UK Neo-Nazi Music Festival Cancelled Following Backlash

Photo Credit: Tetiana Zatsarynna

A neo-Nazi music festival has been cancelled after backlash to what was described as “Britain’s biggest white power concert in years.”

A two-day neo-Nazi music festival called “Resurrection 4” was due to be held in the UK town of Great Yarmouth on September 6 and 7. But following protests from groups like Hope Not Hate, authorities have confirmed the event will not be taking place.

Notably, the festival would have coincided with Great Yarmouth’s annual Pride event that same weekend; concerns were raised about the potential for violence to break out and additional strain on police resources.

Anti-racism group Hope Not Hate said that the Resurrection 4 event would have been “the largest white power music gig held in the UK for at least 10 years.” Over 500 tickets were reportedly sold for the now-cancelled event. Organizers of the festival are also said to push “deeply racist and anti-Semitic material on its social media channels.”

“We welcome the cancellation of the gig,” said Nick Lowles, CEO of Hope Not Hate. “These hate fests have no place in our communities—as is evident from the over 34,000 people who joined Hope Not Hate in emailing the Home Office and spreading the word.”

“This is a huge win,” said Hope Not Hate in a statement celebrating the cancellation. “They wanted a weekend of hate, recruitment, and fundraising, and instead they were shut down. […] They’ll try again, and when they do, we’ll be ready. Thank you for standing with us.”

According to Hope Not Hate, many of the bands on the bill were supporters of the racist umbrella group Blood & Honour, which was founded in 1987 by skinhead punk band Skrewdriver frontman Ian Stuart Donaldson.

The bill for the festival included numerous bands known for using Nazi imagery and symbolism, including German band Combat BC and U.S. band Birthrite. Other bands listed on the bill included Crucified, Pressure 28, Last Orders, and Bulldog Breed.

The event was going to be held at an undisclosed location, and local police had discussed ways to close it down, including the possibility of an emergency council meeting over public safety. The UK’s Licensing Act 2003 enables police to order the closure of an individual venue or premises for up to 24 hours if disorder is either happening or likely to occur, or if a noise disturbance is reported.