Leeds Festival closes third stage after Storm Lilian brings strong winds to UK

Ian Youngs
Entertainment and Arts Reporter, BBC News

Image source, EPA

Leeds Festival has called off all performances on its second and third biggest stages for the whole day.

That means no sets from some big names – US dance music superstar Skrillex and Brit Award and Mercury Prize-nominated junglist Nia Archives were supposed to top the bill on the 40,000-capacity Chevron stage.

And singer-songwriter Beabadoobee, who currently has the UK’s number one album, was due to headline the BBC Radio 1 Stage.

It’s rare for festivals to take such drastic measures because of bad weather. In 2019, Boardmasters in Cornwall was cancelled completely just hours before the start because of a coming storm. And at Glastonbury, torrential rain delayed the start in 2005, while lightning closed the stages for a spell in 2014.

Leeds’ main stage is still due to run today as planned, with Liam Gallagher, Catfish and the Bottlemen and 21 Savage among the performers.

Some minor stages will be open too, but most of the 90,000 attendees will have little choice but to cram into the main arena.