My first word about this year’s festival is WOW!
Another year of huge success for Victorious Festival and another year of new changes. Did you know that our seafront had nearly 80,000 people visit the site per day and offered wonderful memories for attendees and families, whether for the music, the comedy or the huge range of activities on-site?
FRIDAY
Having the legendary Fatboy Slim headline Friday night was the highlight of the whole weekend for me as I just loved the graphics used and how his set was an ultimate show.
Bringing together creativity and visual stimulation really brought Friday night alive. I felt like I was twenty again and actually talked to my youngest son about the time that Fatboy Slim was at his highest peak in the 90’s and how it was good to be a part of that feeling on the Southsea Common. I talked about how It is amazing that Norman Cook is still going strong and how clever he is with his music means he is still current and as relevant today as he has always been.
I caught up with Daniel Stubbs who worked with Fatboy Slim and Pepita Coffee to bring out a new artist tin. Daniel said, ‘This year’s Victorious Festival has been a little different for me. On Friday, I had the awesome opportunity to sign artwork I’d created for Pepita Coffee and Pitt St.
“I also took part in the signing event where the super talented Chemical X and none other than the iconic Fatboy Slim were present – both genuinely nice guys. It proved to be a really cool experience and I’d like to thank everyone involved for their support.
“Luckily, l still had time to enjoy some great music over the weekend too, including;
The man himself – Fatboy Slim,
An old favourite – Pixies,
A new discovery – Arlo Parks,
Local heroes – Fake Empire,
and my daughter’s favourite – Wet Leg.
“A fantastic weekend was had by all my family and friends! Roll on next year!’
Arriving on Friday afternoon, my first set was at the Introducing Stage with The Stayawakes who hadn’t played for 5 years at this festival. The crowd loved the songs and the band enjoyed throwing out song after song. I love this local Pompey punk band and always love to hear them play.
Razorlight lifted the start of the weekend crowd. Standing on the Common Stage they sang a perfect set. Idles were a firm favourite later in the day and it was amazing to see Snow Patrol play an incredible set as the sun set across the seaside sky before the headline event.
Loving the Big Top Comedy Tent last year, we knew we wanted to watch Russell Howard. We always love him on the telly as a family and felt that this was a good time to stop racing from one stage to another and just enjoy some comedy. Russell did not disappoint, in fact, the crowd was so big it came the furthest back I have ever seen from that tent. The laughter was real as was the love for the comedian. Before Russell, a local comedian from Portsmouth, Suzi Ruffell came on and was so well received. She spoke of her time at school and had everyone in stitches. I would definitely go and see her again.
Speaking to Michael Frankland, the organiser of the comedy side of the tent, he said, “I really enjoyed getting the opportunity to work with the likes of Russell Howard, Frankie Boyle and Al Murray.
“These were the comedians that inspired me to get into comedy, definitely a dream come true.” Russell Howard said on his socials, “Thanks Victorious Festival, an absolutely incredible crowd. Apparently 16 thousand of you!! Thanks for coming and I hope you enjoyed it as much as me.”
James Ralls, Festival Director said: “It’s been another unforgettable year on the seafront. From huge cruise ships and the return of the Seaside Stage plus incredible headline sets from Fatboy Slim, Jamie T and Biffy Clyro we’ve had it all and it’s great to see so many people enjoying live music, family entertainment and comedy whilst making memories to last a lifetime! We’re sad it’s ended but we’re already excited to welcome everyone back in 2025 for another memorable weekend.”
SATURDAY
After such a great day on Friday with sunshine and blue skies, the torrential rain hit the seafront with a whack and even though it was expected, it was annoying! We got drenched as we arrived just in time to see Tom Walker but we didn’t let that spoil our fun. I wasn’t expecting to love his set as much as I did but it was so good. His voice is so strong and he carried the whole 45 minutes well. He really got the sodden crowd on his side all the time he was standing on stage bracing the weather.
Drying out as the sunshine kept coming in spells, we hit the Thatchers area for the dance music, we waited for Batala Portsmouth to join together for a drumming session on the common. The heavens opened and so many people ran for cover but the entire drumming group took the rainwater in their stride. Once the bulk of the downpour had passed, they started their drumming display and made everyone smile.
Being a local group that is part of a worldwide international extravaganza, they are a samba-reggae percussion band that plays authentic Afro-Brazilian samba-reggae music. They are so uplifting no matter what music you enjoy, you can rely on Batala to bring a huge energy to the festival. Bumping into Charlotte Cornelius, a local Jeweller on Marmion Road, she said, “I loved seeing my husband play the drums with Batala and my highlight so far this weekend has to be Fatboy Slim!”
Next up we headed back to the Common Stage to see Crystal Tides. Having followed them over the last 6 years, it was emotional and amazing to see them play the main stage. I felt that being at their hometown festival was a big moment for the band and loved hearing Billy talk about how they are headlining the Portsmouth Guildhall next year!
I have interviewed the band a few times and interviewed their manager plus gone to so many of their shows. Watching a band grow and fit so well into a main stage at a prime time and have such a huge, welcoming crowd made me feel so proud of all they have achieved. They ended their set playing ‘Honey’ and was a great end to their half-hour set.
Holly Humberstone headed on to the Common Stage next and really held her own up there. Having spent a season opening for Taylor Swift, she looked confident and excited to be on stage!
