Graham Tarrant

The biggest festival on the South coast (and arguably the best) returned to the stunning seaside location of Southsea this weekend.

Victorious Festival welcomed 80,000 people over the bank holiday weekend, with something for everyone. 

Whether it was headline performances from the likes of superstar DJ Fatboy Slim, indie royalty Pixies or Scottish rock legends Biffy Clyro, or laughs in the comedy tent from performers such as Al Murray, Frankie Boyle and Russell Howard, this was an incredible weekend.

The beauty of Victorious Festival is that each day, they open up proceedings with a huge artist, designed to bring the large crowds into the festival gates early. 

This year was no exception with Razorlight opening on Friday lunchtime – frontman Johnny Borrell wasted no time blasting through their biggest hits – “Golden Touch”, “Somewhere Else”, “In The Morning” and the number-one anthem “America”.

Keeping the pace going early-on and drawing one of the biggest crowds of the weekend was former One Direction star  Louis Tomlinson. This was his first UK festival performance and he certainly didn’t disappoint – the crowd went wild for every tune, whether it was his own solo material, or the 1D classics such as ‘Drag Me Down.’

Bristol’s finest post-punk IDLES followed with an interesting change of pace and total change of genre from Louis – frontman Joe Talbot celebrated his birthday the same day, not that you could tell from the rage and anger as he spat his anti-fascist mantras across the stage. Creating arguable the largest mosh-pit of the weekend, here’s hoping the Louis Tomlinson fans escaped before the carnage and dust flew.

With possibly the ultimate crowd sing-along tunes, Snow Patrol were up next. To the delight of fans, they played their anthem ‘Chasing Cars’ with the huge audience all singing 

‘If I lay here

If I just lay here

Would you lie with me and just forget the world?’

Quite a special, moving goose-bump moment!

As usual, at such a large festival as this, there was a clash of sensational headliners. The original funk-soul brother Fatboy Slim dazzled crowds at the main Common Stage with his rockafeller skank, fireworks, confetti canons  and light show, while pop-royalty Jess Glynne returned with a stunning show on the Castle Stage, concluding with her huge hits ‘Rather Be’ and ‘Hold My Hand’ – in her own words, there’s no place I’d rather be!

The dreaded UK rain returned Saturday morning, but it did not dampen spirits. Again, the day began with not one but two huge artists.

Tom Walker demonstrated his incredible voice on the Castle Stage, while the Common Stage welcomed a surprise special guest. Last year, McFly delighted fans with their antics, while this year, their supergroup friends Busted took the heralded spot. 

Ciara Mary-Alice Thompson, professionally known as CMAT came to Portsmouth for the first time and delighted crowds with her Irish charm shortly afterwards, encouraging all the crowds to line-dance before she played her song ‘I Wanna Be A Cowboy, Baby’ and dedicating her Brit nominated hit ‘Ah Shoot’ to her love of wine! She’s a must-see if you get the chance.

Fresh from supporting Taylor Swift on her legendary ERAs tour, Holly Humberstone followed, before The Lathums, Courteeners and The Amazons all brought their indie music to Victorious.

There’s not many bands which wear the crown as one of David Bowie’s favourites, but the influential Pixies topped the bill on the Castle Stage. Singer Frank Black (or Black Francis if you prefer) still has an incredible voice despite shouting and screaming his way through their impressive back catalogue – fortunately there weren’t too many new songs and they stuck to the classics.

The final day again began with an impressive band who could have easily headlined many lesser events –  The Kooks, before Natasha Bedingfield delighted fans with her hits ‘Unwritten‘ and ‘These Words‘.

Northern scallies Yard Act, gave echoes of LCD Soundsystem mixed with Jarvis Cocker – very entertaining, although their set was a little short as singer James Smith advised they had to be back home in Leeds by midnight to be tucked up in bed…

Up next was James Bay who not only had to Hold Back The River, but also hold onto his hat in the strong south-coast winds.

A couple of years ago, Becky Hill was booked to play the smaller Castle Stage, and the crowd size was so large, many people had to be turned away. This year she was back, better than ever on the main Common Stage. 

Dressed in an improperly tight mini-dress, Becky focused her set mainly on her new album with its drum’n’bass focus, before concluding with her crowd pleasers ‘Wish You Well’ and ‘Remember’ In her own words, Becky summed up the evening well by saying ‘Massive thank you to the festival organisers for asking me to come back and putting me on this big old stage! You are all amazing!’

Concluding the weekend were two heavyweights.- the mighty Biffy Clyro rocked the Common Stage, with impressive booming anthems, while the new sensation which is Isle of Wight’s finest Wet Leg delighted fans on the Castle Stage. Possibly playing their singalong ‘Chaise Longue’ for the final time, it was a fitting end to their world wind tour – hopefully we can expect a new album if their current roster are to be retired.

