Reading & Leeds festival-goers will need a vaccine passport to attend

Reading & Leeds 2021 — (Image credit: Reading & Leeds)

As events last year were cancelled due to obvious reasons, the re-introduction of music festivals this summer has been a tantalising prospect. Now, we’ve had the first glimpse of what this year’s UK festival season could look like.

Melvin Benn, boss of Reading & Leeds festival has announced that punters will “almost certainly” need a vaccine passport – or at least some form of proof to say they're not infected with the virus – to be able to attend.

Despite Reading & Leeds already selling out, earlier this month Reading council stated that “nothing has been agreed” in regards to the plausibility of the festival taking place this August. Benn however is adamant that the event will go ahead in line with the UK government’s roadmap out of lockdown that permits large gatherings from June 21 onwards.

On top of the vaccine passport, the festival site will host a dedicated Covid medical director and team. The festival may also be tied to the same safety precautions as bars and restaurants.

Although this year’s festival landscape still isn’t set in stone, Benn explains the reason behind his optimistic view: “I’m taking the prime minister at his word that from June the legal restrictions will be off and as he and the culture secretary said:
‘We are looking forward to a summer of fun.’

“If it is cancelled everyone gets a refund – that’s pretty normal – but I’m certainly anticipating it going ahead.”

This year will see Stormzy, Liam Gallagher and Queens of the Stone Age headline the main stages.

Liz manages Louder's social media channels and works on keeping the sites up to date with the latest news from the world of rock and metal. Prior to joining Louder as a full time staff writer, she completed a Diploma with the National Council for the Training of Journalists and received a First Class Honours Degree in Popular Music Journalism. She enjoys writing about anything from neo-glam rock to stoner, doom and progressive metal, and loves celebrating women in music.