Bloodstock Open Air is a British heavy metal

festival A festival is an event ordinarily celebrated by a community and centering on some characteristic aspect or aspects of that community and its religion or cultures. It is often marked as a local or national holiday, mela, or eid. A festival c ...

held annually at

Catton Hall Catton Hall is a country house near the boundary between Derbyshire and Staffordshire, within the civil parish of Catton. It gives its postal address as Walton-on-Trent although there was a village of Catton at one time. It is a Grade II* listed ...

in Walton-on-Trent,

Derbyshire Derbyshire ( ) is a ceremonial county in the East Midlands, England. It includes much of the Peak District National Park, the southern end of the Pennine range of hills and part of the National Forest. It borders Greater Manchester to the nor ...

, since 2005. Originally held indoors for one day with two stages, the festival started in 2001 at the Derby Assembly Rooms and has expanded over the years. It became an outdoor event in 2005. By 2019, it had five stages and a capacity of 15,000.

History

Originally on one stage only, the festival expanded to incorporate a second stage in 2006. Known simply as The Unsigned Stage, it was designed to provide a platform for the next generation of metal talent to reach a wider audience. In 2010 it was renamed The New Blood Stage. 2007 saw further expansion with the addition of a third stage, originally called The Lava Stage, which in 2009 became the

Sophie Lancaster Sophie is a version of the female given name Sophia, meaning "wise". People with the name Born in the Middle Ages * Sophie, Countess of Bar (c. 1004 or 1018–1093), sovereign Countess of Bar and lady of Mousson * Sophie of Thuringia, Duchess o ...

Stage. In 2010 the capacity of this stage was increased and it became the festival's second stage. Bloodstock Open Air was conceived as an extension of the original Bloodstock indoor festival which ran from 2001 until 2006 at

Derby Derby ( ) is a city and unitary authority area in Derbyshire, England. It lies on the banks of the River Derwent in the south of Derbyshire, which is in the East Midlands Region. It was traditionally the county town of Derbyshire. Derby g ...

Assembly Rooms. After an amicable parting in 2006 with his business partner Vince Brotheridge, in 2007 Paul Gregory brought his daughters Vicky Hungerford, Rachael Greenfield and son Adam Gregory on board as directors. In 2010, Heaven & Hell was scheduled to headline Bloodstock Open Air, but pulled out due to the death of singer

Ronnie James Dio Ronald James Padavona (July 10, 1942 – May 16, 2010), known professionally as Ronnie James Dio, was an American heavy metal singer. He fronted and founded numerous bands throughout his career, including Elf, Rainbow, Black Sabbath, Dio and ...

. The main stage at the festival was subsequently renamed as the "Ronnie James Dio stage" in tribute to him. The 2020 festival was planned to be a celebration of "20 years of Bloodstock" however the festival was postponed due to the

COVID-19 pandemic The COVID-19 pandemic, also known as the coronavirus pandemic, is an ongoing global pandemic of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2). The novel virus was first identi ...

. Ticket holders were given the option either to have a refund on their ticket or to roll it over to the 2021 festival which saw three stages expanded to include an extra day. Bloodstock has hosted numerous metal bands from the following countries/dependencies: Argentina, Australia, Austria, Belgium, Brazil, Bulgaria, Canada, Chile, Colombia, Costa Rica, Croatia, Cyprus, Denmark, Egypt, England, Faroe Islands, Finland, France, Germany, Gibraltar, Greece, India, Indonesia, Northern Ireland, Republic of Ireland, Israel, Italy, Japan, Latvia, Lebanon, Luxembourg, Mexico, Nepal, Netherlands, New Zealand, Norway, Poland, Portugal, Romania, Russia, Scotland (including Shetland Islands), Slovenia, South Africa, Spain, Sweden, Switzerland, Taiwan, Ukraine, USA, Wales, and Guernsey. On 15 October 2021, Vicky Hungerford, took a step back from her director role due to backlash from a tweet she sent that was deemed to be transphobic. The tweet that read "If you're going to start putting pronouns on your emails so I can refer to you as he/him she or her I'm binning your emails." was soon deleted after the backlash and was replaced with an apology. In addition, the Sophie Lancaster Foundation issued a statement saying that they will be meeting with Bloodstock to discuss their future relationship. Paul Watling also announced that he would be stepping down from his role saying that "this is not an isolated incident" and "You can NOT promote a festival of inclusivity without including EVERYONE".

