UK Festival Fever – Our Red Hot Picks For July / August / September 2024…

 

 

We are head over heels with the tasty menu of UK festivals served up this summer, and there really is something out there for everyone no matter what their musical tastes are. Pop, rock, jazz, soul, r&b, metal, indie, Americana, punk, old school…..

Our festival season coverage began as it did last year with Brighton’s annual new music extravaganza, The Great Escape Festival – 15th to 18th May.

Since then we have also covered “Wide Awake” and “Cross The Tracks” on Brockwell Park, London and the wonderful Wychwood Festival on Cheltenham racecourse.

Plus, Download at Donington Park, Hellfest in France, BST Hyde Park [Robbie Williams, Shania Twain, Kings of Leon, SZA and Morgen Wallen], Black Deer in Kent and the lovely Love Supreme in East Sussex.

All coverage of the festivals our teams attend is in our “Live Zone” – for great photos on stage, backstage and out in the crowds….and as always, a smattering of exclusives.

For July, August and September, the UK still has a fabulous number of great festivals to choose from and many not yet sold out – some with camping and some superb one-dayers too that will quench your thirst for great live music and some fun in the sunshine [no, it is not gonna rain!!]

Here we choose some of our favourites...

• Look out for coverage of some of these beauties in our “Live Zone”…You may even be in some of the photos from our roaming snappers!!!

 

• Reading and Leeds Festivals are among the longest running music festivals in the world. Reading has been going in one form or another since 1955 and Leeds since 1999. These days more than 100,000 fans attend each of the three days it is held –  simultaneously on the Friday, Saturday and Sunday of the August bank holiday weekend.

Reading Festival is held at Little John’s Farm on Richfield Avenue in central Reading, and Leeds in Bramham Park, near Wetherby, the grounds of a historic house.

Headliners and most supporting acts typically play at both sites, with Reading the longest-running popular music festival in the UK. The festivals are run by Festival Republic.  The 2024 headliners include Liam Gallagher, Catfish and the Bottlemen, Raye, Gerry Cinnamon, Blink-182, Lana Del Rey, Fred Again and 21 Savage.

 

 

 

• Brighton Pride’s music and comedy festival, Fabuloso in Preston Park offers up Girls Aloud and Mika as the headliners in 2024, plus an array of great acts such as Billy Porter, Sophie Ellis-Bextor, Gabrielle and many more.

The spectacular two-day official fundraiser event on Saturday 3rd and Sunday 4th August has secured a UK festival exclusive show from Girls Aloud  and there are more than 150 LGBTQ+ artists: cabaret tents, dance tents and immersive experiences across the weekend. But…do not forget the annual dog show which features a catwalk doggy fashion show.

 

• Madness perform their only London show of 2024 and are joined by a slew of legendary acts on London’s Blackheath, for a one-day spectacular for the Uptown Festival on Sunday 28th of July.

Madness headline and also appearing will be The Zutons, and Liverpool’s The Lightning Seeds, Aswad, Odyssey, David Rodigan, Omar, Norman Jay, Dawn Penn and many more on the three stages, which includes the main stage and the soul and reggae big top.

Following last year’s sell out success, the family-friendly festival returns for its second year, stretching across the southern side of Greenwich’s park, Uptown Festival boasts three fun-filled stages, a dedicated family area, the ‘funnest’ funfair in town and a delectable range of street food.

Uptown 2024 has introduced larger stage screens and a bigger selection of hot and cold food and beverage options. The event’s promoters, The Festival Crowd are also behind KISSTORY, Downtown, Superboxx and others.

 

 

 

• KISSTORY returns to London’s Blackheath on Saturday 27th July for a one-day outdoor event, with a big selection of top artists and DJs performing the biggest Old Skool & Anthems live!

 

• Cardiff get ready… KISSTORY is coming for you for the first time, for one HUGE Old Skool & Anthems party in Bute Park. Line-up to be announced soon, but expect all your fave KISSTORY DJs, epic live performances and very special guests across multiple stages for one day only – Saturday 14th September.
• Next day, Sunday 15th September, same place, Uptown Festival is the attraction, with Sister Sledge featuring Kathy Sledge, Aswad, Maxi Priest and many more, including local stars Captain Accident and The Disasters.

  

   

 

• Also in September, is the very popular Reminisce Festival Liverpool, held in St Helens on Saturday 7^th September, featuring Alison Limerick, Chesney Hawkes, Basshunter, Damage, 5ive, Angie Brown, Dave Pearce, K-Klass, Rozalla, Livin’ Joy, N-Trance and loads more.

 

• Camp Bestival – Dorset & Shropshire. Cracking line-up on both sites for 2024 and definitely family-friendly – the kids have as much fun as the adults.

 

 

 

 

 

• We will be covering Latitude 2024, 25th to 28th July at Henman Park in Suffolk, and it is a flipping brill’ line-up…..

