Victorious Festival 2025: Portsmouth’s Biggest Weekend is Back

From Local Support to National Recognition: Victorious Festival Wraps Up an Award-Winning Year

Portsmouth’s iconic Victorious Festival is back from 22–24 August 2025, riding high on the success of a landmark 2024. What started as a celebration of local talent has grown into one of the UK’s most respected music festivals, winning national awards, supporting grassroots causes, and injecting millions into the local economy while showcasing Southsea’s glorious seafront.

A Year of Milestones

Victorious Festival 2024 was a landmark edition, not only for its show-stopping line-up and sun-soaked stages, but for the undeniable impact it had on Portsmouth’s cultural, social, and economic life. It wasn’t just a festival weekend it was a movement, setting new standards for what a modern, community-rooted music event can achieve.

Here’s just a snapshot of what 2024 looked like:

• Winner – Major Festival of the Year at the prestigious Live Awards, beating out some of the UK’s most iconic festivals

• A staggering £24.3 million in direct economic benefit for Portsmouth — a record-breaking figure

• £135,421.29 donated to 20 local charities, empowering community causes across the city

• Main sponsor of Portsmouth Pride, helping the city win the bid to host UK Pride 2025

Key partner in We Shine Portsmouth, a major arts and light festival celebrating creativity and inclusivity

Behind the scenes, the Victorious team was working year-round to make sure the impact extended far beyond the music.

“Victorious is about more than just the weekend,” said Festival Director James Ralls. “Our team is deeply connected to the city and works hard to create not only the biggest festival weekend of the summer, but to make a difference all year round through the Victorious in the Community initiatives.”

And that mission is no empty promise.

Through its partnerships with organisations like Portsmouth Creates, Victorious is now a cultural powerhouse — funding public art, supporting grassroots creatives, and bringing free cultural events to the heart of the city.

It also played a crucial role in Portsmouth Pride’s UK Pride 2025 bid, which was successful solidifying the festival’s role as a leader in diversity, equality, and representation.

From art to activism, local music to national awards, economic growth to emotional connection, 2024 proved one thing: Victorious isn’t just Portsmouth’s festival anymore, it’s Portsmouth’s legacy in the making.

A Festival That Means Business

Since its move to Southsea Common in 2014, Victorious Festival has evolved into more than just a celebration of music, it’s become one of Portsmouth’s most powerful economic engines. Each year, it brings a tidal wave of tourism, trade, and opportunity to the city, with benefits that ripple far beyond the festival gates.

£132.1 million in total economic impact has been generated for Portsmouth since 2014

(Source: Southsea Folk)

£24.3 million of that came from the 2024 festival alone, a record year for local revenue

Every August, tens of thousands of visitors flood Southsea, filling up hotels, restaurants, pubs, shops, taxis, and takeaway counters. The result? A bumper weekend for small businesses, and a welcome boost for Portsmouth’s hospitality and tourism industries.

High street heroes and small traders alike see the benefits, especially through initiatives like Neighbourhood Eats, which allows local independent food and drink vendors to trade directly at the festival, putting them in front of tens of thousands of new customers and showcasing Portsmouth’s culinary creativity.

These aren’t just pop-up stalls; they’re a showcase of Portsmouth’s entrepreneurial spirit. For many vendors, Victorious provides their biggest trading weekend of the year.

And the impact isn’t just financial. According to Southsea Folk, around 50% of attendees reported a more positive perception of Portsmouth after attending the festival showing that Victorious doesn’t just bring people in; it leaves them with something worth coming back for.

From seafront B&Bs to city centre cafés, Victorious is the kind of festival that quietly transforms local economies one pint, one souvenir, one hotel room at a time.

Giving Back to the City

Charitable giving and community support are at the heart of Victorious. The festival has donated over £830,000 to local charities and good causes since 2014.

In 2024 alone, more than £135,000 was shared among 20 organisations including:

• Tonic Music for Mental Health

• The Literacy Hubs

• Portsmouth Down Syndrome Association

• This New Ground

🗣️ Gemma Nichols, CEO of Portsmouth Creates, praised the partnership:

“The support from the Victorious team is invaluable. Their passion for Portsmouth is contagious. Together, we’ve created an even more welcoming atmosphere for all to enjoy.”

Victorious also backs community improvement projects, from renovating the D-Day Museum to enhancing the Southsea seafront flowerbeds.