Bloodstock UK Metalfest

Bloodstock originally began as an indoor festival held in Derby Assembly Rooms which ran for six years, 2001 to 2006. In order to associate the festival roots with Derby, where founder Paul Gregory lives, the festival's mascot/logo was based on the tale of The Derby Ram; a beast so large that, when a butcher finally slaughtered it, he drowned in the Ram's blood. A competition was run to name the beast and 'S-tan' was selected, he has appeared on almost all Bloodstock artwork since only missing from the first three BOA festivals when the S-tan snake featured instead.

2001

The first year was a one-day event headlined by

Saxon The Saxons ( la, Saxones, german: Sachsen, ang, Seaxan, osx, Sahson, nds, Sassen, nl, Saksen) were a group of Germanic * * * * peoples whose name was given in the early Middle Ages to a large country (Old Saxony, la, Saxonia) near the Nor ...

, whom Paul Gregory had known personally since being commissioned to do the artwork for their 1984 Crusader album. Attendance for the festival topped 700 people and, despite taking an (expected) financial loss, a second festival was arranged for the following year.

2002

2002 saw

Blind Guardian Blind Guardian is a German power metal band formed in 1984 in Krefeld, West Germany. They are often credited as one of the seminal and most influential bands in the power metal and speed metal subgenres.Gamma Ray A gamma ray, also known as gamma radiation (symbol γ or \gamma), is a penetrating form of electromagnetic radiation arising from the radioactive decay of atomic nuclei. It consists of the shortest wavelength electromagnetic waves, typically ...

as second billing doubled the festival's attendance to approximately 1500.

2003

2003 brought the first of many expansions to the festival as it stretched across two days. The first day was headlined by a returning Saxon and the second by

Nightwish Nightwish is a Finnish symphonic metal band from Kitee. The band was formed in 1996 by lead songwriter and keyboardist Tuomas Holopainen, guitarist Emppu Vuorinen, and former lead singer Tarja Turunen. The band soon picked up drummer Jukka N ...

whom like Blind Guardian the year before were playing their first UK show. Paul and Gregory had gone on tour with

the previous year and it was then that Vince first saw Nightwish which convinced them they should be booked for the Bloodstock festival. This year also featured

Edguy Edguy is a heavy metal band formed in Fulda, Germany in 1992. History Demos, AFM years (1992–2003) Edguy was founded in 1992 by 14-year-old students Tobias Sammet, Jens Ludwig, Dominik Storch and Dirk Sauer. The name "Edguy" was an affect ...

's first UK show as they were drafted in to replace

HammerFall HammerFall is a Swedish power metal band from Gothenburg. The band was formed in 1993 by ex-Ceremonial Oath guitarist Oscar Dronjak. History Early days (1993–1996) HammerFall was formed when rhythm guitarist Oscar Dronjak quit Ceremonial ...

after guitarist Oscar Dronjak broke his arm in a motorcycle accident only weeks before the show. The full line-up was:

2004

2004 saw continued growth in attendance with the festival selling out and brought Gamma Ray back to headline the first day and

Children of Bodom Children of Bodom was a Finnish melodic death metal band from Espoo. Formed in 1993 as Inearthed, the final line-up of the group upon their split in 2019 consisted of Alexi Laiho (lead guitar, lead vocals), Jaska Raatikainen (drums), Henkka Se ...

headlined the second day. The full line-up was:

2005

2005 was the first year which saw both the indoor and outdoor festivals running. HammerFall were booked to play, now with a headline slot on the first day, and

Within Temptation Within Temptation is a Dutch symphonic metal band founded in April 1996 by vocalist Sharon den Adel and guitarist Robert Westerholt. They have been classified by critics as gothic metal and symphonic metal, although each album contains other inf ...

headlined the second day. The full line-up was: 2005-09-03 Floor Jansen

† Kyrb Grinder were not originally booked to play, but the band members were working at the festival and delays in the running of the Darwin stage left a gap, so they played a short sell to fill in the gap.

