Isle of Wight Festival takes Pride in the island

Isle of Wight Festival 2017

Thursday 8th to Sunday 11th June 2017
Seaclose Park, Newport, Isle of Wight, PO30 2DN, England MAP
£195 with camping

Daily capacity: 90,000

Following the controversial comments by (now-former) Isle of Wight Conservative MP Andrew Turner who told A-level students that he believed "homosexuality is wrong" and "dangerous to society" - that's tories for you (tho thankfully this one isn't now standing for re-election) - John Giddings and his team at the Isle of Wight Festival have announced that they will be supporting the island's first ever Pride event and the LGBT community on the Isle of Wight.

John Giddings said "When people make comments from a position of responsibility, it can reflect badly on our whole community on the Island. My experiences on the Island are different and I want to reverse the negative view and through the Festival, let the Island community show the rest of the UK that we do embrace diversity here, everybody is welcome on the Island irrespective of who they are or who they love and that LoveWins."

Members of TeamPride will be running a stand at the Festival in Seaclose Park on the weekend and invite you to come and join them in a range of activities to raise awareness of Pride and of the LGBT community on the Island. Passports will be handed out to revellers, encouraging people to revisit the Island on the 15th July and to make a weekend of it!

David Thornton from Visit Isle of Wight said "With the Island being placed in the top ten places to honeymoon for LGBT couples, we want to encourage everyone to revisit our Island, spend a weekend exploring and to ensure that everybody feels welcomed here."

With interactive arts projects, Pride memorabilia to get your hands on and the opportunity to dress up on the Pride stand, Jo Kori who is Artistic lead said "As someone whose family passionately supports Pride, I know a lot of our children on the Island were concerned after the comments made about homosexuality being a danger to society. They were concerned that it would mean that everybody would think that they were homophobic too. We want to change the perception of the Island in a really positive way, extend our key message that LOVEWINS and embrace our diverse community".

The Isle of Wight Festival takes place at Seaclose Park, Newport from Thursday 8th until Sunday 11th June 2017, with headliners of Rod Stewart, Run DMC, David Guetta, and Arcade Fire, plus Kaiser Chiefs, Bastille, Texas, Jack Savoretti, Example & DJ Wire, and many more. Please see the line-up page for all the names announced so far and the day and stage splits.

buy tickets now >

Tickets are priced at £195 with camping, a student ticket is priced at £186.90, and a teen (aged 13-17 years) ticket is priced at £155. Children aged 12 and under can attend free of charge, and a campervan ticket is priced at £195. Day tickets are priced at £60 for Friday, and £80 for Saturday or Sunday.

discuss this news on the Festival Forums