Whitby Gothic Weekend is a biannual event that takes place in the small northern English town of Whitby. The weekend features two nights of official live music events along with daytime happenings such as a shopping bazaar.       The headlining band this time was goth/punk favorites the Damned. They were the only band I caught any part of, as I really don't go for the live music. However, I would have been remiss to have an opportunity to see living legends and not go. And they didn't disappoint. They played the bigger hits like "Neat neat neat" and "Smash it Up." Younger fans might remember that song, as it was covered by the Offspring for the Batman Forever soundtrack.

      Whitby is incredibly scenic, sitting right on a cliff face overlooking the ocean. At the highest point in town is Whitby Abbey, an old church built in the seventh century and now just stone ruins. The town and the Abbey specifically were featured in the Bran Stoker novel Dracula. This sets Whitby up as the perfect setting for a goth festival.

      As England is really the starting point for the goth scene and goth music, I found the crowds at goth events there to be older than at U.S. events. While there were certainly teens (the drinking and clubbing age is lower in the U.K.), there were plenty of people in their 40s and older. There is also more variety in styles of dress and appearance. Just wandering around town and looking around in the main performance area where the bands played, you could see punk goths, cybergoths, crusties, fetish goths and plenty of traditional outfits from Victorian era.

      Besides the official events there are always alternative club nights and plenty of pubs around town to just hang out in. On Sunday night there were two main choices: '80s night, which mainly plays new wave and punk, or Sexy Sunday, which mainly plays EBM and synthpop. Also, as many attendees like to stay in cottages, they are excellent spots for after-parties.

      The weekend did not go without incident, unfortunately. Since last year, there has been a conflict between Whitby organizers and local government. After tickets had been sold for the 2005 festival, the official capacity of the main venue, the Spa Pavilion, was reduced. The result was several dozen ticket holders not being allowed into the venue due to over-capacity. This year, a similar event occurred when it is believed several counterfeit tickets were used to gain admission to the Spa, again leaving legitimate ticket holders out in the cold. As of this writing, it looks like new measures are being put into place to avoid counterfeiting and overbooking; tickets for the April Whitby Gothic Weekend are now on sale.

      I cannot recommend Whitby enough for American goths to get a different perspective on the whole scene. A pretty decent news piece is available on Youtube at www.youtube.com/watch?v=QZXSMLoG0fw. The official site for tickets, band lineups and other information can be found at wgw.topmum.co.uk. On that site there is also a discussion forum and a live journal to discuss ride- and cottage-sharing as well. With a cheap flight and sharing a ride plus accommodations, Whitby can be done cheaply, even from overseas. I already have my cottage booked for next October!