The festival was rooted in Hastings. The St Michael’s Hospice Community Choir led an uplifting sing-along of songs from the UK’s most popular funeral playlists, while local musician Bev Lee Harling shared original songs and country classics reflecting on her father’s dementia in Hey Good Lookin’. Elsewhere, a Walk of Remembrance through the town’s gardens invited participants to dedicate a ribbon for the hospice’s Remembrance Ribbon Tree.
Good Grief Hastings was produced by 18 Hours in partnership with St Michael’s Hospice, Good Grief Festival CIC and the University of Brighton. It was supported by public funding from Arts Council England, the Arts and Humanities Research Council through the Coastal Community and Creative Health project, and Hastings Borough Council, with additional support in kind from project partners.
