Ferries and more pass the victorious main stage, on the coast at Portsmouth. Picture: Somerset Leveller

Victorious 2025: Something for everyone by the seaside. No, really…

Paul JonesSeptember 1, 20250 Comment0

FESTIVALS based in a town or city can be tricky. It can feel like they struggle for identity. Are they a weekend away from it all? Or a place for city folk to enjoy festivals but still get a cab back to their own bed?

Reading, perhaps, is the best example of a festival that manages to maintain a proper ‘away from the real world’ vibe, while being within walking distance of a McDonald’s – and the likes of Glastonbury being truly out on a bit of a limb.

So it was we headed to Victorious, which is set on the stunning beach, literally in parts, of Portsmouth across the August bank Holiday weekend.

The site is vast, stretching far beyond what you think as you make your way in, with stages truly hidden as you make your way around – providing a nice surprise.

Roads, the beach and more are all closed in sections for the festival, it seems, giving it a strange, but not bad, feel.

On-stage, Victorious has been among the top festival bills in recent years – and 2025 was no different.

Headliners Queens of the Stone Age, Vampire Weekend and Kings of Leon rivalled pretty much anything else on the UK circuit this summer.

They were complimented by the likes of Travis, The Charlatans, Craig David, The Last Dinner Party and more, so it held its own up and down the bill.

With around 80,000 people attending each day, it is comparable to the likes of Reading – but with no campsites (those are a trek or a bus ride away) – so a completely different ‘vibe’, as the kids say.

That vibe is something akin to a weekend jolly for mums and dads, sometimes with family in tow, going all out for a good time (and probably staying at nearby Premier Inn).

For this ageing festival goer, none of this was a negative. The ability to rest aching bones in a city-centre café was welcome, as was the very dignified crowd (mostly, you always get one or two), and – whisper this – a Starbucks in the arena. Yes, a Starbucks. Whatever next.

Highlights, musically, included Travis and of course, Kings of Leon, who never fail to deliver to their legion of adoring followers. Queens of the Stone Age are, well, Queens of the Stone Age, and always give a good show of themselves, if sometimes wandering into the self-indulgent. But they rock hard.

So, if you’re looking for a festival that has everything – truly, from a beach escape to a rocking time – then Victorious could well be your best bet.

And you can pretty much guarantee a good line-up too, so get those early-bird tickets now.

Tickets for Victorious 2026 are available via www.victoriousfestival.co.uk.