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28 MAY

Homelands 2005

Matterley Estate, Hampshire. £56.50. Homelands has been on the go for eight years and is growing into much more than leSI a dance festival. Beck II‘étkOS his only UK festival appearance this year. and he's joined by the Streets. Roots Manuva. Faithless and Groove Armada. Old-school legends Grandmaster Flash. Melle Mel and Scorpio appear alongside newer talent the Audio Bullys and Babyshambles. resulting in 17 hours of merriment and bucketloads of sweat. Free water stations are dotted all over the idyllic setting along with a fun-fair and market stalls. www.homelands.co.uk

In a nutshell: Britain's best dance festival

4 JUNE Coloursfest .;.

Braehead Arena, Glasgow. £36.50. 0141 204 5151. Rumours of dance music's demise proved to have been greatly exaggerated. and COIOurs. Scotland's biggest clubbing brand. looks as strong as ever. Their annual festival. held in and around the Braehead Arena. runs from 6pm to 4am. featuring some of the biggest names in hard dance including Ferry Corsten's first-ever live show as well as techno legend Derrick May. www.colours.co.uk

In a nutshell: Big beats and Gravy kids

5 - 11 JUNE

Leith Festival 0 O

Venues vary, Leith, Edinburgh. Prices vary. For one week in June. Leith's shopping centres. bars. community centres. local landmarks and green spaces are transformed into exhibition and performance venues. There are community events. sports. poetry-readings. drama. tours. debates. visual arts and live music. not to mention a mini tattoo and a gala day. On Sun :3 Jun a new event called Cra/y Lazy Sunday Afternoon invites families to enioy ll‘tlSIC and a picnic while generally chilling out. www.|eithfestival.com

In a nutshell: A festival Wlllilll a town. Wlllllli a city

10 -12 JUNE Bonnaroo Music & Arts Festival

Manchester, Tennessee, USA. £77. It may have the olde ‘.'.’()fi(l(} ethics of Woodstock. but Bonitaroo is a I't:l£tll‘.’(," babe on the international music fest circuit.

I stablished in 9002. the 9().OO()-capacity event features comedy and theatre as well as musiCIans. generally of the free—spirited sort - Jurassic :3. Herbie Hancock and the Mars Volta broaden the sonic hon/ens this year. The combination of sOuthern hospitality and scorching heat only adds to the pull of this mecca for i)oliticeilly-awai‘e hedonists. www.bonnaroo.com

In a nutshell: A Euroixzaii festival on an American scale

10 - 12 JUNE RSAC Scottish Rally ~

Dumfries. Free. lens of thousands of spectators are

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expected to head to Dumfries to see competitors including previous champion Johnny Milner revving up through classic forest stages. This is the 60th RASC Scottish Rally. and sees the return of 2004's Heathhall super special stage. hosting the international field on the Friday and the national and historic cars on Sunday. Last year. the organisers introduced a separate day‘s competition for the County Saab Scottish Rally Championship. Spectators should also look out for crews from the 1600cc series and the Army Land Rover Challenge. www.scottishrally.co.uk

In a nutshell: Scotland's rural rally

10 - 26 JUNE

Glasgow West End Festival QO'FOOO 0 Glasgow. Now in its tenth year. this is the biggest cultural event in Glasgow's calendar: last year. audiences tOpped 100.000 over the fertnight. The Festival kick off with a street party. followed by an extensive music programme at OranMor, including Karine Polwart and Kathryn Williams. There’s a celebration of the Fete de la Musique (France's National Music Day). as well as jazz and classical music events including the City of Glasgow Symphony Orchestra and Chorus performing the Brahms German Requiem. There are also children's authors. comedy. theatre. film and local walks. www.westendfestival.co.uk

In a nutshell: Anything Edinburgh can do . . .

11 - 12 JUNE

Treefest 2005 O

Inverleith Park, Edinburgh. Free. Three local schools have spent months creating reCycled costumes and sculptures for the Carnival of the Trees procession. which begins this family-oriented festival with music and dancing. Established in 1998. the Four Winds Inspiration Centre aims to raise the awareness of social and environmental issues through education and development. It‘s not as dry as it sounds: the festival includes horse-logging, interactive crafts. a skate ramp and other outdoor fun. www.four-winds.org.uk

In a nutshell: Eco-friendly family fun

11 - 26 JUNE

Meltdown «at

South Bank Centre, London, 08703 808 300. Fans of legendary New York punk poet Patti Smith will be tripping over themselves to acguire tickets for this summer's Meltdown. staged as ever at London's South Bank Centre. The eclectic two—week music

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festival has as its highlight a complete performance of Smith's classic 1976 album Horses on 25 Jun at the Royal Festival Hall. sharing the bill with Velvet Underground founder (and Horses producer) John Cale. Smith will also be performing with several of the other acts during the festival. www.rfh.org.uk/meltdown

In a nutshell: Horses, horses. coming in in all directions . . .

12 JUNE - 6 NOVEMBER

Venice Biennale so 0

Venice. Prices vary. 0039 041 521 8825. The five- month-Iong Biennale is among the world's oldest international arts festivals. It's estimated that more than 300.000 visitors flock to the city's attractions every other year. Since 1895 it has gathered an increasingly strong reputation for its international art exhibitions. supported by festivals of contemporary music and theatre. These have recently lined up alongside a colourful contemporary dance festival. This year‘s programme is as exciting as ever. the dance festival being particularly widely heralded. its theme ‘body attack' exploring human resilience. www.|abiennale.org

In a nutshell: One of the biggest and best arts festivals in the world

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