2006

2006 was the last year an indoor festival was hosted allowing for full focus on the outdoor festival from then on. Primal Fear headlined day one with

My Dying Bride My Dying Bride are an English doom metal band formed in Bradford. Since their inception in 1990, they have released 13 studio albums, three EPs, one demo, one box set, four compilation albums, one live album, and one live CD/DVD release. Alo ...

headling day two and thus being the last ever band to play at Bloodstock as an indoor festival. The full line-up was: 060930--onslaught

† Tourettes Syndrome had originally been booked to play the main stage. However, their flight was delayed and they did not arrive in time. Sworn Amongst were bumped up from their scheduled Darwin Stage slot to fill the gap, and Tourettes Syndrome played on the Darwin Stage later in the day when they eventually arrived.

Bloodstock Open Air

Bloodstock Open Air is the outdoor venture for the festival after selling out the indoor festival which had a maximum capacity of 2500. Catton Hall was selected as the venue to allow growth in size without losing the festival's established friendly atmosphere and also maintained its link to Derby.

2005

The festival featured only one stage which was headlined by Sebastian Bach (Friday) and

(Saturday).

2006

Bloodstock Open Air 2006 brought in a second stage called simply "Unsigned Stage". This was to showcase new unsigned acts to a wider audience like the indoor festival did previously to on their second stage. Now backed by

Wacken Open Air Wacken Open Air (, abbreviated as W:O:A) is a rock music festival, held annually since 1990 on the first weekend of August in the village of Wacken in Schleswig-Holstein, Germany. Almost all styles and subgenres of hard rock and metal are ...

, the festival was able to attract more European metal bands to the line-up which was headlined by

(Friday) and

Stratovarius Stratovarius is a Finnish power metal band that formed in 1985. Since their formation, they have released sixteen studio albums, five DVDs and six live albums. In its history, the band has gone through many chaotic lineup changes, and after fo ...

(Saturday). It was the last year which had both the indoor and outdoor festivals running together.

2007

Bloodstock Open Air 2007 brought further growth for the festival which now ran over three days and included three stages. The additional stage was named the ''Lava Stage'' and allowed more established but smaller acts to perform at the festival. Following a stronger marketing campaign which included advertisement within HMV and greater coverage in music media, attendance at the festival more than doubled from the previous year exceeding 5000 people. The festival's website also went through a major overhaul and the opportunity was given to unsigned bands to upload their videos. Following public voting, Costa Rican band ''Sight Of Emptiness'' won and were invited to open the main stage on Thursday. The three mainstage headliners were Testament (Thursday),

Lacuna Coil Lacuna Coil is an Italian gothic metal band from Milan. Since their formation in 1994, the group has had two name changes, being previously known as Sleep of Right and Ethereal, and they have recorded nine studio albums, two extended plays, two ...

(Friday) and

In Flames In Flames is a Swedish heavy metal band, formed by guitarist Jesper Strömblad in Gothenburg in 1990. Alongside At the Gates and Dark Tranquillity, In Flames pioneered the genres known as Swedish death metal and melodic death metal. During the ...

(Saturday). BOA 2007 took place from Thursday 16 August to Saturday 18 August. The line up was as follows:

2008

Bloodstock Open Air 2008 took place from Friday 15 August to Sunday 17 August.

2009

Bloodstock Open Air 2009 took place at Catton Hall from Friday 14 August to Sunday 16 August.

2010

Bloodstock Open Air 2010 celebrated the festival's 10th anniversary, and took place between Friday 13 August and Sunday 15 August. The line up was as follows: * Heaven & Hell were booked to headline on Sunday, but pulled out due to

's continuing health issues. ** Shortly after Heaven & Hell pulled out, Dio died. The main stage was later renamed the Ronnie James Dio stage in tribute to him. ** Twisted Sister's headline slot was moved from Friday to Sunday to replace Heaven & Hell.

