Week Ahead: Leeds Festival returns with 90,000 fans - and a Covid isolation campsite

READY TO ROCK

Leeds Festival will be back for the Bank Holiday weekend to the delight of rock music fans after a Covid-enforced absence last year.

Almost 90,000 people are expected at Bramham Park for the three-day event starting on Friday and which is headlined this year by the likes of Liam Gallagher, Biffy Clyro and Stormzy.

A new format will see two main stages instead of the previous one.

Earlier this month, Melvin Benn, managing director of Festival Republic which organises the event, presented a range of new safety features set to be implemented this year following the findings of an inquest into a teenager’s death at the 2019 event.

They include a welfare tent situated within the arena as well as a standalone drugs advisory board.

Mr Benn said Festival Republic had also invested in Covid testing machines for the site with a “15 minute result”.

Mr Benn said: “Anybody who tests positive on a lateral flow, if we are in advance we may be separating them, but if anyone presents to medical we are able to give a pretty accurate clarity on whether they are Covid positive or not on site.

“That benefits the continuity of production and the attendees.”

However, if someone tested positive for Covid on site and were “vulnerable and/or can’t return home”, Mr Benn said organisers had made plans to create an “isolated campsite” for them to stay overnight.

In other music news, HMV will celebrate its 100th anniversary this week with the retailer putting on a free Ed Sheeran concert at the HMV Empire in Coventry.

HOT PROPERTY

The state of the housing market will come under scrutiny again on Tuesday as HM Revenue and Customs releases its house sales study for the month of July.

It follows a recent report by property website Rightmove which said the average price tag on a home has fallen by just over £1,000 this month.

Across Britain, the average asking price in August was £337,371, down by 0.3% or £1,076 compared with July, Rightmove said.

It marked the first monthly fall in the average price of property coming to market so far in 2021 and was predominantly due to a cooling at the higher end of the market. Despite the monthly dip, the average asking price is still 5.6 per cent higher than a year ago.

ON THEIR MARKS

The Paralympics gets underway in Tokyo in Tuesday, running over 12 days until September 5.

The GB team are targeting a minimum of 100 medals during the Games.

Among our best gold medal hopes are cyclist Dame Sarah Storey, who will surpass swimmer Mike Kenny’s long-standing record as Britain’s most-successful Paralympian with victory in each of her three events. Table tennis star Will Bayley looks well-placed to retain gold, while swimmers Ellie Robinson and Ellie Simmonds, cyclist Jody Cundy, athletes Hannah Cockroft, Jonnie Peacock, Richard Whitehead and David Weir, and boccia player David Smith will each be eyeing further success.

TUNING IN

The influential Edinburgh International TV Festival takes place from today until Thursday with a combination of in-person and virtual events

Those participating include acclaimed TV writer Jack Thorne, who will deliver this year’s MacTaggart lecture. Other big names due to appear include Hollywood star Whoopi Goldberg, as well as ITV’s Kevin Lygo and Channel 4’s Ian Katz.

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