Victorious Festival, Southsea Common, 28th – 30th August 2026

The first proper rain for months didn’t stop thousands of people of all ages turning out for Saturday’s big names. And, to be honest, it was kind of nice not to be standing around in baking sunshine for once. The sweeping showers and prevailing winds were very much part of the day, but neither seemed to dampen the mood.

Unusually for us, we concentrated mostly on the main Common Stage, the biggest of the bunch, although it’s worth noting the multiple smaller stages dotted around the site, showcasing a strong mix of local and touring talent. There were also plenty of details that gave the site its own character, including a specially built replica of Southsea’s Lord John Russell pub.

Kicking off the afternoon, Dizzee Rascal brought the expected energy and had the crowd moving from the start, while Lottery Winners provided a good-natured change of pace. They’re becoming increasingly difficult to ignore, and their infectious songs felt tailor-made for this kind of setting.

Moving on through the day, White Lies were next level, opening with Farewell to the Fairground and delivering a perfect performance. Song after song hit the mark, with plenty of those moments where you suddenly remember just how many great tracks the band has. Musically, they remain completely on point.

White Lies

Happy Mondays were another highlight. Shaun Ryder and Bez remain a brilliant double act, and their obvious friendship makes them even more entertaining to watch. Bez is a born performer, living in his own bubble of contentment – at one point seemingly convinced an encore was about to happen despite the rest of the band having already left the stage. You could feel the audience would have happily gone with it, but festival schedules, sadly, have other ideas. Still, with 24 Hour Party People, Step On and Hallelujah all gracing the setlist, there was more than enough to keep everyone smiling.

Happy Mondays (+ header shot)

We only caught Jessie J’s set from across the common, but her opening ‘rules’ were more than a little bizarre – no filming while singing along if your voice isn’t up to scratch, and no joining in if you don’t know the words as, apparently, this is disrespectful to her. An interesting approach although we couldn’t help wondering whether she might want to take on her own advice. Some of the vocals sounded decidedly pitchy, while a large chunk of the set seemed to consist of covers. Perhaps it was the distance… perhaps not.

By complete contrast, Nile Rodgers and CHIC arrived and showed exactly how it should be done. Note-perfect, full of energy and actively encouraging everyone to sing along – whether they knew the words or were making them up as they went. The lack of sunshine was forgotten as the crowd danced and sang their way through songs by CHIC (Le Freak, Everybody Dance, Dance Dance Dance), Bowie’s mid 80s’ era, Madonna as the Material Girl, the pure disco of Sister Sledge and much more. Nile Rodgers has been behind an extraordinary amount of quality music, and this was a masterclass in making a festival crowd feel part of it.

Nile Rodgers & CHIC

Afterwards, a walk along the windswept seafront, with boats and swinging lights flickering in the darkness, took us over the hill towards the castle and into Primal Scream belting out Moving On Up. A string of hits rang out against a backdrop that felt almost surreal. It’s certainly not your everyday festival setting.

Primal Scream

The Black Keys closed Saturday with a suitably big headline performance, pulling in another huge crowd. By this point the weather had thrown pretty much everything at proceedings but there was still, fittingly, a sea of people determined to make the most of the night.

And that’s perhaps what stands out about Victorious. It has a great site, a strong mix of big names and emerging talent, plenty of activities and a food offering that goes well beyond the usual festival fare (shout out to Vegan Tacos). Most importantly, it managed the difficult conditions without any major disruption. It’s easy to see why it works so well for families, without leaving music fans feeling short-changed in any way.

The Park & Ride arrangements, it has to be said, could use a little work. The decision to introduce them is understandable and the service itself was well run, but finding the buses wasn’t straightforward, with a lack of signage and stewards who had little information and were sending people to the opposite end of the common only to find the campsite shuttle instead – not the ideal end to the evening, nonetheless, that’s a minor grumble after a great day out.

All in all, a welcome bit of rain, a lot of  memorable music, and plenty of reasons to come back – Victorious 2026 showed with ease that when the line-up is this good, even the great British weather can’t spoil the party.

Early Bird tickets for Victorious 2027 are on sale now here

Review by Callum & Siobhan
Photos by Siobhan – 16beasleystphotography.com | Instagram: 16beasleyst

Published 2nd September 2026