Opeth Opeth is a Swedish progressive metal/ rock band from Stockholm, formed in 1990 by lead vocalist David Isberg. The group has been through several personnel changes, including the replacement of every original member; notably Isberg in 1992. Mik ...

were then booked to fill the Friday headline slot. *

Dream Evil Dream Evil is a Swedish heavy metal band, assembled by producer Fredrik Nordström in 1999. History Producer Fredrik Nordström had the ambition of creating a power metal band of his own for a long time, but had difficulty finding anyone w ...

were confirmed for the mainstage on Friday, but were forced to pull out due to "personal commitments". *

Behemoth Behemoth (; he, בְּהֵמוֹת, ''bəhēmōṯ'') is a beast from the biblical Book of Job, and is a form of the primeval chaos-monster created by God at the beginning of creation; he is paired with the other chaos-monster, Leviathan, and ...

were confirmed for the mainstage on Friday, but pulled out due to the hospitalisation of frontman, Adam "Nergal" Darski.

Cathedral A cathedral is a church that contains the ''cathedra'' () of a bishop, thus serving as the central church of a diocese, conference, or episcopate. Churches with the function of "cathedral" are usually specific to those Christian denominations ...

were announced as their replacements. * The Sophie Lancaster stage was increased in size and became Bloodstock's second stage. It now plays host to larger, more well known bands, as well as DJs, karaoke, film showings, competitions and more.

2011

Bloodstock Open Air 2011 took place at Catton Hall between Friday 12 August and Sunday 14 August 2011. This year the festival had over 10,900 visitors. *

Nevermore Nevermore was an American heavy metal band from Seattle, Washington, formed in 1991. The band has been inactive since 2011, due to personal issues between the band members. In April 2015, lead singer Warrel Dane confirmed that Nevermore had n ...

were booked for the Ronnie James Dio stage, but were removed from the official line up in July. No official explanation was released. * Primevil were booked for the Sophie stage, but were later removed from the official line up. No explanation was released.

2012

Bloodstock Open Air 2012 was scheduled to take place at Catton Hall between Thursday 16 August and Sunday 19 August 2012 (a week later than usual, owing to the festival organisers not wanting the festival to clash with the closing of the

2012 London Olympics The 2012 Summer Olympics (officially the Games of the XXX Olympiad and also known as London 2012) was an international multi-sport event held from 27 July to 12 August 2012 in London, England, United Kingdom. The first event, the ...

); however, the dates were changed to between Thursday 9 August and Sunday 12 August. This change was never officially explained. * Lock Up were booked to play on the RJD stage on the Friday, but were removed from the lineup. This was later confirmed on the official Bloodstock Twitter page due to logistical problems. * Deicide were booked to play on the RJD stage on the Sunday, but ended up cancelling the whole European tour that BOA was a part of. Because of this

Evile Evile are an English thrash metal band from Huddersfield, formed in 2004. They have experienced numerous line-up changes over the years, with drummer Ben Carter being the only member of the original line-up to have stayed consistently. The curr ...

were moved from the Sophie Lancaster Stage to the Ronnie James Dio Stage to fill the void. *

Anthrax Anthrax is an infection caused by the bacterium '' Bacillus anthracis''. It can occur in four forms: skin, lungs, intestinal, and injection. Symptom onset occurs between one day and more than two months after the infection is contracted. The s ...

were announced for BOA 2013 before

Machine Head A machine head (also referred to as a tuning machine, tuner, or gear head) is a geared apparatus for tuning stringed musical instruments by adjusting string tension. Machine heads are used on mandolins, guitars, double basses and others, and ar ...

's Headline set

2013

Bloodstock Open Air 2013 took place at Catton Hall between Thursday 8 August and Sunday 11 August. Pritchard vs Dainton,

Andrew O'Neill Andrew O'Neill (born 14 September 1979) is a British comedian, musician, presenter, and writer who lives in London. O'Neill uses they/them pronouns. Background Born in Portsmouth in 1979, O'Neill grew up in the London suburban town of Wallingto ...