2024 delivers Kasabian, London Grammar and Duran Duran as main stage headliners, along with the likes of Keane, CMAT, Caity Baser, Rick Astley, Seasick Steve, Frank Turner, Nile Rodgers and Chic, Rag ‘N’ Bone Man, The Darkness, Future Islands, Orbital and stacks more big names.

Plus lots of rising stars, and the stars of tomorrow getting their break on the Latitude stage. Stars of comedy this year include Jo Brand, Sara Pascoe and Judi Love. “Podcasts and conversations” includes the incomparable Dr John Cooper Clarke.

 

 

 

 

• The Peak District in Derbyshire is the location for Y Not? Festival, perhaps one of the most picturesque sites for a UK festival, at Pikehall. For the 17th edition of the festival, the lineup includes Snow Patrol, Jamie T, Noel Gallagher’s High Flying Birds, Kaiser Chiefs, Declan McKenna and many more, plus some great comedy including Milton Jones.

 

 

• Pssssst….Fancy a  mucky weekender? Well, we have news of just the thing… Mucky Weekender at Vicarage Farm, Winchester, on 5th, 6th and 7th September is a very chilled festival, fast becoming one of the jewels in the crown of late summer UK festivals.

  Do not just take our word for it: “Mucky is already a phenomenon, that go-to bitter-sweet swamp of beauty where you send off summer festival season for the year & say farewell to your friends. My god, there’s a lot of love & fun to be had at this place.” So says Trainspotting author Irvine Welsh.

  “Mucky by name mucky by nature – gotta love Barry n’ crew for all they do to make their festival one of the most memorable in the UK and presenting the Rebel Dread with the perfect place for some heavyweight bass”, says Don Letts, the DJ, musician, film director and Grammy winner.

Happy Mondays legend Bez [who will be there with Rowetta] says: “I love that Barry organises his own festival so that his band Dub Pistols can headline, he books all his mates to get involved. This is my favourite festival next to Glastonbury.”

The Prodigy’s Leeroy Thornhill comments: “Mucky Weekender gets better every year, the festival is not to be missed”

Mucky Weekender is an independent boutique festival, with up to 5,000 capacity, this year expanded to three days. Curated by music industry veteran Barry Ashworth, frontman of the Dub Pistols (the festival is named after one of their fan-favourite tracks, “Mucky Weekend”). Barry is Patron of Tonic Music for Mental Health within the music industry, which the festival raises funds for.

• Latest additions to the Mucky Weekender line-up:

THURSDAY 5^TH SEPTEMBER

Dancehall Defender and Reggae Royalty Jamie Rodigan will be appearing on Thursday, son of the one and only, legendary radio broadcaster, Sir David “Ram Jam” Rodigan MBE. Jamie developed a love for reggae music through trips with his father to Jamaica. His eclectic DJ sets reflect these musical experiences growing up influenced by Reggae, Rare Groove, House, Jungle and Garage have cemented Jamie’s musical graduation.

 

Line Up: Bez & Rowetta, Utah Saints, A.Skillz, Don Letts, JFB, Jamie Rodigan, The Beatles Dub Club, Just A Couple Of Mums, Jonny Rockstar, Richard Naylor, Philip Warnes + more to be added.

Kaya Fyah will be joining Jungle Cakes Stage takeover on Friday. UK based vocalist, junglist, and storyteller embodies an international perspective on the music scene. Raised in a junglist household in North London, her musical experiences span diverse landscapes, including Canada, South Africa, New York, and her current residence in vibrant Brighton. Fyah’s intro to the stage at 13, alongside the Congo Natty family, set the pace for her artistic journey in sound system culture. 

Line Up: The Dualers, Congo Natty, Dub Pistols V Freestylers, Dutty Moonshine Big Band, Marshall Jefferson, LTJ Bukem, London Elektricity, General Levy,  Dynamite MC, Beans On Toast, Ed Solo, Deekline, Benny Page, Ralph Lawson, Dave Beer, Doorly, Irvine Welsh,  Jon Carter, Steve Mac, Carl Loben, Kaya Fyah, The Nextman ft Kiko Bun, Slipmatt, Carly Wilford, Channel One Soundsystem, DJ Hiphoppapotamus, G-Shellz, Jimi Needles, Barry Ashworth, Madame Ekectrifie, Mid Nite Lite, Sarah Monument, Seanie T, Ben The Bee, Captain Accident & The Disasters, John Ellel, The Mighty Flux, Alex Souloud, Ben McGowan, Jon Edis,  Richard Naylor, Jezz Beale, Von Adams… 

SATURDAY 7^TH SEPTEMBER

Leeroy Thornhill Q&A with Barry Ashworth discussing a decade with The Prodigy ahead of his book signing ‘Wildfire”, out 12th September available in hardback and e-book. 

 

• Rebellion in Blackpool is the biggest punk event in the UK, held on 1st, 2nd, 3rd and 4th of August with a huge number of bands and artists appearing at The Winter Gardens and several other venues.

 

• New for 2024 is a three day bash in Centenary Square Birmingham across the August bank holiday weekend, with some of today’s biggest mainstream acts and a few legends thrown in for good measure.

