Download festival has released a list of banned items that festival fans will not be allowed to bring into the venue. While some of the items are understandable, there are some that are a little bit more unusual.
The festival is set to take place at Donnington Castle on Friday, June 10 and Saturday, June 12. This year's lineup includes Iron Maiden, Deftones and Biffy Clyro. This is the first proper Download festival to go ahead after Covid restrictions forced cancellations and reduced ticket sales. Thousands of metal fans attend the event each year.
In order to keep attendees safe, the security team will conduct bag searches, body checks and there will also be 'detection dogs' on site. Those carrying anything on the list will either have the item confiscated, be refused entry or if the item is illegal, the police may be called.
Items such as glass, fireworks, pyrotechnics and flares are not allowed from a health and safety perspective while fans are also asked not to bring illegal items or substances into the venue. However, this also includes 'new psychoactive or unidentifiable substances so items need to be clearly labelled ahead of entry.
The security team will also confiscate any unusual items such as Chinese lanterns, blowtorches, and generators unless they are fixed to campervans and firewood. Other items include laser pens or equipment, air horns or megaphones along with high visibility jackets.
Those planning to bring their own food and drink may also need to be careful that it is not in quantities deemed to be 'excessive' although the list doesn't state how much that may be. It calls for festival-goers to carry enough for 'personal use' and a 'reasonable amount'.
Merchandising will not be allowed to go on sale unless it is authorised and official items from the performers at the festival. This is to stop counterfeit goods from being sold at the event.
There will also be water points on site for people to fill bottles from but this means that there will be no unsealed bottles allowed to be brought into the arena. Sealed bottles must also be plastic and not glass. The sealed bottles help to stop people from bringing alcohol into the venue. If festival-goers need to bring their own food for medical reasons then they will need a medical note or evidence to support this.
In a bid to stop unauthorised photographs or video footage from being taken, personal equipment is allowed but those deemed professional are not. For the same reasons, drones are not allowed near the event unless they have written permission ahead of time.
This year, the festival has also launched a competition to name their popular second stage. They announced the top three suggestions The Reaper, The Castle and the Opus stage. Fans are being asked to vote for their favourite of the three options.
