Leeds 2002 - Journey to the Center of the Riots!

Mike Eccleshall - 02 September 2002

Virtual Festivals photographer Mike Eccleshall ventured to the heart of the infamous riots, that marred the final night of the otherwise perfect Leeds Festival. This is what he saw...

We realised something serious was happening when we got back to our campsite at around 1am. The hill on the far side was outlined with a bright red glow, and a police helicopter was circling, spreading its spot light over the area. Now and again, the flames would suddenly leap hundreds of feet into the air. We could only guess that this was another chemical toilet going up. From our safe distance, the air was heavy with the putrid odour of burning toilets. Intrigued, and not quite ready for bed, I decided to infiltrate the warzone. My collegues thought I was mad, and wisely stayed put.

Rather than hiking the good hour's walk around the perimeter, I managed to persuade a cab driver to drop me off at the entrance to the aptly named 'Red' campsite. We were both alarmed to encounter police and other emergency vehicles fleeing past us in the opposite direction. The cab was eventually stopped by security some distance from the flames but, having legitimate passes for the festival, they could not stop me from entering.

Walking towards the flames, it became evident that the disturbances were the result of mindless destruction and "fun", as opposed to a violent revolt. There were no complaints from those involved about specific aspects of the festival or the police, just a general (if uneasy) atmosphere of wanton vandalism.

At the center of the carnage were the 'fields of flames' where rows of portaloos once stood. There were chemicals and effluence burning whilst kids ran though them. The intensity of heat from these chemical fires was phenomenal, and many of the surrounding metal fences simply disintegrated. Frequent small explosions kept going off all around, caused by people throwing all manner of items into the fires. The ambulance staff seemed to have all evacuated, which did little to quell my nerves in this terrifying scenario.