OOMF! Oxfordshire's Own Millennium Festival was one of the highlights of the year. The huge event in July in South Park, Oxford, involved more than 2,000 participants and attracted more than 50,000 spectators.
The feast of stunning scenery, magical processions, moving performances and breathtaking fireworks all set to a specially composed choral symphony was one of the biggest Millennium celebrations in England, and was hailed as a world-class example of community involvement.
Now, four months on, you can relive it with a limited edition video.
The video, which was unveiled at a one-off public screening at the Oxford Playhouse yesterday, has been produced from footage shot on the day by Oxford Film and Video Makers and the Oxford Amateur Video Society. It features highlights of the event, with footage of the build-up, processions and the dramatic one-hour live final. Oomf! director Tish Francis said: "The video provides an opportunity for those thousands of people who were there to look back and remember that magical evening. It shows what Oxford and Oxfordshire can produce, and proves there is certainly no lack of artistic ability or interest."
She added: "The idea of the event was to lift people's spirits, and we had piles of letters from people saying they were proud of Oxfordshire.
"The idea of the video is to bring back the memories and special atmosphere of that night. People saw different things depending on where they were sitting and quite a lot of the participants were unable to see much at all." Tony Garrard, a member of the Oomf! choir, welcomed the video. The 65-year-old member of the Abingdon and District Musical Society said: "The trouble with being in the choir was that I couldn't see the rest of the show or the fireworks. Now I am able to see what other people saw."
A CD is to be released next month featuring music from the final, including the acclaimed Symphony in Morris Minor by Oxford composer Nick Bicat.
The Oomf! video is a unique souvenir of an event which is unlikely to take place on the same scale again. It is for sale at 20 but Oxford Mail readers can pick up their own copy of the limited edition video for the special price of 15. To obtain your copy, send a cheque payable to "Oxfordshire 2000", to: Oxfordshire 2000, Central Library, Westgate, Oxford, OX1 1DJ, mentioning the Oxford Mail offer.
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