Reading and Leeds 2013 – first acts announced…

The first acts for next years Reading and Leeds Festivals have been confirmed today, along with several other announcements regarding new stages and new festival site layouts.

The biggest of the bands announced so far is Deftones, who phoned in this very dry and ‘professional’ quote for today’s announcement:

We are thrilled to be returning to Reading & Leeds. In previous years it’s always been a highlight for us and we are honoured to have been invited back.

As well as the veteran US rock titans, Mercury Prize winners Alt J will also be appearing at the festival on the NME/Radio 1 stage. They were a bit more forthcoming with their quote, with singer Joe describing his first festival experience at Leeds in 2002:

It was great although I wasn’t prepared at all. Took some Pot Noodles and about a tenner and that was it. I was struggling. The festival was amazing, though: Incubus, Hundred Reasons, The Hives, Foo Fighters, the Prodigy. I was having the time of my life.

Sub Focus are the first act to be announced on the new BBC Radio 1 Dance Stage, and the new BBC Radio 1Xtra stage will be christened by Wiley, Skepta and JME in their collective guise of Boy Better Know.

With the new stages, the two festival sites have been expanded to host eight stages in total.


Tickets for the two festivals will go on sale tomorrow (Friday 30 November) at 9am – and will remain at 2012 prices throughout December. The 2013 presale will also feature a first for the two festivals – a £50 deposit scheme to enable you to reserve your ticket at the 2012 price, with the remainder of the price to be paid by 31 March 2013. Only a limited amount of tickets are available for the 2013 presale, so you’ll need to be quick tomorrow morning! The tickets will be available from the festivals official sites – Reading Festival and Leeds Festival, as well as SeeTickets. Good luck!