‘Biggest artists on the planet’ set to rock Coventry for Radio 1’s Big Weekend

The “biggest artists on the planet” are set to rock Coventry as Radio 1’s Big Weekend returns “to the field” next summer.

For the past two years, the station’s annual flagship live music event has been performed virtually, with artists recording live sets from their own homes during the global pandemic.

Previously, music fans around the UK have seen superstar acts perform, from Miley Cyrus in Middlesbrough and Stormzy in Hull, to Ed Sheeran in Glasgow and Camila Cabello in Swansea.

Radio 1’s Big Weekend will return next year with a three-day music festival in Coventry’s War Memorial Park.

Leader of Coventry City Council councillor George Duggins said: “Hosting a major international event like this, which features some of the biggest names in the music industry, provides another fantastic opportunity to showcase Coventry and is the perfect way for our city to finish its year as UK City of Culture.”

The live music event will take place from May 27 to 29 next year, with more than 70,000 Radio 1 fans expected to attend across the weekend.

Radio 1’s Big Weekend kicks off the UK’s festival season each year, bringing some of the biggest artists on the planet to towns and cities around the UK.

In 2020, the then-newly emerging pandemic meant Radio 1 was the first to bring the idea of a virtual festival to life.

The 2021 event took the form of a four-day live music spectacular, with more than 100 live performances for fans to enjoy with friends and family in parks, on beaches, in pub gardens or from the comfort of their own homes across the weekend.

Next year, the festival will return to the field, with performances to air across Radio 1, BBC Sounds and BBC iPlayer.

Aled Haydn Jones, head of Radio 1, said: “Radio 1’s Big Weekend always kicks off the UK’s festival season in style, so we’re delighted to be bringing it back to the field again for 2022.

“We’ve got some incredibly exciting ideas in the pipeline for the event this time around, and we can’t wait to bring some of the biggest artists on the planet along with us when we head to Coventry in May.”