite popped through for the ReefXLSFF at Boxpark event, I knew there was only one person I could possibly invite. Sure enough, my dad turned out to be a seasoned London Surf/Film Festival goer and was delighted at the prospect of heading down to watch some of the ‘Shorties’ from the last few years as a warm up before the main event. This year will be the fifth incarnation of the festival, presented by Reef, and it’ll run from the 16th – 24th October. The festival takes place across a variety of venues around the capital, and will feature the very finest of surf features.

It was already a given that my dad would enjoy it, but I was surprised at how much I got into the whole thing. When you watch surf films, you find that your concern over knowledge about technical terminology melts away into a simple state of ‘woooooowwwwwwww’. I spent most of the evening watching the Shorties while turning to my dad and going ‘WHAT THE?! That’s AMAZING!’ It’s thrilling to watch as people glide in and out of waves, completely obscured by a tunnel of water, only to come out triumphant at the other end.

And a few words for Reef – such a strong presence from my childhood; the name emblazoned on the slightly cooler bikinis and shoes that I knew would turn me into a serious beach-goer. I was lucky enough to snag a few goodies from the new collection, and I have nothing but praise for my new palm print backpack and comfy sneakers, perfect for weekend walking. I also just need to tell you about my charcoal grey Reef t shirt, which is probably my favourite t shirt in the world. It’s at comfort blanket levels of awesome; the softest cotton. I dream about this t shirt during the working week.

So I have two strong recommendations for you: one, to check out the LSFF line up and go and escape to the board. Number two, if you’ve EVER been on a beach, Reef is still unbeatable for practical yet really rather beautiful kit. Don’t be that idiot in Primark garb that falls apart instantly. Take your beach time seriously and head to Reef!

I don’t usually do pre-event write ups, but I’m making an exception for what’s going to be an absolutely fantastic day this Saturday.

My friend Flo, being the insanely talented & hugely creative young whippersnapper that she is, is putting on a festival this weekend in Surrey. It’s to launch her brand new company, The Human Zoo Theatre Company, which if she’s anything to go by, will be a hotbed of new talent…

So if you’re Surrey-based and not going to Glasto this weekend, why not come along and support the arts while also having an amazing time? There ain’t no party like a Surrey party.

That’s an overview of what’ll be going down in a Surrey field on Saturday, but the team are constantly announcing new acts and fun things over on their Facebook page and also on Twitter.

I’ve just heard that tickets are flying out of the window, so you need to be QUICK and book your tickets now! Bring your friends, bring your whole family, bring your onesie that looks like a pig, but ultimately COME ALONG!