Labour Live was a one-day festival of music and politics in

London London is the capital and largest city of England and the United Kingdom, with a population of just under 9 million. It stands on the River Thames in south-east England at the head of a estuary down to the North Sea, and has been a majo ...

, United Kingdom, taking place in June 2018, organised by the Labour Party to capitalise on the appearance of the party's then-leader

Jeremy Corbyn Jeremy Bernard Corbyn (; born 26 May 1949) is a British politician who served as Leader of the Opposition and Leader of the Labour Party from 2015 to 2020. On the political left of the Labour Party, Corbyn describes himself as a socialist ...

Glastonbury Festival Glastonbury Festival (formally Glastonbury Festival of Contemporary Performing Arts and known colloquially as Glasto) is a five-day festival of contemporary performing arts that takes place in Pilton, Somerset, England. In addition to contemp ...

in summer 2017, promote the public image of the party and of Corbyn himself. Labour described it as an event 'to bring our incredible movement together'.

Acts

With regards to music,

Clean Bandit Clean Bandit are an English electronic music group, formed in Cambridge in 2008. They have had four number 1 hits and ten top 10 hits on the UK Singles Chart. They direct and produce their own music videos, many of which have been nominated for ...

headlined the festival, and other acts included Glen Matlock,

Declan McKenna Declan Benedict McKenna (born 24 December 1998) is an English singer-songwriter. He initially gained recognition for winning the Glastonbury Festival's Emerging Talent Competition in 2015. McKenna self-released the song "Brazil", a protest son ...

, DVTN, Feminist Jukebox,

Hookworms Hookworms are intestinal, blood-feeding, parasitic roundworms that cause types of infection known as helminthiases. Hookworm infection is found in many parts of the world, and is common in areas with poor access to adequate water, sanitation, an ...

Jermain Jackman Jermain Jackman (born 10 January 1995) is a British singer and political activist who won the third series of the BBC television singing competition ''The Voice UK'' in 2014. His debut album, ''Jermain Jackman'', was released on 23 March 2015 ...

Rae Morris Rachel Anne "Rae" Morris (born 2 September 1992) is an English singer and songwriter. She released her debut album, '' Unguarded'', in 2015. Her second album, '' Someone Out There'', was released in January 2018. Early life Morris was born in B ...

, Potent Whisper, Nia Wyn, Reverend and The Makers,

Sam Fender Samuel Thomas Fender (born 25 April 1994) is an English singer, songwriter, and musician. He is known for his high tenor voice and thick Geordie accent, layered over music characterised by a roots-orientated rock approach. Fender's sound relies ...

She Drew The Gun She Drew the Gun are a band from Wirral, England, fronted by singer/songwriter Louisa Roach. They won the Glastonbury Festival Emerging Talent competition in 2016. Their music is described as psych pop and is known for its often political lyri ...

, and

The Magic Numbers The Magic Numbers are an English pop rock band consisting of two brother-and-sister pairs, from Hanwell in west London. The group was formed in 2002, releasing their debut album titled ''The Magic Numbers'' on 13 June 2005. Their follow-up alb ...

. Politicians speaking included

Leader of the Opposition The Leader of the Opposition is a title traditionally held by the leader of the largest political party not in government, typical in countries utilizing the parliamentary system form of government. The leader of the opposition is typically se ...

Jeremy Corbyn, the then-

Shadow Secretary of State for International Development The shadow cabinet minister for international development is the lead spokesperson for the United Kingdom's Official Opposition on issues related to international aid, most notably to the third world. The shadow cabinet minister holds the Ministe ...

Kate Osamor, and

Shadow Chancellor The Shadow Chancellor of the Exchequer in the British Parliamentary system is the member of the Shadow Cabinet who is responsible for shadowing the Chancellor of the Exchequer. The title is given at the gift of the Leader of the Opposition and ...

John McDonnell. Other speakers included ''

The Guardian ''The Guardian'' is a British daily newspaper. It was founded in 1821 as ''The Manchester Guardian'', and changed its name in 1959. Along with its sister papers ''The Observer'' and ''The Guardian Weekly'', ''The Guardian'' is part of the Gu ...

'' columnist and author

Owen Jones Owen Jones (born 8 August 1984) is a British newspaper columnist, political commentator, journalist, author, and left-wing activist. He writes a column for ''The Guardian'' and contributes to the ''New Statesman'' and ''Tribune.'' He has two w ...

, journalist and author

Alex Nunns Alex Nunns is a British author, editor and political activist. Life and career Nunns is political correspondent for '' Red Pepper''; contributing articles on British politics and international developments. He has written for other outlets includi ...

, journalist and author

Rachel Shabi Rachel () was a Biblical figure, the favorite of Jacob's two wives, and the mother of Joseph and Benjamin, two of the twelve progenitors of the tribes of Israel. Rachel's father was Laban. Her older sister was Leah, Jacob's first wife. Her aunt ...

, and journalist and author Maya Goodfellow.

Attendance and finances

The festival was reported to cost approximately £1 million. Tickets to the event were originally priced at £35 for adults, £30 for concessions and £10 for children. Before the event, however, the price was reduced to £10, with under-14s attending free of charge. The festival was criticised for its low attendance, with only 3,000 tickets of the 20,000 capacity being sold according to 'insiders' while other estimates put the figure at 4,000. A month before the festival, the ''

Huffington Post ''HuffPost'' (formerly ''The Huffington Post'' until 2017 and sometimes abbreviated ''HuffPo'') is an American progressive news website, with localized and international editions. The site offers news, satire, blogs, and original content, and ...

'' reported that only 15% of available tickets had been sold. It was reported in 2019 that the festival was one of the causes of the Labour Party's funds being low. When questioned by former National Executive Committee member Johanna Baxter in 2018 at Labour conference, party treasurer

Diana Holland Diana Holland is a British trade unionist who is the Assistant General Secretary of Unite and the Treasurer of the Labour Party. Holland was awarded the OBE in the 2001 New Year Honours, for "services to Equal Opportunities in Employment". Tr ...

confirmed that the event did not make a profit, stating that she did not "think that was why it was organised", also adding that the party's reserve funds paid for the shortfall in costs, with general election funds untouched.

References

{{reflist 2017 in the United Kingdom Festivals in London