Leeds Festival

The first festival, at a site in the grounds of Temple Newsam, including Red Hot Chilli Peppers and Blur was in 1999.

The event is 'twinned' with the Reading Festival so that the same line-up appearing at both venues over three days.

Musical fireworks

A weekend ticket would have cost you £80 for that initial 1999 Leeds event.

Unfortunately, the early years of the festival in Leeds were often as notable for controversy as for the musical fireworks.

For instance in 2001, with Eminem's appearance taking most of the musical headlines, police were pelted with stones and other missiles when violence erupted at the end of the festival.

A group went on a rampage of what the police called "mindless violence and damage" in the campsite. More trouble followed next year, Kate Skelton (then a student in Leeds) said "a nasty combination of alcohol-fuelled mob mentality and a few cigarette lighters led to the burning of toilet blocks and vandalism on a massive scale."

So it was under a bit of a cloud that Leeds Festival moved to its current home, in Bramham Park, for the 2003 event. Acts appearing that year included Metallica, Linkin Park, and White Stripes.

Melvin Benn, managing director of promoter Mean Fiddler, tried to reassure local residents over the switch.


Part of the Temple Newsam site ablaze in 2001