VICTORIOUS FESTIVAL SET FOR A JAM-PACKED AUGUST BANK HOLIDAY WEEKENDER

Tom Jenkinson Published: February 2025 | Updated: February 2025 3 minutes read

FESTIVAL PREVIEW | VICTORIOUS FESTIVAL | 22nd -24th August 2025

Portsmouth’s Victorious Festival proves once again that the South Coast is quickly becoming one of the central cultural and musical hotspots in the UK. Starting out initially as a tribute festival in the historic dockyard (capacity of circa 2,500) the festival quickly outgrew the confines of this venue, moving to Southsea Seafront in 2014, where it has remained a staple of the local arts calendar for 11 years.

2025 promises one of the most ambitious and diverse line-ups in the festival’s history, with Queens of the Stone Age, Vampire Weekend, and Kings of Leon providing headline performances across the August Bank Holiday weekend (22-24th August). While the festival is targeting A-list acts with their headline line-up it is pleasing to see some of the finest UK talent also sharing the stage. Michael Kiwanuka plays the Friday night off the back of 2024’s ‘Small Changes‘, along with Madness who have been festival regulars over the years. Setting the tone for QOTSA’s headline set will be Wunderhorse whose sound has arguably followed the pathway forged by Josh Homme.

Saturday offers something a little more radio-friendly; Nelly Furtado, The Last Dinner Party, and Travis all catering for families just looking to have a sing song and a dance against Portsmouth’s coastal backdrop. Line-up highlight for the Saturday is set to come from Northern Exposure favourite Caity Baser who wow’d last summer with her raucous, poppy set at Gunnersbury Park, supporting Tom Grennan. While day 2 of the festival may not offer the kind of “edge” seen the night before, festival-goers looking for something a bit more serious would do well to catch Mike Skinner DJ or Public Service Broadcasting. Alternatively, they may just want to let their hair down to Rizzle Kicks and Scouting for Girls for their fix of mid-2000s cheese.

The festival closes with Kings of Leon who are the big-ticket act for the festival. The band were hinted to be the big signing for this year with a cryptic clue left on the empty festival site in November 2024, with a sign that just read “morning” written on a red background (hinting their 2003 hit “Red Morning Light”). While the Grammy award-winning band may be the showstopper, there is a rich afternoon of performances on offer from The Cuban Brothers, Reverend & The Makers, Reytons, Gabrielle, and Bloc Party who will be performing a set consisting entirely of tracks from their debut album “Silent Alarm” and a string of their subsequent greatest hits.

Victorious Festival has continued to expand its value offering as part of the ticket price, with an equally impressive line-up of stand-up comedians performing across the weekend. Chris McCausland headlines the Comedy Tent on Saturday night, fresh from his recent success on Strictly Come Dancing, with Joel Dommett and Ruby Wax providing laughs on Friday and Sunday respectively.

The festival organisers remain keen to acknowledge and support the local acts which help establish the brand so early on in their history. They continue to support local acts spread sporadically throughout the site, with Casemates Studios providing vital stage space to some of the best local, unsigned Portsmouth talent. Come for the headliners, but stay for the plethora of art that is on offer at this gem of a festival on the South Coast.

Early bird tickets on sale until 4^th March from £75 a day, or weekend tickets start at £195: https://www.victoriousfestival.co.uk/buy-tickets/