An intimate gathering of music lovers in a meadow in a tiny Oxfordshire village is set to take place for the third year running.

The Arcane Festival was set up by a group of friends in 2007, and this weekend 500 people are expected to get together in Horsenden Meadow, Tetsworth, near Thame, to enjoy music, comedy, poetry and the spoken word.

Headliners will include Oxford’s A Silent Film, Borderville and Mephisto Grande.

Organiser Aemi Blaza said: “Apart from the weather, everything is looking good for the weekend.

“We have got quite an eclectic line up and we may have a few last minute additions as well.”

The festival raises money for charity Farms for City Children, and last year organisers handed over about £800 to the cause.

For the first time this year there will be a stage run by the Queen of Clubs Cabaret, which organises a regular cabaret night at The Isis in Oxford, and Hammer and Tongue will be running a spoken word and poetry area.

Miss Blaza said: “The vibe is very informal. You go to a lot of events nowadays that have a lot of rules to be adhered to, it is always you can’t do this or bring that.

“Being such a small event it makes it a bit easier to police it yourself and it helps to keep the atmosphere really informal and intimate, which I think people really like.”

The event starts at 6pm tomorrow with trance, break-beat and electronica organised by Lucid.

Saturday is devoted to bands, most of whom are local, while Sunday will see open mic and comedy taking centre stage.

Miss Blaza said: “We do our best to get a line-up together of the best bands of the day locally.

“It’s about bringing together all the different styles of music, and showcasing Oxford music because you don’t need to go far out of Oxford to come up with a great line-up of varied music.”

Other acts performing will be Oxford’s street band Horns of Plenty, the Joe Allen Band, Ivy’s Itch and Tristan and the Troubadours.

Aside from the music, there will be food from local traders, a graffiti wall which is free for all to contribute to, jugglers, spinners and workshops, and a “massage pod”.

Tickets cost £27.50 or £15 for 10- to 17-year-olds, with under nines going free.

See tomorrow’s Guide for more about the festival, or go to arcane- festival.com