Spending time chilling and enjoying the site, we grabbed food and then went to watch The Courteeners. It was magical. The rain had stopped and the skyline fitted lead singer Liam Fray’s charisma on stage.
I felt very excited and also emotional, as the last time I watched the band live was at Tramlines in 2019 where they headlined. Sheffield is built on hills and as The Courteeners played their huge hit ‘Not Nineteen Forever’ to around 40,000 people it caused a minor local earthquake as the vibrations were caused by the huge crowd jumping up and down to the band’s huge hit.
With this memory in my mind, I loved watching the crowd and the feeling that the major hit song brought to the crowd. They just love that song. As Liam said before the band played the hit, “This song is for people at the front, people at the side and people at the back”, we just knew it was going to be a crowd pleaser.
My surprise was the new song that the band played which was ‘Solitude Of The Nightbus’ and is off the new album, Pink Cactus Cafe. It was really dramatic and I loved it and makes me look forward to their new music. The band said of the festival, “Thank you Victorious, you’ve been unreal. We love you!”
Having seen The Courteeners win an award at the first Northern Awards for ‘Band of the Year’ in April this year and thinking about their 2008 debut album reaching number one in 2023 after being reissued, it felt good to see a northern band up on the main stage that has had such a successful year.
SUNDAY
The Kooks gave a very polished set to start the afternoon off. Then came Natasha Beddingfield who was the highlight of the afternoon for me. She had an unbelievable crowd that ventured so far back. I remember going to see her in London maybe 2004 and loving her then but I wasn’t prepared for how engaging she was going to be onstage.
Playing Unwritten at the end of her set was a delight and she really grabbed the crowd’s hearts. My favourite song that Natasha did was her cover of Purple Rain. It was so good even Prince would have had a smile.
James Bay has played Victorious before and is an incredible musician and guitarist. Having broken into the music world 10 years ago with his hit song Let It Go, it is nice to see his experience and love of music shine through onstage. I always love to stand in a crowd when a favourite song comes on and I stood in a huge crowd for Hold Back The River. It was a fab end to his performance. James said of his time at Victorious, “Thank you so much Victorious! This has been a pleasure and the crowd is fantastic.”
Sunday didn’t bring rain like Saturday but it did bring wind. When Becky Hill hit the Common Stage, she looked like she had deliberately brought the wind with her as she embraced it all with her hair! She brought a huge amount of character to the stage and the crowd loved it. Playing My Heart Goes (La Di Da) brought back love from Fatboy’s set and a dancing crowd!
Biffy Clyro gave a perfect dramatic end to a fabulous weekend. Hearing fans sing ‘When we collide we come together’ was a goosebump moment that could be heard I am sure a good few miles away!
THINGS I LOVED
I have said this before but I love the growth of this festival and how it adapts every year. The changes in VIP were welcomed with a karaoke unit as you walked in and offered a chance to go inside a truck where no one could see you sing.
There was a new tarot tent that brought smiles to visitors.
The SECRET SET that started last year came back and Busted were the band that came halfway through the day. The band brought high energy with classics such as Year 3000, Crashed The Wedding and Air Hostess and had an excitable crowd. This part of the festival always brings joy and wonder about who will come by next year.
The Portsmouth Creates area always has a feeling of love and calm. Having Seekers Create there with their doodleboards and installations allowed the crowd to stop for a while and then visit the cool indies that reside there. My favourite stall in this area this year was Pollynogg as I just think she grasped the festival vibe with her clever sweatshirt designs. Of course, all the other huts had cool displays like Hannah Southsea who just gets the re-use and revamp style with her signature wings and the Very Arsh shop that sold so many cool things like cards and mugs.
I loved the butterfly wings board this year where thousands stopped to grab a photo as a butterfly! Although I didn’t get a chance to listen to all the music on the Portsmouth Creates stage, I did feel that the music choices had been very carefully curated and really supported local talent.
We managed to catch Megan Linford who has an incredible voice and you could hear a pin drop as the crowd captured her beautiful voice. A local girl who has so many talents in folk music and has a distinctive sound.
Before I headed to the festival, I downloaded the Victorious app and loved the new addition of adding videos of each artist playing over the weekend. I think this really helps people to go find new bands or musicians they might not have heard of.
The Introducing Stage brought the love this year for super talented bands like;
Fake Empire
Hallan
The Stayawakes
Dutch Criminal Record
I felt I could have just had a whole festival of these local musicians and just stayed there! If you haven’t seen these bands then look out for them over the coming year.
The food was good and some really nice stalls. I liked the new addition on the app where it gave you a list of all the food vendors so you could look up more about them before you wandered around for food. We liked the Greek stall where you could buy watermelon and chicken slouvaki which was cooked to perfection. The Baked Bird stand did baked fries which were exceptional and the chicken tasted home-cooked! Dark Matters offered us the tastiest vegan and GF brownies that we had to go back twice!
Can you believe there was a piano tree? It gave young budding pianists a chance to have a blast with a few pianos all painted up and cheerfully calling people up to play!
I always feel sad about the festival ending but then we have the memories. We also have the chance to think about which artists will be playing in 2025.
When I think that you can now spread the cost of your festival ticket over the year for just £11.99 a month, it always brings joy as it makes it affordable. Check out early bird offers on the website here.
Feature Photo – Tom Langford
Russell Howard photo – James White
The Courteeners – Tom Langford
Crystal Tides – Tom Langford
James Bay – Tom Langford
Ha Ha photo – Russ Leggatt