Growing Local Talent: Where Future Stars Take the Stage

More than just a major music festival, Victorious has become a launchpad for the next generation of musicians, makers, and culinary creatives proving that a homegrown platform can catapult local talent onto national stages.

Road to Victorious is the festival’s flagship initiative for emerging artists, offering unsigned and up-and-coming musicians the chance to perform alongside some of the biggest names in music. Winners aren’t just given a slot on the bill they’re given a career-shaping opportunity, industry exposure, and mentorship that money can’t buy.

2024’s winner, Harvey Jay Dodgson, captured the experience perfectly:

“Name a better opportunity! Victorious gave me the chance to perform at five major UK festivals — inspiring me to turn this into a career.”

But it’s not just the musicians who benefit from the spotlight.

Neighbourhood Eats, another standout initiative, champions local independent food and drink traders giving small businesses the chance to trade at one of the UK’s top festivals. From woodfired pizza and craft bakes to bold street food flavours, it’s a celebration of Portsmouth’s foodie scene in full festival flow.

These aren’t token gestures they’re real pathways to growth, exposure, and income. For many participants, Victorious provides the biggest platform of their year, if not their career.

Whether you’re dancing to an unsigned indie band on a side stage or grabbing a locally-made treat between sets, you’re part of the story: helping talent thrive and dreams take shape, right here on the South Coast.

Portsmouth’s Festival Goes Prime Time

Victorious Festival isn’t just turning heads on the South Coast it’s commanding attention on the national stage, winning accolades, industry recognition, and a reputation as one of the UK’s must-attend music experiences.

In 2024 alone, the festival achieved a sweep of nominations and wins across major award platforms:

• 🏅 Winner – Major Festival of the Year – Live Awards 2024

• 🏆 Shortlisted – Best Large Festival, Best Line-up, and Best Initiative for Emerging Talent – UK Festival Awards

• 🎟️ Nominated – Best Visitor Experience, Best Programming, and The Legacy Award – Access All Areas Awards

To be listed alongside titans like Reading & Leeds, Latitude, and Isle of Wight Festival is impressive. To win? That’s a bold declaration: Victorious has officially entered the upper league of UK festivals while still flying the flag for Portsmouth.

Its growing profile also shines a spotlight on everything the city has to offer from local talent and traders to vibrant seafront culture. It’s not just a win for the festival, but a proud moment for Portsmouth.

Environmental Commitment: Greener, Smarter, Kinder

As Victorious continues to grow, so does its commitment to a more sustainable, future facing festival model. The team is actively working to reduce the environmental footprint of the event, with initiatives that support both the planet and people.

Here’s how Victorious is going greener:

• Promoting sustainable travel, including walking, cycling, and public transport options for festivalgoers

• Encouraging eco-conscious practices among traders, suppliers, and attendees from reusable cups to reduced single-use plastics

• Improving site-wide sustainability, with ongoing investment in greener infrastructure and smarter resource management

It’s a work in progress and the festival isn’t claiming perfection but Victorious is taking real steps to align good times with green values, proving that music festivals can be both unforgettable and environmentally responsible.

Victorious Festival 2025: Line-Up Highlights

Get your sun hats and glitter ready 2025’s line-up is a genre-spanning, crowd-pleasing masterpiece:

Check Victorious Out

Website: https://www.victoriousfestival.co.uk
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/VictoriousFestival/
Insatgram: https://www.instagram.com/victoriousfestival/
X/Twitter: https://x.com/VictoriousFest
Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/@victorious_festival

Sunday 24 August

• Kings of Leon headline the Common Stage

• Bloc Party

• Mel C (DJ Set)

• Craig David Presents TS5

• The Zutons, Reverend & The Makers, Gabrielle, Jamie Lawson

• Comedy legend Jasper Carrott closes the weekend with a laugh

Saturday 23 August

• Vampire Weekend (UK Exclusive!)

• Nelly Furtado

• Travis

• Shed Seven

• Caity Baser, Public Service Broadcasting, Scouting for Girls, Mike Skinner (DJ Set)

• Comedy: Chris McCausland

Friday 22 August

• Queens of the Stone Age

• Kaiser Chiefs

• Madness

• Daniel Bedingfield

• The Mary Wallopers, Jamie Webster, Everything Everything, The K’s, HotWax, The Charlatans