Friends lose combined 500 pounds, host weight loss festival

Donna Musson, 43, Anastasia Morris, 34, and Pamela Phillips, 42, met at an event after going through different bariatric surgery journeys to lose weight.

They bonded over their respective journeys but felt there weren't many opportunities for people who went through it to connect.

Having lost a combined more than 500 pounds, the trio began planning the UK's first bariatric surgery festival — Barifest.

This later expanded to include any kind of weight loss journey — be that surgical, weight loss jabs, or dieting — for people to come together and have fun.

After eight months of planning, the colorful festival went ahead this weekend at Field Good Bar, Bath — with a turnout of 75 slimmers at various stages of their journeys.

The festival included crafting, karaoke, exercise classes, live music, wellness workshops and "boozy bingo" to boot.

Their headline DJ was Shortee Blitz — who has worked with the likes of Jay-Z and Mariah Carey — and various plastic surgeons who did consultations on-site.

Standard tickets cost £60 (more than $80) per day.

The event came to a close on Sunday and proved to be a roaring success — with Donna, Anastasia and Pamela saying they have already been inundated with queries about their plans to repeat it in 2027.

Pamela, from Wolverhampton, who lost more than 130 pounds after gastric sleeve surgery in 2023, said: "It can be very lonely, having weight loss surgery and then going back to reality with your normal friends.

"So Barifest was about bringing people together as a family, and not feeling embarrassment or shame.

"This is just the beginning and it's so exciting — Barifest will take over the world!"

The idea came after Anastasia, Donna and Pamela met at a ball they all attended and bonded over their similar experiences.

Pamela, a wellbeing coordinator, dropped from over 280 pounds to over 150 pounds in the months following her gastric sleeve surgery.

Anastasia, a logistics administrator from Llanymynech, Wales, dropped from over 440 pounds to over 200 pounds after gastric bypass surgery in August 2023.

And Donna slimmed down from nearly 300 pounds to 160 pounds after a gastric sleeve surgery in May 2021.

One thing they had all agreed was that major weight loss journeys could feel very "lonely" and difficult for others who hadn't been through it to understand properly.

They all agreed that the weight loss community in the UK lacked a casual, fun event where everyone could get together, make friends and have fun — and the idea of Barifest was born.

Donna said: "There were people who only just had their surgery — it wasn't just a field full of slim people.

"Even me, Pam and Anastasia are all at different stages — I'm at the end of my journey after skin removal surgery, Pam has lost weight and is looking into skin removal surgery, and Anastasia is still losing weight.

"Food wise, we had lots of options — full portions, half portions and soup — so everyone at any stage of their journey had a choice."

The trio said this is just the start — and they plan to make it an annual event after this year's success.

People commented on how inclusive it was — with smaller food options, strengthened beds and chairs, and even larger sized toilets to ensure it was accessible to all sizes and shapes.

Anastasia said: "It was so uplifting — nobody was judging loose skin so no need to feel self-conscious.

"If you've always been skinny you don't think about things like whether the chairs and beds will fit you, or whether you can get in the toilet.

"But we truly understand what it's like, and it was the best weekend making memories."