& Full Contact Medieval Tournament Combat also appeared at the festival. *Power Quest's final show before disbanding.

2014

Bloodstock Open Air 2014 took place at Catton Hall between Thursday 7 August and Sunday 10 August. The line-up was: Prior to Lamb Of God's set at Bloodstock 2013,

Emperor An emperor (from la, imperator, via fro, empereor) is a monarch, and usually the sovereign ruler of an empire or another type of imperial realm. Empress, the female equivalent, may indicate an emperor's wife ( empress consort), mother ( ...

were announced for the 2014 event.
Phil Campbell's All Starr Band were booked to headline Thursday on the Sophie stage but withdrew 2 weeks before the festival due to Phil's

Motörhead Motörhead () were an English rock band formed in London in 1975 by Lemmy (lead vocals, bass), Larry Wallis (guitar) and Lucas Fox (drums). Lemmy was also the primary songwriter and only constant member. The band are often considered a prec ...

commitments.
Due to Graveyard's flight being delayed,

Graveyard A cemetery, burial ground, gravesite or graveyard is a place where the remains of dead people are buried or otherwise interred. The word ''cemetery'' (from Greek , "sleeping place") implies that the land is specifically designated as a buri ...

and

Avatar Avatar (, ; ), is a concept within Hinduism that in Sanskrit literally means "descent". It signifies the material appearance or incarnation of a powerful deity, goddess or spirit on Earth. The relative verb to "alight, to make one's appear ...

swapped slots at last minute.

2015

Bloodstock Open Air 2015 took place at Catton Hall between Thursday 6 August and Sunday 9 August. The lineup was: The sideshow Pritchard vs Dainton also appeared at the festival. The historical battle re-enactment group Battle of the Nations UK have been confirmed. After Sabaton's set,

Venom Venom or zootoxin is a type of toxin produced by an animal that is actively delivered through a wound by means of a bite, sting, or similar action. The toxin is delivered through a specially evolved ''venom apparatus'', such as fangs or a st ...

were announced for the 2016 festival. Also, on the Sunday,

were announced for BOA 2016 as well.

2016

BOA 2016 took place at Catton Hall between Thursday 11 and Sunday 14 August 2016. The lineup was:

2017

BOA 2017 took place at Catton Hall between Thursday 10 and Sunday 13 August 2017. The lineup was:

2018

BOA 2018 took place at Catton Hall between Thursday 9 August and Sunday 12 August 2018. The lineup was:

2019

BOA 2019 took place at Catton Hall between Thursday 8 August and Sunday 11 August 2019. The announced lineup was:

Dimmu Borgir Dimmu Borgir () is a Norwegian symphonic black metal band from Jessheim, formed in 1993. The name is derived from Dimmuborgir, a volcanic formation in Iceland, the name of which means "dark cities" or "dark castles/fortresses" in Icelandic, ...

were booked to play the Ronnie James Dio stage on Sunday but pulled out due to illness, they were replaced by Batushka. Code Orange were booked to play the Ronnie James Dio stage on Saturday but pulled out and were replaced by

The Wildhearts The Wildhearts are an English rock band, formed in 1989 in Newcastle upon Tyne. The band's sound is a mixture of hard rock and melodic pop music, often described in the music press as combining influences as diverse as the Beatles and 1980s- ...

. Shvpes were booked to play the Sophie Lancaster stage on Saturday but pulled out and were replaced by Lotus Eater. Generation Kill were booked to play the Sophie Lancaster stage on Saturday but pulled out and were replaced by Divine Chaos who were also moved up to the Special Guest slot as Skeletal Remains had to pull out as their ferry was cancelled due to bad weather. Due to windy conditions, the Ronnie James Dio stage was unsafe for use on the Saturday evening, leading to Cradle of Filth being moved to the Sunday, taking Batushka's slot, with Batushka being moved to the Sophie Lancaster Stage, resulting in The Lazys being moved to the New Blood Stage. As well as this, Parkway Drive's and Anthrax's performances were both delayed until the Stage was deemed safe to use.

