Irish rap trio Kneecap led a chant against UK Prime Minister Andy Burnham during a politically charged set at Leeds Festival on Friday night. The group, who hail from Belfast, headlined The Gallery stage on the opening night of the festival.
The chant came after Burnham made his first official visit to Northern Ireland this week, where he said a referendum on a united Ireland "is off the table". According to reports, the trio led the crowd in chanting: "Andy Burnham's a w*****."
Political context
Burnham continued that Brexit and the independent Scottish referendums demonstrated the "risks that come from those situations and take a long time to heal", as reported by the Mirror. He told BBC News NI: "Well, obviously I'm here as I said earlier to listen and I will take a collaborative approach, but some issues will be off the table, and that is one issue that will be off the table."
He added: "We need to fix the things right in front of us in the here and now." The PM was referring to the cost of living crisis and pressure on public services, rather than focussing on a united Ireland.
Support for Palestine
Kneecap, who are open in their support for a united Ireland, are also vocal in their backing for other political causes. During their set, the act also showed their support for Palestine. Moments before they appeared on stage, visuals displayed on big screens read: "Israel is committing genocide against the Palestinian and Lebanese people. Over 100,000 people have been murdered by Israel since 2023."
The group previously came under fire for a pro-Palestinian chant at Glastonbury last year, which led to an investigation by Avon and Somerset Police.
Festival weather
Reading and Leeds Festival officially kicked off yesterday, with Brits faced with torrential rain for the opening day. Thousands of attendees travelled to the Berkshire site, only to be met with plenty of mud after a downpour.
Despite this, many are soldiering on for another day with headliners across the weekend including Charli XCX, Raye and Florence + The Machine. Brits have been faced with months of dry weather, with this recent predicted rain and thunderstorms set to cause bouts of flash flooding around the country. While the festival sites are not yet flooded, pictures from the morning of the second day show puddles gathered on the camping grounds and communal walkways. Following a three-day soaking, leaving dozens of homes battered by flood water, the Met Office has predicted the rain will continue throughout the weekend.
