UK Festival Awards 2005 - The Winners

T In The Park, Bestival and Glasto among the big winners!

T in The Park came out on top to win the coveted 'Best Major Festival', beating heavy hitters Glastonbury and the Carling Weekend: Leeds and Reading Festivals into second and third places respectively. The Scottish festival also picked up the award for 'Best Organisation And Facilities' for the second year running.

T In The Park boss Geoff Ellis said: "Thanks must go to the T In The Park audience, which is, from my own experience and from what I'm told by almost every artist that plays the event, the best in the world." 

Last year's overall winner Glastonbury was left far from empty handed. As well as being named 'Best Family Festival', the Glasto team received the 'Outstanding Contribution Award' for their incredible response to the storms that ravaged the site on the opening morning. The Somerset event also won 'Best Festival Moment' for the Make Poverty History show of unity, where thousands linked hands in protest against global suffering.

Glastonbury's Emily Eavis told VF: "It was an incredible moment and part of the integrity of this year's Glastonbury. It's important that it's acknowledged that way but also that it's seen as a beginning and not an end to the campaign. Thanks to everyone for voting for it, and for being part of it - because it's them, not the rock stars, that made it." 

Bestival lived up to its name by scooping two awards in only its second year on the festival calendar. The 20,000 capacity event won 'Best Medium Sized Festival' and 'Best Innovation' after staging the world's biggest ever fancy dress party and introducing several futuristic features, including live downloads, a wireless sense experiences, and a hidden disco. 

In the artist awards, Foo Fighters and Kaiser Chiefs proved to be the live highlights of the year. Dave Grohl's band were voted 'Best Headliner' and 'Best Rock Act', while the Kaisers won 'Best Live Newcomer' and the 'BBC 6Music Anthem Of The Summer' for their song 'Oh My God' - it's chorus of "never been this far away from home" clearly striking a chord with festival fans throughout the summer.

The Prodigy were named 'Best Dance Act' following electric performances at T In The Park and V Festival, while Goldie Lookin' Chain claimed the 'Best Urban Act'. 

GLC's Adam Hussein told VF: "Get in there! Rock on Tommy, that's what I say. We love our festivals. They only come around once a year so you've gotta get stuck into the things and have a couple of parties. It's the best news I've had all week!"

'Best Pop Act' went to Scissor Sisters, while Status Quo won the award for 'Festival Feel Good Act' following the band's come-back headline set at Guilfest.

The Quo's Francis Rossi said: "We are really chuffed to win this particularly category and it's fantastic to know that fans out front are enjoying themselves as much as we are on stage."
 
Back to the festivals and the tiny-but-perfectly-formed Secret Garden beat off fierce competition to win 'Best Small Festival', while independent metal fest Bloodstock Open Air narrowly saw off O2 Wireless Festival to pick up 'Best New Festival'. 

'Best One Day Event' went to T4 On The Beach, while 'Best Dance Festival' went to Liverpool's Creamfields for the second year running.

Cream's chief executive James Barton commented: "The coveted UK Festival Awards are a  body that not only recognises what great events we have in this country but firmly puts the UK on the global map as leaders in their field when it comes to outdoor events. The number of people that have voted this year proves this and makes winning this particular award very special."

Download was awarded 'Best Website', while The Big Chill's loyal fan base helped the festival win the prize for 'Best Cult Following'. 

The UK Festival Awards 2005 were hosted by Virtual Festivals and partners Carling Live and BBC 6Music. Just over 30,000 people cast more than 600,000 votes over a three week period, so thanks! 

Click here to read the reactions from the winners. The top three in each category are as follows:

Best Major Festival
1. T in the Park
2. Glastonbury
3. Carling Weekend: Leeds and Reading Festival

Best Medium Sized Festival
1. Bestival
2. Guilfest
3. Global Gathering

Best Small Festival
1. Secret Garden
2. Summer Sundae
3. Cambridge Folk

Best New Festival
1. BloodStock Open Air
2. O2 Wireless
3. Isle of Skye

Best Dance Festival
1. Creamfields
2. Global Gathering
3. Glade

Best Family Festival
1. Glastonbury
2. Cambridge Folk Festival
3. Guilfest

Best Facilities and Organisation
1. T in the Park
2. Download
3. Summer Sundae

Best Innovation
1. Bestival
2. Download
3. Big Chill

Best One Day
1. T4 on the Beach
2. Get Loaded in the Park
3. Creamfields

Best Cult Following
1. Big Chill
2. Bloodstock
3. Lost Vagueness

Best Website
1. Download
2. Beautiful Days
3. Global Gathering

Best Festival Headliner
1. Foo Fighters
2. Green Day
3. Oasis

Best Festival Rock Act
1. Foo Fighters
2. Green Day
3. Queens of the Stone Age

Best Festival Dance Act
1. Prodigy
2. Faithless
3. Basement Jaxx

Best Festival Pop Act
1. Scissor Sisters
2. Keane
3. KT Tunstall

Fest Festival Urban Act
1. Goldie Lookin Chain
2. The Streets
3. Snoop Dogg

Best Live Newcomer
1. Kaiser Chiefs
2. Bloc Party
3. Arctic Monkeys

Best Festival Feel Good Act
1. Status Quo
2. Ian Brown
3. The Proclaimers

Anthem of the Summer
1. Kaiser Chiefs - Oh My God
2. Foo Fighters - Best of You
3. Coldplay - Fix You

Best Festival Moment
1. Tens of thousands join hands during the Make Poverty History Moment at Glastonbury.
2. Dave Grohl (Foo Fighters) gets back on the drums at the Carling Weekend: Reading and Leeds Festivals, for the first time since he performed there [Reading] with Nirvana
3. Glastonbury is flooded by storms on its opening morning, but the festival fans battle on and the atmosphere soars

Outstanding Contribution Award (awarded by Virtual Festivals)
The Glastonbury Festival team for their fast and effective response to the epic flooding that ravaged the festival site on the opening morning.

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