Reading Festival’s bid to extend music licence for Thursday night met with noise concerns

The bid made by Reading Festival to extend its music license for Thursday night had been met with objections from local residents over noise concerns.

READ MORE: Reading & Leeds boss talks biggest-ever arena overhaul and “strength of UK and Irish music” on line-up: “We’re buzzing with ideas for the future” It was announced back in July that organisers of the dual festival had applied for a licensing change, which would allow acts to perform on a Thursday , making the festival a four-day event.

Usually, Wednesdays and Thursdays are seen as warm-up days, where festivalgoers can head to the site and set up for things kicking off on Friday and running until Sunday each August bank holiday weekend.

In the report last month from BBC News , organisers Festival Republic applied for amplified music to be added to the licence for Thursdays, on the main stage only, taking place between 5pm and midnight.

If approved by Reading Borough Council, the change could come into effect from 2027.

This year’s festival runs from 27-30 August.

Its sister festival in Leeds – which takes place on the same weekend – already has permission to perform music on a Thursday , and will do so for the first time this year with Kasabian headlining their main stage.

View this post on Instagram The hopes to have music between 5pm and midnight on Thursday in Reading has been met with some backlash from local residents, however, with hundreds opposing the planned changes due to noise concerns.

In a new statement, chair of the Warren & District Residents Association (WADRA), Elisa Miles, has said that the organisation is “not opposed” to the festival generally, but is concerned about the impact the change will have on local residents.

“Through this long-standing partnership, we have helped [Festival Republic] better understand the impact the festival has on nearby residents and have worked together to develop practical solutions,” she said (via BBC News ).

“Loud amplified music late into the evening will disrupt sleep for those who have no choice but to remain at home.” Malcolm Pemble, from the Caversham and District Residents Association (CADRA) agreed, saying that the change would be “unfair” to residents in the area.

Festival Republic has defended the planned changes for the festival, and claimed that it carried out an assessment that found that the live music on Thursday would not “adversely impact” residents.

It also said that it would allow visitors to come together and enjoy planned entertainment in the evening, rather than “being left to congregate in the campsites or less supervised areas”.

Fontaines D.C. , Florence + The Machine, DAVE , Charli XCX , RAYE , and Chase & Status are all confirmed to top the bill for both festivals.