Loud and proud: the 2021 Wireless Festival in Crystal Palace Park got a mixed reception
A large section of Crystal Palace Park will be fenced off from the public for around three weeks this summer, as the Wireless Festival returns at the start of July.
Wireless was staged in south London for the first time last year, the three-night “turbo-twerking” rap event featuring 50 different acts and drawing 150,000 concert-goers, paying around £70 a time. But the event also attracted controversy, when one star was arrested by police before they went on stage and it was connected to reports of shots being fired at another rapper’s after-party.
It was the traffic chaos caused that exercised Crystal Palace residents over the Wireless weekend, making almost the first task in their job as the Crystal Palace Park Trust’s new chief executive to be the issuing of an apology to residents and local businesses affected by the disruption.
With the Trust poised to take over the management of the park from Bromley Council in 12 months’ time, and in need of money-spinning events, such as the Wireless Festival, to help meet the costs of managing the park, great efforts are being made to keep the Crystal Palace public on-side before this summer’s events, which will see Festival Republic, the private promoters, also stage three community gigs in the old Palace’s terrace area in the week after Wireless.
Wireless will be held from Friday, July 1, through to Sunday July 3.
There will be a free youth concert on July 6, the Royal Philharmonic will perform on July 7 and there is to be a “sporting and music event” on July 9.
No through road: expect road closures around the park again in 2022
Festival Republic say that “there will be a total of up to seven event days during the first two weeks of July”. They have one further event still to be announced, planned for Sunday July 10.
The set-up of the stage and concert area will begin on June 21, when parts of the park will be fenced off until de-rigging is finished on July 14.
Festival Republic have distributed a letter from their director, Melvin Benn, to more than 16,000 addresses in the areas around the park.
In it, Benn says, “Festival Republic are working closely with Crystal Palace Park Trust, Bromley Council, Metropolitan Police, London Ambulance Service, other statutory bodies and relevant local authorities to ensure the events this summer are a success.
“We have heard your feedback and comments from 2021 and our team are working hard to continue to improve in 2022. We want to hear your views, queries and concerns and will be sharing our plans and keeping you updated through our dedicated website [due to go live on April 9] and through a number of community engagement meetings.”
Wall games: large tracts of Crystal Palace Park will be fenced off from June 21 until mid-July
And they say, “It is important to us that we keep you, the local community, informed and provide details for you to keep in touch with us. Your home or property is close to Crystal Palace Park and we want to make sure that you are kept informed and have a way to contact us.
“This is the first letter drop that will be made by Festival Republic for its events this year. The next letter drop is anticipated to occur next month and will include additional information about traffic and parking management and other topics.”
The organisers and the Trust’s engagement sessions start this Wednesday, April 6, from 4pm to 7pm at the Brown and Green Café, Thicket Road, SE20 8DS.
Then the next session is on Friday, April 8 from 1pm to 3pm at Upper Norwood Library, 39 Westow Hill, Norwood, London SE19 1TQ.
There will also be what the organisers call “more structured” online virtual meetings, on April 6 from 11am to 12.30pm and on April 8 from 4pm to 5.30pm.
“If you would like to join an online session, please email with your name, email address and preferred meeting date to cp.residents@festivalrepublic.com and a Zoom link will be sent to you.”
- Festival Republic are also offering a two-year digital marketing apprenticeship, “in support of its activities at Crystal Palace Park, and in partnership with Crystal Palace Park Trust… for a resident of one of the five London boroughs that surround the park”. For more information about the position, click here.
- Click here for Festival Republic’s letter in full
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