James Ralls, Festival Director summed up the weekend well by saying: “It’s been another unforgettable year on the seafront. From huge cruise ships and the return of the Seaside Stage plus incredible headline sets from Fatboy Slim, Jamie T and Biffy Clyro we’ve had it all and it’s great to see so many people enjoying live music, family entertainment and comedy whilst making memories to last a lifetime! We’re sad it’s ended but we’re already excited to welcome everyone back in 2025 for another memorable weekend.”

Tickets are now available at: https://www.victoriousfestival.co.uk

Don’t miss out on this great weekend in 2025.

PHOTOS: GRAHAM TARRANT

WORDS: SAMANTHA MIDDLETON & GRAHAM TARRANT

Truly the best family-festival of the summer, Camp Bestival returned to Dorset with a kaleidoscope of music and entertaining fun for all ages.

This years theme was out of this world, with intergalactic aliens and astronauts joining the love-bot at Lulworth Castle. 

Throughout the magical weekend, there was something for everyone – from the toddlers, children or simply the young-at-heart.

Bluey and Hacker T Dog, our favourite terrier from Wigan,  brought the CBBC magic to life on the main stage early on Friday, before Ellie Sax, appropriately came with the glitz and glamour, playing a mix of old school house and rave favourites.

The Magic Numbers followed, showing they still have their incredible harmonies and timeless classic melodies and bittersweet love songs. Although much of the crowd may not have remembered them from their early 90s hey-day they appeared to win many new fans.

Designer-turned-DJ Gok Wan returned to Camp Bestival again, this year on the main stage, for an invigorating set of party favourite tunes, ensuring the crowd were jumping throughout. This was followed by the inevitable DREADED CLASH ON THE LINEUP! It happens every year at all events, but it means the crowd have to make a choice, as well as, of course, Summer Festival Guide. Do we photograph and cover the main stage with McFLY  or our personal favourites, ORBITAL in the Big Top? 

We opted for McFly who never fail to impress live. The band played a string of their catchy tunes, including Five Colours in Her Hair, One For The Radio, Shine a Light, and Star Girl. Before ‘All About You’, they selected young super-fan Grace from the audience to play tambourine, Clearly overwhelmed, she did a great job on a night she’ll clearly remember. 

The party intensified on Saturday. Camp Bestival regular favourite Mr Tumble returned with his antics and confetti canons for the young ones, before 90s BBC legends Dick and Dom played a selection of ‘noughties’ (or is it written 00’s) bangers while repeatedly shouting their catchphrase ‘Bogies’.  They’re no Ant and Dec, but maybe that’s a good thing!

Not to be left out, The Darkness brought the rock anthems (and some expletives) and are always a true festival highlight – clearly working out before each set, singer Justin Hawkins still can reach the high notes on hits such as ‘I Believe In A Thing Called Love’, and even played the opening lines of their Xmas Hit in the gorgeous summer sun.

Disco hits followed from the frontman of the legendary Scissor Sisters, Jake Shears. Mixing a few of his solo songs with the classics everyone wanted to hear including Comfortably Numb, Filthy/Gorgeous and of course, I Don’t Feel Like Dancing – there was no stopping the crowd partying in their fancy dress and space-suits.

Headlining the Saturday night was self-proclaimed MILF (well that’s the name of her book) Paloma Faith. Playing a mix of songs from her latest album ‘The Glorification of Sadness’, with her biggest hits, she finished with the song which she stated changed her life – ‘Only Love Can Hurt Like This’.

The beauty of Camp Bestival is the party starts when the headliner finishes each night, over at the eclectic Caravanserai. For the unitiated, its a heady after hours mix of circus, fairground and vintage nostalgia all mixed in a cocktail shaker, with a sprinkle of jaw-dropping entertainers. 

Sunday morning begins in traditional style with Mr Motivator to re-invigorate the crowd, but possibly the strangest act seen by Summer Festival Guide followed – Dogshow. Two grown men, positioned in their own instrument cage with poodle face-mask coverings banged out some pretty good techno while howling at the crowd. It has to be seen to be believed – although much of the crowd appeared to question whether they were still recovering from the cocktails at Caravanserai the night before. 

Craig Charles followed with his Funk and Soul Party on the main stage, before pop royalty Sophie Ellis-Bextor was welcomed back to Camp Bestival again with her kitchen disco. She mixed her own hits with Gimme Gimme Gimme, Vogue, Like A Prayer, before finishing with ‘Murder on the Dancefloor’.

X-Factor’s very own James Arthur was next up, apologising for the fact he was losing his voice, he made clear he didn’t want to miss this special festival. It’s a shame though as he was clearly unable to sing many of his songs or hit half the notes throughout his set, relying on the enthusiastic crowd to sing most for him – perhaps he should donate some of his fee back to the festival’s good causes.