The Streets, Jungle, Cian Ducrot and local legends Ocean Colour Scene top the bill…..

 

 

• After a triumphant debut event in 2023, tastemakers This Feeling will take their By The Sea festival back to Bridlington Spa for its second event,which runs on September 6th and 7th.

This Feeling By The Sea 2024 will be headlined by The Royston Club (Friday) and The K’s (Saturday) alongside an A-Z of contemporary and rising indie and alternative talent. As with last year’s festival, every single artist on the bill has emerged via This Feeling shows held in grassroots venues across the UK.

Saturday night headliners The K’s are in the middle of a major breakthrough moment. Their gritty hi-octane rock ‘n’ roll has seen the Warrington quartet play huge shows as guests to the likes of Liam Gallagher and Kasabian, their rise sound-tracked by a growing catalogue of bangers such as “Sarajevo”, “Glass Towns” and “Got A Feeling”.

They landed a # three chart position for their debut album  “I Wonder If The World Knows?”, which was kept off the top spot by The Libertines and Beyoncé.

Friday night headliners The Royston Club have made huge waves since forming in their hometown of Wrexham in 2019. The four-piece have developed a fervent live following. Early favourites such as “Mrs Narcissistic”, “Blisters” and “Cold Sweats” primed their following before 2023s debut album, “Shaking Hips And Crashing Cars”, went straight into the  UK Official Album chart at # 16.

The festival’s Friday lineup features Pastel, The Rosadocs, Spyres, The Crooks, The Sheratons and Megan Wyn. Saturday’s  highlights include Seb Lowe, The Clause, The Kairos, Casino, The Slates and Dirty Blonde.

The Bridlington Spa venue is a beautiful Art Deco designed 3800-capacity Royal Hall ballroom, with the adjacent beach close by.

 

Beautiful Days in Devon is in its 21^st year, with names including Richard Ashcroft, The Saw Doctors, Levellers, Richard Hawley, Fat Freddy’s Drop, The Damned, Toyah & Robert, Fisherman’s Friends, Inspiral Carpets, Badly Drawn Boy, Utah Saints and many more appearing this year.

The festival has music and entertainment over six stages and is The Levellers’ annual family music festival, organised by Exeter-based DMF Music since its inception in 2003.

Headlining the main stage on Friday night are Irish legends The Saw Doctors. Discovered by Mike Scott from The Waterboys at a show in Galway in the late 80s, they staged a triumphant comeback in 2023 after a five-year break in touring.

The festival’s Saturday headliner is two-time Ivor Novello winner Richard Ashcroft, frontman with The Verve in the 90’s.

They released one of the biggest albums of the era in the shape of “Urban Hymns” (the UK’s 18th biggest selling album of all-time), as well as a succession of big anthems, including “The Drugs Don’t Work”, “Bittersweet Symphony”, “Sonnet” and “Lucky Man”.

Richard has released five Top five solo albums, including most recent “Acoustic Hymns”, which reached # two in the UK album chart in 2022.

Levellers, as always, headline the main stage on the Sunday to close the weekend with a hit-rich set followed by the traditional firework spectacular. The band will also open the festival with a Levellers Collective acoustic set, playing different arrangements of their songs including some released on recent album “Together All The Way”.

The Damned have brought their 80’s line-up back together in 2024 with Rat Scabies joining Captain Sensible, David Vanian and Paul Gray. With 12 studio albums and several UK chart singles, the band are true pioneers who emerged from the London punk scene.

Formed in Bradford in 1980, New Model Army are storming through their fifth decade and show no signs of letting up. They are currently riding high with their recently released 16th new studio album “Unbroken”.

Headlining Friday night on the festival’s second stage The Big Top is Mercury and Brit Award nominee Richard Hawley. Best known for his mix of classic songwriting, soothing vocals and northern grit realism, Richard is something of a unique artist in British popular music, able to cross boundaries from one musical style.

Headlining Saturday night are music legends Toyah Willcox and Robert Fripp who have been married for nearly 40 years. With decades of iconic albums and hit singles between them, they connected with audiences worldwide online during the pandemic with the runaway success of their Sunday Lunch series.

 

Boardmasters in Cornwall combines world class surfing – with top pro surfers taking part in the championships – with an eclectic music lineup, from 7th to 11th August.

Chase and Status, Stormzy, The Streets, Maisie Peters, Courteeners, Tom Odell, Sam Fender, Becky Hill, Declan McKenna, Holly Humberstone, Kate Nash, Ghetts, Katy B, Wunderthorse and many more bands and artists feature in the lineup.

 

Also in the impressive lineup: Declan McKenna, Holly Humberstone, Kate Nash, Ghetts, Katy B, Wunderhorse and many more.

 

 

 

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Aerial festival crowd photo: By Katja Ogrin.

Photos watermarked Junction 10: By Jason Sheldon.

Other pix By: Steve Thorne, Liam Battersby, Steve Best and Andrea Bottino.

Pix are PR-supplied where no photographer is credited.

 

Words: Les Howard