The heatwave that most of us enjoyed (and others endured) is now behind us as we head towards another busy Autumn, the highlight of which will no doubt be a gig in Shanghai – the furthest Madhen has travelled in our 18 years together. But more of that next time…
For now we’re looking back at some of the great events that we had the pleasure of performing at during the past few weeks.
Most of our work comes from recommendation or repeat bookings and this has certainly been the case for the last half a dozen or so performances.
DAISY & CHARLIE’S WEDDING
We had the pleasure of playing at the wedding of Charlie and Daisy Van Straubenzee. This was a wedding that received a lot of press coverage due largely to the presence of HRH Prince Harry (Charlie’s Best Man) and of course Meghan. But the day was, quite rightly, all about Charlie and Daisy. We had first played at a birthday party for Daisy’s mother in 2015, so it was great that when Daisy announced her forthcoming marriage Madhen was the only band she wanted. Following a fantastic day all round we received this glowing testimonial from the father of the bride:
“Totally professional to deal with before and after the event, totally epic on stage! I’d seen Madhen 4 years ago and they were the first name on the sheet when Daisy and Charlie got engaged. From start to finish, they filled the floor with brilliant renditions of rock and pop hits, dazzled in their costumes, and projected huge party energy. Every guest has said how good they were. Nice guys too. Book them!”
ORDER OF MALTA VOLUNTEERS CAMP
The Order of Malta Volunteers (OMV) is a Charity consisting of young people, all under 30, giving people with disabilities opportunities and experiences away from their day to day lives.
Madhen have previously performed at The White Knights Ball which is a fundraising event for the OMV and Madhen productions have supplied the Technical aspect of the event for the last four years.
The White Knights Ball raises money to support the OMV International Holiday Camp. An amazing event bringing together 500 young disabled people from across the globe and volunteer carers for a week of fun and activities including kayaking, horse riding, flying in light aircraft, SCUBA diving and indoor sky diving. The volunteers are on hand 24 hours a day to care for the guests.
Of course after an energetic day of vigorous pursuits what would anyone want to do? Party of course. The event has a large venue set up for disco and live bands and Madhen Productions were proud to supply the technical infrastructure for the venue including generators, power distribution, staging, lighting, video playback and a hi res video wall as well as PA for both the venue and the outdoor firework display.
With enthuthastic stage invasions from many of the guests being standard procedure, the atmosphere was really special. From Madhen’s perspective, as both the Production company and the band, this was a genuinely exhilarating and amazing event. We all felt extremely privileged and honoured to be such an integral part of the entertainment and wanted to express how important the work the OMV does with regards to offering experiences to disabled folk from across the world which would otherwise be logistically extremely difficult. As well as the entertainment venue there was a fairground with food stalls. The whole event was held at Treloar College in Hampshire, including accommodation for everyone, which provides education, care, therapy, medical support and independence training to young people with physical disabilities from all over the UK and overseas.
Please take the time to take a look at http://www.omv.org.uk and support them in any way you can.
CELIA & JULIAN’S JOINT 21st / 50th BIRTHDAY
There’s a recurring theme happening where MADHEN are being hired to celebrate two quite different milestone birthdays at the same event. We take it as a compliment that we ‘re able to fill a dance floor with both young and young at heart at the same time. The familiarity of classic songs given a modern twist, mashing them up with current hits clearly work for both audience groups.
Once again, it was a recommendation from a 40th party in North Yorkshire four years ago that lead to this booking, and coincidentally a second booking for a joint 21st / 50th taking place (as we write) this weekend.
BACK TO BACK 50TH’S – LONDON
This brings us up to date with two back-to-back 50th’s in London.
The first at The Loft Space in Kensal Rise for Kate’s fabulous party organised brilliantly by Amy and Simon from Lillingstone. Kate found us at the recommendation of her friend (also Kate!) We had first performed at friend Kate’s wedding several years earlier, and, more recently, the family’s leaving party as they relocated from Verbier back to Oxfordshire.
The following evening took us to Altitude, Millbank – the 28th floor to be precise to celebrate the milestone birthday of Charlotte. We had the pleasure of playing at her husband James’ 50th a couple of years ago, so it was lovely to be asked back. With stunning panoramic views of the city this part had a vista which is hard to rival anywhere in the world!
From Weddings, Birthdays (whether you’re 18 or 80!) Charity events and of course Corporate parties whilst its hard pleasing everyone all the time we think MADHEN comes pretty close!
Please contact us if you’re planning a celebration – whatever the occasion!