40 Fun Facts About Isle of Wight Festival

Which singer skipped Woodstock, near his own home, to headline the 1969 Isle of Wight Festival?

Bob Dylan ended three years of near-seclusion with a set backed by the Band, his first paid concert since a motorcycle accident in 1966.

Which guitarist played the 1970 Isle of Wight Festival just three weeks before his death?

Jimi Hendrix took the stage in the early hours of 31 August 1970 for what proved to be his last full concert in Britain.

Whose headline set at the 2004 Isle of Wight Festival proved to be his last full concert in the UK?

David Bowie had an emergency angioplasty in Hamburg twelve days later and went on to retire from touring.

Which band's 2007 Isle of Wight Festival set was their first British festival show in over thirty years?

The Rolling Stones had not played a British festival since Knebworth in 1976, and the 2007 event sold out in under five days.

After the 1970 Isle of Wight Festival, what did Parliament restrict on the island without a licence?

Large overnight gatherings of more than 5,000 people needed a special licence under the Isle of Wight County Council Act 1971, and no festival returned until 2002.

Which band played the 1969 and 1970 Isle of Wight Festivals, then returned to headline in 2004 and 2016?

The Who played their rock opera Tommy at both early festivals, and the 1970 performance was later released as a live album.

Which singer-songwriter halted her 1970 Isle of Wight Festival set to ask a booing crowd for some respect?

Joni Mitchell had been interrupted by a man called Yogi Joe, who took the stage to make a speech; she calmed the crowd and came back for an encore.

Which band played the 1970 Isle of Wight Festival in near darkness because their singer refused film lights?

The Doors performed in gloom because Jim Morrison would not have movie spotlights on the band; the full set was not released on film until 2018.

Which rapper headlined the 2010 Isle of Wight Festival two nights before Paul McCartney closed it?

Jay-Z topped a Friday bill that also featured Florence and the Machine and Calvin Harris.

Which American Idol runner-up fronted Queen when they headlined the 2016 Isle of Wight Festival?

Adam Lambert finished second on the show's eighth season in 2009, and Queen + Adam Lambert closed the festival's Sunday night.

Which county town has hosted the Isle of Wight Festival since the event was revived in 2002?

Newport's festival site has spread north along the fields of the Medina valley as crowds grew from about 8,000 to more than 50,000.

Which strait separates the Isle of Wight Festival's island home from the Hampshire mainland?

The Solent made 1970 a logistical headache: a crowd far bigger than the island's own population all had to be ferried across.

Which military display team flew over the Isle of Wight Festival crowd on Saturday afternoon in 2007?

Red Arrows jets trailed smoke over the site, some fans joked the display beat a few of the bands, and the team came back in 2009.

Which mobile phone maker sponsored the Isle of Wight Festival for three years from 2004?

Nokia's deal ended after 2006, which made 2007 the first festival since 2003 to go ahead without an official sponsor.

Which jazz trumpeter played to the biggest crowd of his career at the 1970 Isle of Wight Festival?

Miles Davis faced a rock audience estimated at up to 600,000, and a film of his complete set was released in 2004.

Which Canadian poet and singer played the 1970 Isle of Wight Festival backed by a band called the Army?

Leonard Cohen was on his first ever tour that year, and a film and album of the set finally came out in 2009.

Realising it would never turn a profit, what did organisers declare the 1970 Isle of Wight Festival to be?

A free event was the organisers' late concession, although most of the audience had already paid for tickets in advance.

Which Beatle wrote Behind That Locked Door to encourage the 1969 Isle of Wight Festival headliner?

George Harrison had joined the headliner's rehearsals at a Bembridge farmhouse, and released the song on All Things Must Pass in 1970.

Which actress, a Hollywood star's daughter, sat in the VIP enclosure at the 1969 Isle of Wight Festival?

Jane Fonda watched from a sealed-off area in front of the stage, in company that included Elton John and Françoise Hardy.

Tom Petty, Pearl Jam and which act formed the American Trilogy topping the 2012 Isle of Wight Festival?

Bruce Springsteen and the E Street Band closed a weekend when heavy rain turned the ground into a mudbath and queuing cars backed up to the ferry dock.

Which 2006 Isle of Wight Festival headliner covered Lou Reed's Perfect Day after Reed left it out of his set?

