Organisers have confirmed that Reading and Leeds Festival is back.
The roadmap out of lockdown has got people finally hyped for a summer that looks a lot better than the last. With nearly 18 million people vaccinated against coronavirus and large-scale events able to resume from June 21 (pending the success of previous easing steps), it’s possible to feel properly optimistic for the first time in a while. Today, Reading and Leeds Festival added a little more excitement to the upcoming summer with the announcement that they’ll be going ahead come August.
Large-scale events are in line to begin in Step 4 of the roadmap, which could start as early as June 21. Meanwhile, a pilot study of large events with mass testing was revealed to be part of Step 3 measures (beginning no earlier than May 17), which could provide clarity for late summer festivals to resume. With dates of August 27-29 locked in since last summer, Reading and Leeds are well positioned to take advantage of the news, and provide us with a long-overdue chance to head to the festivals.
Previously confirmed headliners include Stormzy, Lewis Capaldi, Doja Cat, Queens of the Stone Age, Post Malone, Liam Gallagher, Disclosure, and AJ Tracey (live and direct). They won’t be the only festivals confirmed to take place this summer but as the biggest festival preparing to return (sorry Glasto), it’s enough to get us very excited for the summer ahead.