2020

BOA 2020 was due to take place at Catton Hall between Thursday, 6 August and Sunday, 9 August 2020 but was postponed due to the

. The announced lineup at the time of postponement was: The Black Dahlia Murder were booked to play the Ronnie James Dio stage on Sunday but pulled out of all European summer shows due to the

2021

BOA 2021 took place at Catton Hall between Wednesday 11 August and Sunday 15 August 2021. This is an extra day to the usual length of the festival owing to the postponement of the 2020 event.

Brian Blessed Brian Blessed (; born 9 October 1936) is an English actor, presenter, writer and mountaineer. Blessed is known for portraying PC "Fancy" Smith in ''Z-Cars'', Augustus in the 1976 BBC television production of '' I, Claudius'', King Richard I ...

appeared at the festival on Sunday 15 August 2021, Brian announced Saxon onto the stage on the Sunday evening. Loathe were scheduled to perform on the Ronnie James Dio stage on Friday 13 August 2021 but they pulled out due to a member testing positive for COVID 19, they were replaced by

Higher Power Higher Power is a term used in Alcoholics Anonymous (AA) and other twelve-step programs. The same groups use the phrase "a power greater than ourselves" synonymously. The term sometimes refers to a supreme being or deity, or other conceptions of G ...

Sylosis were scheduled to perform on the Ronnie James Dio stage on Saturday 14 August 2021 but due to Josh Middleton having to self isolate after coming into contact with someone who had tested positive for COVID 19 at an

Architects An architect is a person who plans, designs and oversees the construction of buildings. To practice architecture means to provide services in connection with the design of buildings and the space within the site surrounding the buildings that h ...

album release show, they were forced to pull out of the festival.

2022

Bloodstock 2022 took place from 11–14 August 2022. 17 bands were announced, including headliners

Lamb of God Lamb of God ( el, Ἀμνὸς τοῦ Θεοῦ, Amnòs toû Theoû; la, Agnus Dei, ) is a title for Jesus that appears in the Gospel of John. It appears at John 1:29, where John the Baptist sees Jesus and exclaims, "Behold the Lamb of God wh ...

and Saturday Ronnie James Dio stage headliner

Mercyful Fate Mercyful Fate is a Danish heavy metal band from Copenhagen, formed in 1981 by vocalist King Diamond and guitarist Hank Shermann. Influenced by progressive rock and hard rock, and with lyrics dealing with Satan and the occult, Mercyful Fat ...

. *

Life of Agony Life of Agony is an American alternative metal band from Brooklyn, New York City, formed in 1989 by singer Mina Caputo (then known as Keith Caputo), bassist Alan Robert and guitarist Joey Z. The band has released six studio albums to date, mos ...

had to pull out due to a medical emergency, resulting in

Skarlett Riot Skarlett Riot is a British hard rock band, formed in Scunthorpe, England, in 2010. History The band members met for the first time in school, where they were known under the name 'Fuzion'. A short time later, they renamed themselves Skarlett ...

taking a slot on the main stage. *On the Friday, Machine Head played an hour-long unannounced set on the Sophie Lancaster Stage

2023

Bloodstock Festival 2023 will take place August 10th - August 13th 2023. 8 bands were announced after Testament's set in 2022, including headliners

Killswitch Engage Killswitch Engage is an American metalcore band from Westfield, Massachusetts, formed in 1999 after the disbanding of Overcast and Aftershock. Killswitch Engage's current lineup consists of vocalist Jesse Leach, guitarists Joel Stroetzel and A ...

and

Megadeth Megadeth is an American thrash metal band formed in Los Angeles in 1983 by vocalist/guitarist Dave Mustaine. Known for their technically complex guitar work and musicianship, Megadeth is one of the "big four" of American thrash metal along wit ...

References

External links

* {{Major British Music Festivals Music festivals in Derbyshire Heavy metal festivals in England Music festivals established in 2005 2005 establishments in England

History

Bloodstock UK Metalfest

2001

2002

2003

2004

2005

2006

Bloodstock Open Air

2005

2006

2007

2008

2009

2010

2011

2012

2013

2014

2015

2016

2017

2018

2019

2020

2021

2022

2023

See also

References

External links