Greenbelt Speed Dating 2008

Greenbelt Christian Connection Speed Dating

As always, it combined all the elements: mud, crowds, laughter, inevitable confusion, excitement, and new connections.

Some speed daters turned up with a dynamic choice of hair colour - no doubt it made it easier for others to remember them afterwards.


This year we created a new system for people to contact each other online after the event (ReConnect). This required some hard work at the festival by the speed dating team who put hundreds of names into the system before the event had even finished. It was worth the effort, as hundreds of people contacted each other afterwards.


One of the great pleasures of Greenbelt is bumping into old friends, and some very satisfied customers of Christian Connection. This year there were several such encounters. At breakfast, we met a lovely couple who had met on Christian Connection.

And then there was Andrew and Susan who met at Greenbelt 3 years ago were celebrating their daughter, Rachel's first birthday party at Greenbelt. She is pictured on the right. As somebody with a very strong connection with Greenbelt Speed Dating, we thought she looks rather at home surrounded by the tents.

We also bumped into Charlie and Claire, yet another couple who had also met at Greenbelt Speed Dating 2003, and it was clear that there was soon to be another addition to the Greenbelt Christian Connection progeny.


A couple of the major performers at Greenbelt 2008 were also around. Beth Rowley had, in fact, once performed at a Christian Connection Easter Party in 2006. This year, she was headlining Greenbelt on Mainstage, her album having gone to no 6 in the Charts. Click here for a picture of Beth in 2006.

Comic poet, Jude Simpson, also attracted very large support - she has been a regular performer at Christian Connection events.


There was also a great deal of connecting going on at the famous Greenbelt organic beer tent. Drinkers were able to take advantage of Christian Connection Beermats - that is of course when they weren't being blown across the Cheltenham in the gale.