The Mary Wallopers set cut short at Victorious Festival after calling for “free Palestine”

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The Mary Wallopers set cut short at Victorious Festival after calling for “free Palestine”

The Mary Wallopers have had their set cut short at Victorious Festival after calling for a ‘Free Palestine’ and displaying the country’s flag.

The Irish band had barely started their show at the Portsmouth festival on Friday (August 22) when their microphones were cut off. In videos shared online by those in attendance, the crowd can be heard booing the decision and leading chants of “let them play” and “free, free Palestine”.

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Writing on their Instagram Stories, the band said: “Just got cut off at Victorious Festival for having a Palestinian flag on the stage. We’ve been doing this for 6 years now and this has never happened before. Free Palestine all day every day.”

A Victorious Festival spokesperson told NME: “We spoke to the artist before the performance regarding the festival’s long-standing policy of not allowing flags of any kind at the event, but that we respect their right to express their views during the show.”

“Although a flag was displayed on stage contrary to our policy, and this was raised with the artist’s crew, the show was not ended at this point, and it was the artist’s decision to stop the song. The decision by the event management to cut the sound and end the performance was only taken after the band used a chant which is widely understood to have a discriminatory context.”

“To be clear, we respect the right of artists to use their platform to express their views within the inclusive nature of the event and it was not the band’s call to ‘Free Palestine’ which resulted in this outcome.”

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Victorious is one of many festivals to be operated by Superstruct Entertainment, which is owned by the controversial global investment firm KKR, which has been criticised by many artists for its alleged stakes in weapons manufacturing companies and Israel corporations operating in the occupied Palestinian territories.

Kneecap wrote on X: “Our good pals The Mary Wallopers have just been pulled off stage and the PA shut down at @VictoriousFest in Portsmouth for taking out a Palestine flag and saying Free Palestine.”

“Speak up against genocide in England and you’re treated like a criminal. Up the Mary Wallopers. Free Palestine! Free the 6 counties!”

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See footage from the crowd showing the band being cut off here, along with reactions from those in attendance:

NME have contacted Victorious Festival’s representatives for comment.

Several other festivals that are backed by KKR have addressed their concerns about the connection. Tramlines said they would “never send them a single Euro”, while Mighty Hoopla stated their “clear opposition to KKR’s unethical investments”.

Boiler Room, which was also acquired by Superstruct, issued a statement in March stating that KKR “categorically don’t align with our values” while reiterating their allegiance to pro-Palestine organisations.

Similarly, Field Day said in May that they have “never compromised” on their “ambitions and values” and have been engaged in “a passionate discussion” with KKR. They said they recognised “the strength of the feeling of the artists involved and the fans who attend” and said it was “sorry” that some artists have pulled out.

They later clarified: “We are sorry we did not say earlier what we unequivocally say now: We are passionately opposed to KKR’s unethical investments in Israel. We cannot control who owns our parent company but we promise to make our – and your – voices, and the ethical values we regard as non-negotiable, heard and understood at all levels.”

One group of 50 artists, which included Massive Attack and Brian Eno, signed an open letter urging Field Day to distance itself from KKR in May, while another 11 artists announced that they were boycotting the festival in solidarity with Palestine.

Victorious Festival is running on the Southsea seafront this weekend, with Kings Of Leon, Queens Of The Stone Age and Vampire Weekend topping the bill.

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