Yorkshire once saw one its very own festivals descend into riots reminiscent of the violence and vandalism that overshadowed Woodstock '99.
It as during the Red Hot Chilli Peppers closing set of the American music festival that bonfires broke out through the crowd, cars were flipped and booths were torched. Various people were injured and at least three people tragically died.
Just three years later in 2002, Leeds Festival was to fall foul of devastating violence with horrific scenes at Temple Newsam Park. The 2002 line-up was full of big names, including the Strokes, the Foo Fighters, and the Prodigy. Guns 'n' Roses were also set to headline on the Friday.
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The festival nearly didn't happen that year in Leeds, as councillors originally refused to give the licence for it because of complaints about violence the year before. Despite this, it was eventually given the go ahead.
But when Guns 'n' Roses were set to come on - they didn't appear. The fans waiting started to get restless, with police deployed after fights broke out in the crowd and there were reports of antisocial behaviour.
Guns 'n' Roses eventually appeared around an hour late at 11pm. After about an hour and a quarter, frontman Axl Rose said the council wanted the band to finish - but he told the crowd the band wanted to finish their set.
They were eventually given more time and finished the show with no problems around 1am with Paradise City. Police deployed more officers, and the night continued without much of a hitch.
A spokesperson for the festival said in a statement at the time: "It was a very unusual night which due to technical problems resulted in a very substantial overrun. We took a good number of steps to minimise the impact this would have on the local environment and we do not expect this to happen again.
"In view of the many thousands of fans that had waited diligently for the first Guns N' Roses appearance in nine years, and the potential consequences of that meant an overrun became the only option."
But problems resurfaced on the final day of Leeds Festival in 2002 after Foo Fighters had finished their headline act. West Yorkshire Police said at the time that 200 officers had to be called when violence broke out just after midnight. Toilets and bins were also set on fire and there were several incidents of vandalism.
Apparently around 500 festival-goers confronted police, as the force condemned the “sustained, determined and mindless” violence. Officers were reportedly pelted with debris and bottles, with one taken to hospital for a broken nose. There was £250,000 worth of damage.
Residents and the council was not happy, and continued to fight the case they'd made the year before to stop Leeds Festival. Temple Newsam eventually said the festival would not be hosted there again. And so it came to be moved to Bramham Park, where it still happens every year two decades later.
At the time, festival organiser Mean Fiddler MD Melvin Benn said: "There were a series of incidents involving up to 500 people in which 71 toilets were damaged by fire. No festival goers were injured.
“Police and security attended, contained and dealt with the situation. In the context of the first sell-out Leeds Festival which saw 50,000 people enjoy the live return of Guns ‘N’ Roses after nine years and the return of the Prodigy after four years and three days of the best music festival in Britain, the actions of under 1% of the crowd, while regrettable, should not be allowed to detract from a very successful weekend which has put Leeds Festival firmly on the UK music map.
“We will not give in to the mindless minority and will strive to make it more successful next year. The Leeds Festival will have a very long and successful future.”
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