Isle of Wight Festival kicks off as 55,000 people expected to attend

  • Watch Chloe Oliver's report on Isle of Wight Festival, Friday.

Thousands of music fans have descended on Seaclose Park for the Isle of Wight Festival.

More than 55,000 people are expected to attend this year's event, which spans across three days.

This year - which marks the 54th time the festival has been held - crowds in Newport have been warned to keep hydrated and stay safe in the sun.

Festival-goers are being urged to use sun cream as temperatures are expected to remain above 20°C each day.

Organisers have set up a number of taps around the site - so fans can refill water bottles for free.

More than 70 staff at a medical tent are ready to help anyone who falls ill. 

Water bottle stations have been installed to help people stay hydrated and as part of a sustainability initiative. Credit: ITV Meridian

Dave Rock, Medical Commander said: "The biggest thing is pure hydration. Drinking to thirst. We don't recommend drinking a particular amount of fluids or types of fluids but it's just drink to thirst.

"The big thing is drinking, drinking, drinking. Keeping in a shaded area, suncream and just to be sensible."

There is also a focus on new sustainable initiatives:

  • No waste from the festival is sent to landfill

  • Sustainable travel encouraged via ticketing partnerships

  • Food and beverage are only allowed to use compostable serveware and cutlery

  • A deposit return scheme for cups and bottles to encourage re-use

  • Water reduction measures (e.g. the use of push taps across the site) – with all water piping donated to local farms for use in irrigation

  • A goal of a 50% cut in greenhouse gas emissions by 2030

Festival director, Caroline Giddings said: “We want the Isle of Wight Festival to be the most sustainable festival in the UK.

"From small-scale changes, such as the type of cups and cutlery we use, to systemic shifts such as the push to get the main stage area on the electricity grid. "

With an audience drawn from across the Isle of Wight, the south of England and beyond, the weekend is a highlight of the UK’s world-leading festival season.

The 2023 Isle of Wight Festival will feature headliners Pulp, George Ezra, The Chemical Brothers and Robbie Williams.

The first Isle of Wight Festival was held near the English Village of Godshill in 1968 and saw around 15,000 attendees.

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