Bringing the main stage to a close was Pete Tong and the far more impressive 60-person Heritage Orchestra, conducted by Jules Buckley. Playing classical versions of Ibiza hits, it was a delight to be transported to the Balearic Island with the impressive lightshow. 

After the annual explosive fireworks synced to extremely impressive space themed projections, the night was far from finished. Summer Festival Guide favourites The Cuban Brothers closed proceedings in The Big Top with their hilarious mix of hip-hop, breakbeats and funky infection dancing.

In the words of Camp Bestival co-founders, Rob and Josie da Bank, “wowzers… we did it again and this time the weather was on our side! We hope everybody enjoyed the festival”

We certainly did – roll on 2025. Early bird tickets are available on Friday. See the festival link below:  

https://dorset.campbestival.net

WORDS: GRAHAM TARRANT & SAMANTHA MIDDLETON

PHOTOS: GRAHAM TARRANT

Despite the heavy rain throughout the day typical of the British summer, spirits remained high on Day 5 of the BST Hyde Park series of concerts.  

As host Myleene Klass explained, this was the largest classical concert, not only in Hyde Park, but for the whole of Europe this century.  

Andrea Bocelli clearly has a very talented family, with Matteo Bocelli opening proceedings on the main Great Oak Stage.  

Playing a mix of classical and contempory songs, Matteo’s voice shone through the clouds, with a mix including ‘Can’t Take My Eyes Off You’, ‘Can’t Help Falling In Love’, with his own compositions including the song he wrote for Netflix series ‘Scratch’ – ‘All Because of Love’. A true talent, with the glint of charm from his father in his voice. 

Following on from Matteo was Welsh mezzo-soprano Katherine Jenkins – a true national treasure.

She could well be headlining Hyde Park herself one day, mixing classics from Andrew Lloyd Webber’s Phantom of the Opera, with an unscheduled if beautiful rendition of ‘Singing In The Rain’. Before finishing with Queen’s classic ‘We Are The Champions’, she delighted fans by putting on her Hunter wellies and showcasing a medley of James Bond themes, including ‘Writings on the Wall’, ‘We Have All the Time in the World’, ‘You Only Live Twice’, ‘Nobody Does It Better’, ‘Diamonds Are Forever’ and of course, Adele’s ‘Skyfall’. Not many people could cover the latter and improve on the original, but Katherine’s voice is truly spectacular. 

Again, there are few people who could follow Katherine, but of course, the tenor Andrea Bocelli managed it with his incredible voice, charm and wit.  

Celebrating over 30 years in music, Andrea was joined by very special guests throughout his two hour performance, all backed by the Royal Philharmonic Orchestra and the Crouch End Festival Chorus. 

The first half comprised classical and operatic pieces, beginning with ‘La donna e mobile’ – before Andrea continued to demonstrate what a talented family he has, with his daughter Virginia joining him on the huge stage, without any sign of nerves despite being only 12 years old.  

Throughout the second half of the set, Andrea was joined by more very special guests, including Zucchero, Seal and one of the greatest film composers of all time, Hans Zimmer.  Mixing their own unique talents, each were graced with opportunity of playing their own classic tunes with the incredible backing of the orchestra, with Seal’s own ‘Kiss From A Rose‘ taking on a whole new dimension.

Saving the best for last, Bocelli concluded with his passionate ‘Con Te Partirò’ (Time To Say Goodbye), which never fails to leave goosebumps (and a few tears) with its beautiful lyrics and music. Finally, ‘Nessun Dorma’, possibly the best known tenor arias from opera left the crowd leave with huge smiles over their ponchos. 

Here’s hoping Hyde Park will welcome more classical concerts in the coming years. 

Words: Graham Tarrant

Photos: Dave Hogan/Hogan Media Shutterstock

With so many festivals over the bank holiday weekend, it could be difficult to chose which to attend.

Without doubt, the best festival in August was Victorious Festival in Southsea.

To emphasis the strength of the line-up, many of those artists who were booked to top the bill at lesser festivals often appeared lower down the schedule at Victorious.

As a classic example, Blossoms began proceedings on the south coast on Friday at 1pm, despite headlining many other events this summer. The singer joked that he’d played the same park where the main Common Stage was, when his dad was in the navy at the nearby dockyards.

Billy Nomates followed, fresh from her controversial performance at Glastonbury, where she personally asked for her set to be removed from BBC iPlayer, following unjust abuse and backlash. Although she didn’t have a backing band, she made up for it in style, charisma and talent. Definitely one to keep an eye on and watch out for in the future.

Mancunian legends The Charlatans followed, with a melting pot of their absolute classics – including Weirdo, North Country Boy, One to Another, and of course, The Only One I Know. Singer Tim Burgess was clearly enjoying himself, taking selfies and videos on his iPhone of the huge crowd. Check out both his and The Charlatans Instagram for full coverage and scope of the enormous crowd from his viewpoint.