Coldplay stepped in because Reed had left the song out of his own unpredictable set; Chris Martin said Reed asked them to play it to placate the crowd.

Which headliner closed his 2009 Isle of Wight Festival set by tearing apart his electric guitar?

Neil Young's finale, in a set that also included the Beatles' A Day in the Life, was hailed by the island's newspaper as channelling the spirit of the 1970 festival.

Gilberto Gil and Caetano Veloso played the 1970 Isle of Wight Festival while exiled from which country?

Brazil's military rulers had jailed both men, then released them on condition they leave the country, so the two Tropicália stars were living in London.

Which future glam rock star played the first Isle of Wight Festival in 1968 with his duo Tyrannosaurus Rex?

Marc Bolan was then playing acoustic psychedelic folk; in 1970 he turned to electric rock and shortened the band's name to T. Rex.

Which country songwriter was booed off at the 1970 Isle of Wight Festival when fans could not hear him?

Kris Kristofferson came back for a second set later in the festival, joked that he had brought bodyguards, and was warmly received.

Which San Francisco band headlined the very first Isle of Wight Festival in 1968?

Jefferson Airplane topped the bill in a field near Godshill, watched by a crowd of only about 10,000 people.

Which newly formed supergroup played only their second ever gig at the 1970 Isle of Wight Festival?

Emerson, Lake & Palmer built the set around Pictures at an Exhibition, with its Moog synthesizer, and the attention it drew made their name.

Which Pink Floyd member, at the 1970 Isle of Wight Festival as a fan, was drafted in to help mix the sound?

David Gilmour had wandered backstage when the anxious sound crew, who were using his band's PA to boost the system, put him to work.

Which singer pulled out of headlining the 2005 Isle of Wight Festival and was replaced by Travis?

Morrissey had been due to top the Saturday bill; Travis stepped up, between Friday headliners Faithless and Sunday's R.E.M.

Which singer, the opening act at Woodstock, closed the 1970 Isle of Wight Festival as dawn broke?

Richie Havens played on the morning of 31 August, and a cloudy dawn arrived during his version of Here Comes the Sun.

Which promoter, a teenage fan at the 1970 event, revived the Isle of Wight Festival in the 2000s?

John Giddings took the festival over from the island's council in 2003, and in 2007 won the UK Festival Awards prize for outstanding contribution.

Which band headlined Rock Island 2002, the one-day show that brought the Isle of Wight Festival back?

The Charlatans topped a bill with Robert Plant before a crowd of only 8,000 to 10,000, well short of the site's capacity of 22,000.

Which riverside recreation ground has been the home of the Isle of Wight Festival since 2002?

Seaclose Park is a public ground for the rest of the year, with tennis courts, a cricket pitch, a bowling green and a skate park.

Which director filmed the 1970 Isle of Wight Festival, fresh from an Oscar-nominated film of a folk festival?

Murray Lerner ended up owning the footage, which passed to him in settlement of legal fees after a contract dispute with the promoters.

Which documentary of the 1970 Isle of Wight Festival was held up by money troubles until the mid-1990s?

Message to Love was cut down from 175 hours of footage shot on eight cameras, and plays much of the festival's chaos for laughs.

Which Irish guitarist led the trio Taste in one of its last shows at the 1970 Isle of Wight Festival?

Rory Gallagher had already decided to break the band up after the festival, yet Taste were called back for several encores.

Which group skipped their 1970 Isle of Wight encore after a thrown can hit their guitarist?

Sly and the Family Stone had roused a tired early-morning crowd, but when a beer can struck Freddie Stone an angry Sly dropped the encore.

What surname was shared by brothers Ron, Ray and Bill, who staged the original Isle of Wight Festivals?

The Foulk brothers' company, Fiery Creations, ran all three early festivals, growing them from a 10,000-strong crowd in 1968 to the vast 1970 event.

The 1970 Isle of Wight Festival took place on which chalk hillside near Freshwater, in the island's west?

Afton Down was the only site the authorities would allow, and the high ground above the arena let many people watch for nothing.

Which reunited band closed the 2008 Isle of Wight Festival, a night after the Sex Pistols headlined?

The Police were on a worldwide reunion tour marking 30 years since they began, and the 2008 festival was the first to be screened live on television.