Food stalls shut at festival as metal fans fall ill

Organisers of the Download Festival say they had to shut down two food vendors after reports of fans becoming unwell.

Tens of thousands of fans attended the rock music gathering in Castle Donington, Leicestershire, between Wednesday and Sunday.

North West Leicestershire District Council (NWLDC) said medics began to see "a pattern" of fans falling ill, prompting event organiser Live Nation to launch an investigation.

The authority said it would continue to investigate the reports.

Will Ellis and his partner had travelled to the festival from Norfolk and said they had "pre-planned" one of the food vendors they wanted to visit, having been impressed the previous year.

The 33-year-old said: "We got our food, sat at the benches in the village and enjoyed our meals not knowing what was to come."

Mr Ellis said he woke up at 06:00 BST the following morning "with the most painful stomach ache".

He and his partner suffered with diarrhoea, which "ruined" almost an entire day at the event, he said.

Megan Souster, from Devon, had attended the festival for the first time and said she had "never been so ill in my life".

The 25-year-old said she became unwell on Saturday night and spent the whole of Sunday in her tent.

"I was too unwell to make it to a medical tent. My partner had to care for me," she said.

Ms Souster said when she eventually managed to get to a "help hub" in her campsite, she was asked what she had eaten.

"That was the first time I got an inkling that there was more than just my case," she said.

"It has taken me four days to get better. Even now I still don't feel myself."

Others who attended the festival have reported similar experiences on social media, with some claiming they were forced to go home due to their symptoms.

Sean Smith, lead singer of the band Raiders, told fans via social media on Monday that he had food poisoning and had been sick "all night".

In a post on X, formerly Twitter, he said: "I've got to go to hospital to be put on an IV apparently."

A spokesperson for the district council said the authority had received four calls from festival attendees, reporting a total of six people becoming unwell.

However, fans on social media have suggested food poisoning symptoms affected many more.

Paul Sanders, head of community services at the council, said: "We worked with the event organiser to investigate two food vendors, both of which were closed by the event organiser over the course of the weekend.

"We are aware of reports of people feeling unwell and will continue to investigate. Anyone continuing to feel unwell following the Download Festival should contact their GP in the first instance."

Live Nation said customer safety was its "primary concern" and all food traders were inspected before and during the event.

The spokesman said: "Two vendors were closed and removed from the site as they failed to meet the standards of Environment Health and the local authority.

"Download Festival operates a robust 24-hour welfare operation including staff and welfare tents to support unwell customers throughout the site."

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