There is so much green space in Hackney and Tower Hamlets, and we are lucky to have a festival on our doorstep for two weeks – can we stop complaining, MyLondon reporter Ayo says
Festival season in London guarantees something beyond the festivals themselves: local people complaining that their parks aren’t made for festivals and they need to move.
It’s a tale as old as time, and I do get it. If it’s your local park, seeing it closed off as between 20,000 and 40,000 people descend on it for a weekend is annoying. The setup process means constant vans, noise, and unsightly fences are put up. If you are elderly or disabled, increased traffic could impact accessibility.
On event days, thumping speakers and drunk partygoers will stumble down your street late at night, while you might not have even got free tickets. It does seem unfair.
I’ve spoken to many people about All Points East in Victoria Park. The two-week festival has been a regular fixture in the park since 2018. I’ve attended myself. I grew up a 10-minute walk from Victoria Park, and having a festival this close to home, I felt, was a win-win. I’ve been to festivals at Victoria Park long before All Points East even came in.
So when I interviewed people in the park earlier this year after All Points East organisers requested to have the park for 75 days during the summer, I knew I was going to find some polarising opinions. The organisers wanted to lock off the section of the park for 75 days, increasing it from its current 28 days, to aid in the setup.
That is a long time to section off the park. I can understand why people wouldn’t be happy about it. I understood why some members of the Victoria Park community created a petition advocating against the proposal.
Yet when I see comments saying the festival has ‘outgrown the park’, that is where I disagree. In my younger days, I went to Lovebox and Steelyard at Victoria Park. I’ve seen festivals at the park in the summer for as long as I can remember. I think having access to a festival that brings so much to the area is a positive and not a negative. I remember when Lovebox was the regular festival at Victoria Park, and I was gutted when it moved.
Whether it’s local businesses that benefit from the increased footfall, the locals who get to dance on the doorstep and walk home or the fact you can see international superstars in East London for a weekend, should be a good reason enough to be happy.
My local pizza shop owner told me he looks forward to All Points East because he knows that when partygoers are walking home, they will stop off for food. He told me that during those two weeks, he will make the equivalent of two months’ trade.
Is it an inconvenience that you might not be able to walk your dog in its usual spot? Is it annoying that you can’t cut through the middle of the park, and that might add an extra five to ten minutes to your journey? Yes. Is that reason enough for an entire festival to be moved? I would have to say no.
Victoria Park is one of London’s oldest public parks. It’s been dubbed the “People’s Park”, and I think that name is fitting. We shouldn’t be demonising an entire festival or complaining that the park is ‘closed off’ when so much of it is still left to walk around.
London needs to be more fun. Nightclubs and places to go are becoming few and far between. All Points East is two weeks of fun. It’s a festival in East London that generations get to enjoy, discovering new acts or seeing somebody they’ve always wanted to see. I even spoke to an elderly lady who said she got to watch Massive Attack a few years ago at the festival. This shows that no matter your age, there will be something.
On top of that, they even host free events during the week with their ‘In the Neighbourhood’ program before the festival on the weekends. This gives the local community a chance to enjoy, take their kids and experience something differently before the craziness of the weekend. I think that’s a pretty good tradeoff.
Is it noisy? Of course, but this is London — we should be able to handle some noise for a couple of days. Is 75 days a long time to lock off a section of the park? I would say yes. Maybe there’s a sweet spot that can be found to compromise on the days.
If you move near Victoria Park, you should expect it to be busy during the summer. It’s part and parcel of it. I know in recent years, people have started calling it “Victoria Park Village”; it is not one. That is not the case, and we shouldn’t try to make it that.
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