Down With Boring

Down With Boring makes a (brief) return from its summer hols with a special update from Dork's Big Latitude Opening Party.

Taking over Henham Park's Alcove Stage as the crowds set up camp and wandered into the arena for the first time, we filled the woods with the Dorkiest line-up we could reasonably assemble. Swim Deep opened with a masterclass in festival fun, tracks from fifth album 'Hum' going down a treat before those classic indie bangers finish the job. Just For Fun and KuleeAngee kept things moving at pace with some of the best new music you’ll hear all weekend, while our favourite Luton party-starters The Itch turned the fairy forest into a full-blown fantasy rave. Then, against all health and safety advice, Sports Team headlined at a gloriously disreputable quarter past midnight with a packed tent and a Vanessa Carlton cover.

We grabbed Sports Team, Swim Deep and The Itch for a much needed catch up as we desecrated the UK's most idyllic festival site in the name of weird, wonky and wonderful pop music.

Dork's flagship podcast-slash-radio show Down With Boring is back this month with a special show recorded direct at this year's Great Escape!

Spanning the festival's four days, Jake and Jamie caught up with Dork favourites in pubs, vans and gazebos across a brilliant week on the south coast.

There's Shame ahead of their headline set on the Dork stage for our official closing party, Keo mid-takeover as they work their way through stage after stage, Adult DVD's Harry Hanson holding court before the band's festival run, and Julia Cumming digging into her Great Escape memories and the new solo material. It's all there, and plenty more besides.

Back for another edition with an album of the month from Lime Garden, new music from Olivia Rodrigo, Blossoms and The Itch, and loads more.

Dork's flagship podcast-slash-radio-show Down With Boring returns with an hour of extra sunlight and Naomi Scott in tow, fresh off the release of her brilliant new album 'F.I.G.' The acting-type-turned-pop-force joins us for a chat recorded at London's hive of new music, the Sebright Arms – and, because we can't help ourselves, we're also settling the very important question of whether Jamie or Jake would make a better backup dancer. The debate ends here.

Elsewhere on the show, we're crowning Fcukers and - you sort of have to, right - Harry Styles as our albums to 'focus' on, having a laugh about CMAT using Harry Hill as a dartboard (as you do), and running through all the drama from this year's BRIT Awards. Plus, we've got a segment on the best shows of the month – including Jamie checking in with thoughts on Dork's Round the Houses Antony Szmierek tour, and Jake's take on David Byrne's absolute masterclass.

As for new music? We've got stacks of it. Expect to hear fresh cuts from Carly Hann ('Alone'), My First Time ('The Kids Are'), Girl In The Year Above ('Mama, My Heart Is Achin'), and Really Good Time ('Bob Dylan Was On Pawn Stars In 2010'). Yeah, that last one's a real title.

Jake and Jamie check in with Westside Cowboy at both ends of their completely sold-out UK headline tour — once at the start, and once at the finish line (cheers, technology failures). Across the episode, they dig into the band’s rapid rise, the reality of touring, and – as ever – the important stuff, including what absolutely nobody wants to discover downstairs after hosting a house party. With Latitude Festival on the horizon for the band this summer, there’s also a look ahead to what that set might bring.

Elsewhere, the pair get stuck into the cultural Super Bowl that is the Halftime Show, weigh in on Harry Styles being announced as the 2026 curator of Meltdown Festival, and take a deep dive into Charli xcx’s brand new album ‘Wuthering Heights’ as the film hits cinemas.

There’s also a stack of new music to get into, including fresh cuts from MUNA, Fcukers, Bleachers and Sorry, before Jake and Jamie round things off by picking out their favourite moments from this month’s issue of Dork.