Fantasy Forest – Sudeley 2026

It’s been a busy few months here at Velveteena Leigh! Since January, I’ve been working hard helping the Cosplay Court team prepare for Fantasy Forest Sudeley. On top of that, we had to prepare for a second FF event, this time more local to me at Hatfield House.

Watching this small part of the larger festival grow over the past few years has been amazing; and the friend group that has formed around it has been wonderful to see. Originally the brainchild of Olly, (@lilistprince) and helped by their partner Meg, (@meggophoto), it has grown beyond something they’re able to organise on their own, and so myself, Madi, (@madharryquests) and Gerry (@groovyguygerry), stepped in to help them, since we were all already friends and had some level of understanding of event organising.

I have taken on a more admin based role, keeping spreadsheets, answering emails, chasing everyone for their insurance and risk assessments, while Madi has mostly taken charge of workshop organising, sourcing everything we need for running workshops, running workshop signups on the day, and being the teams first-aider. Olly remains the boss, keeping track of logistics and liaising with the main event organisers, as well as coming up with big ideas for next events, and Meg has been the point of contact for our big event guest, Warhorse Studios (the creators of the game Kingdom Come Deliverance). Gerry rounds up the team as the boss of the volunteers, with their extensive experience on film sets and managing teams they get everyone where they need to be on the day of the event so we can run the area smoothly.

We’ve all fallen into our own roles quite nicely, and already have big plans for next year. We even hope to stop being volunteers and be able to start taking a (small) wage from it, which would mean we can grow it even more in the coming years!!

Keep an eye on the Cosplay Court social media, @thecosplaycourt, to stay up to date on our latest schemes!