UK Festival News: Citadel & Lovebox Find New Home, Cool Britannia Premieres

Danny North / Fanatic via Facebook – Lovebox 2017

Festival Republic’s Citadel & Lovebox Festivals Find New Home

Gunnersbury Park in West London is going to host the 2018 editions of both Citadel & Lovebox festivals, July 13-15.

Both festivals were forced to leave their previous location, London’s Victoria Park, when AEG secured the exclusive right to host events there for the next five years. Last November, promoter Festival Republic announced plans of relocating to Brockwell Park.

The move, however, faced vehement opposition by locals, led by the Friends of Brockwell Park committee. Its chair Peter Bradley said at the time: “Parks are not money trees for private companies or cash-strapped councils. Of course those who can afford it should enjoy open air concerts of the music they like, but not in a small urban park such as Brockwell. It just does not have the capacity to host such gigantic events. We oppose them utterly.”

The new location, which is located in the boroughs of Ealing and Hounslow, has the responsible council’s blessing. Ealing Council leader Julian Bell said: “I am delighted to welcome the Lovebox and Citadel Festivals to the borough this summer. Rightly recognised as among the very best anywhere across the capital and beyond, these festivals will boast acclaimed, international artists and a vibrant atmosphere for the many thousands of fans attending. Gunnersbury Park is a venue with an excellent record of hosting large public events including the London Mela, which has attracted over 90,000 visitors in the past.”

Gunnersbury Park is currently undergoing various transformations, and Bell said hosting festivals was “another huge boost for the park. It also underlines Ealing’s reputation as a place to see great live events, further strengthening our bid to become London Borough of Culture 2019.”

A statement from Festival Republic reads: “We can’t wait to bring what is undoubtedly our best line up ever to historic Gunnersbury Park and to introduce a new and exciting urban space into the festival market. We look forward to working side by side with Ealing and Hounslow Borough Councils to bring the best in great music and popular culture to the area.”

While the promoter said to “expect some amazing talent,” no lineup announcements have been made yet. Those are going to follow in the coming two weeks. Lovebox is going to take place on Friday and Saturday, July 13-14, and Citadel on the Sunday after, July 15. Lovebox general admission ticket’s start at £45 ($63) per day, or £60 ($85) for the weekend. No prices have been released for Citadel yet.

– Cool Britannia
the Lineup

Iconic Knebworth Site To Host Cool Britannia Festival

David Heartfield of Heartfield Entertainment and Lytton Enterprises are going to stage a festival celebrating the Cool Britannia era at one of the UK’s most iconic concert locations, Aug. 31-Sept. 2.

Knebworth has been the stage for many iconic concerts in the past, including two legendary Oasis shows in 1996. Led Zeppelin, the Rolling Stones, the Beach Boys, Pink Floyd, Eric Clapton, Dire Straits, Elton John, Robbie Williams, Metallica and Linkin Park: a selection of acts that played this scenic site in Hertfordshire, England.

The lineup in 2018 includes headliners Happy Mondays and Ocean Colour Scene as well as supporting artists Embrace, The Lightning Seeds, Peter Hook & The Light, Cast, Heather Small, Dodgy, Space, Toploader and The South. More acts are to be announced.

Ministry of Sound is going to host one stage, presenting club DJs including Todd Terry, Brandon Block, Jazzie B, Alfredo, and classic stars such as Black Box, N-Trance, Rozalla, Alison Limerick, Angie Brown, and Urban Cookie Collective.

Tickets for the camping event are going on sale Feb. 2, at 9 a.m., and range from £30 for a child’s day ticket to £135 for an adult weekend ticket including camping. A VIP option granting access to a dedicated area on the festival site can be added for £125. The last festival hosted in Knebworth was Sonisphere in 2014, but couldn’t take place the year after for lack of headliners.

Lytton Enterprises MD Martha Lytton Cobbold told the Welwyn Hatfield Times: “We are delighted to welcome Cool Britannia to Knebworth Park. With such a fantastic line-up of era defining acts, this will surely be a great addition to our 44-year history of hosting some truly memorable events.”