Atmosphere while Fatboy Slim performs onstage during Isle of Wight Festival 2019 at Seaclose Park on June 15, 2019 in Newport, Isle of Wight.
Britain’s Isle of Wight festival has scrapped its 2020 edition due to the coronavirus crisis.
The iconic fest was slated to take place June 11 - 14 at Seaclose Park in Newport, with Duran Duran, Lionel Richie and Snow Patrol among its headliners.
With Britain now in lockdown as COVID-19 continues to spread the globe, this year’s event will no longer take place.
“This decision hasn't been taken lightly and we have tried our hardest to make it work, but it was unavoidable given the current status,” reads a statement from organizers. “The safety of our audience, artists, crew and the Isle of Wight community is paramount and we appreciate your patience whilst we’ve been working through this unprecedented situation.”
Looking ahead, IOW will be “back stronger than ever in 2021,” the statement continues.
An idyllic, isolated retreat off England’s south coast, the Isle of Wight first hosted a major festival back in 1968. By the time the third edition rolled around, in 1970, more than 500,000 people came out to see the lineup, which included Jimi Hendrix and the Doors.
The festival went into hibernation for decades, until British promoter John Giddings revived it in 2002.