Following a clash between Friendly Fires and Katy B on the Castle stage, independent singer RAYE followed on the Common stage. She played many songs from her debut album ‘21st Century Blues‘, which she referred affectionately to as her first born baby which she was rightfully extremely proud of. It certainly had an Amy Winehouse vibe. New song ‘Ice Cream Man‘ was particularly powerful with a raw exploration of her life after sexual assault. She finished with more upbeat number one song ‘Escapism‘ which had the crowd singing along.

Jamiroquai was a UK festival exclusive performance for Victorious festival. Joking himself that he was a little thinner and lighter in the 90s successful years, singer Jay Kay still has the space cowboy moves, even if he did ask for the spotlights to be turned down to prevent his cataracts needing replacing….or possibly to stop the crowd getting such a sight of his less nimble physique.

Saturday began with not one, but two special guests. While Australian singer and former Neighbours star Natalie Imbruglia shone on the main stage at 1pm, McFly were secret special guests over at the Castle Stage. Fans were truly torn (excuse the pun) on which to see. Recently celebrating their 20th anniversary, McFly still have the energy and moves to kick start any event and draw in a huge crowd…constantly leaping in the air and showing their choreographed moves. It was impossible not to enjoy their show and easy to understand their continued popularity.

Pale Waves followed, adorning a ‘My Mind Makes Noise‘ tattoo – hopefully that noise is as good in their head as it sounded to the crowd, before the long forgotten The Divine Comedy returned, with their good humour. Walking on stage with a glass of red wine, singer Neil Hannon seemed dazzled by the size of the crowd, before appropriately raising the glass to sing ‘Here’s to You‘. Despite complaining of first-world problems that his plectrums were too thin, they played all their classic tunes from the 90s, including ‘National Express‘ and ‘Something For The Weekend‘. Alas their theme from Father Ted and My Lovely Horse were missing (maybe ask your dad if you missed out the first time.)

Scottish legends Belle and Sebastian followed, asking the crowd what the sign-language for Boris Johnson could possibly be…it appeared to be V signs and definitely not ‘V for Victory’. As is customary for a Belle and Sebastian set, they asked many of the crowd to join them onstage for their biggest hit ‘The Boy With The Arab Strap‘ – much to the dismay of the security guards who were sure how the usher everyone offstage afterwards.

The same crowd questioned why Kaiser Chiefs were not booked as headliners. With so many classic hits and singalongs, it’s testament to the strength of the bill that they were lower down the bill. They never missed a beat and when playing ‘I Predict A Riot‘ mid-set, singer Ricky Wilson climbed up the side of the stage scaffolding, to add to the traumatic day the security team were having.

Kasabian were booked as headliners, but arguably had less singalong songs as the aforementioned Kaiser Chiefs. As well as their own hits, to make up for this, they mixed in classics from Daft Punk (One More Time), Beastie Boys (Intergalactic) and Fatboy Slim (Praise You), before finishing with their own anthem ‘Fire’.

As usual with Victorious festival, Sunday morning began with a big crowd-pleaser name, and another blast-from-the past. DJ Annie Mac began proceedings over on the Castle Stage, while forgotten stars of CCTV Hard-Fi returned for their first show in over 10 years and another festival exclusive for Victorious.

Summer Festival Guide favourite Dylan followed, asking if there were any Harry Styles fans in the crowd, before playing her song based on the One Direction singer which gave rise to her own fame on Tik-Tok.

Norwegian Sigrid followed, fresh from headlining Big Feastival earlier in the weekend. Unfortunately her guitar player Liva Svaeren was forced to sit during the entire set after trying to re-enact her inner Gene Simmons from Kiss and injuring her ankle. This was Sigrid’s last set in the UK before returning home to her native land, but hopefully it won’t be long until she returns to our shores.

Ellie Goulding was fortunate to escape without serious injury after a firework onstage flew backwards into her face. She managed to continue with her set despite the scare, but it remained an emotional performance after she revealed prior that she was splitting from her husband on social-media.

Mumford & Sons concluded the main Common Stage on Sunday night, while legendary guitar player Johnny Marr headlined the Castle Stage. Playing songs from his illustrious career Johnny Marr arguably is now a better singer than his Smiths frontman Morrissey, giving the crowd what they wanted with classic versions of ‘This Charming Man‘, ‘Bigmouth Strikes Again’ and of course, his epic guitar riff ‘How Soon Is Now‘.

Early bird tickets are already available for Victorious 2024 and if the past few years are anything to go by, it’s a safe bet that there will be another incredible line up again next year.

To get 2024 tickets at this years prices, visit https://www.victoriousfestival.co.uk