We had just returned from a 3 month holiday in Grenada where we were enjoying the sea, rum and music. So the opportunity to go to the Rum and Reggae festival at Watford Colosseum was welcome – an event that could take us back to how we felt on holiday was something that we weren’t about to pass up!
The venue was really convenient and easy to get too and the parking was right next to the venue and reasonably priced which always helps. We are quite organised and prompt people so in typical fashion we arrived early, we were one of the first there! The event started promptly and we were welcomed by 2 exotic dancers at the doors. The hall was beautifully decorated to recreate a caribbean atmosphere. There were palm tree umbrellas, flags from around the caribbean on display and ‘rum and reggae’ in lights on the stage. There were also big balloons and confetti which added to the party atmosphere.
The DJ was great, he played a good variety of reggae music – including old classics, revival and some dancehall. Our personal highlights were hearing ‘She’s Royal’ by Tarrus Riley and Susan Cadogan’s ‘Hurts So Good’ which was a big hit back in the 70s. After the DJ we were treated to a Bob Marley and The Wailers tribute band, called Exodus. Exodus really made the event come alive with their renditions of Bob Marley classics. By this point we had hit the dancefloor and we were really enjoying the vibes.
We didn’t get round to tasting the food but it seemed to be popular, especially the jerk chicken. The only negative thing would be the organisation about the cocktails. Some more signage would have helped to avoid people queuing up twice. But it wasn’t a major deal and didn’t stop us from really enjoying our night.
Overall we are really pleased to say that we had an amazing night. There was a good mix of people from different backgrounds and age groups and everyone was really friendly. Watford Colosseum hosts loads of different events for all age groups so if this sounds fun to you – have a look at their website and we are sure you’ll find something that catches your eye. MFF has previously reviewed Bing live and the Lenny Henry event in October looks great!
Written by Michael and Sandra Rae