V Festival 2012 at Weston Park - review

A gloriously sun-kissed Weston Park played host to what was an eclectic V Festival sure to live long in the memory.

Around 90,000 revellers descended on the venue on the border of Staffordshire and Shropshire to enjoy a host of top acts including The Stone Roses, The Killers, Tinie Tempah, Noel Gallagher's High Flying Birds, Example, Snow Patrol, Ed Sheeran and Olly Murs.

• V Festival 2012 - bands photo gallery

• V Festival 2012 - fans photo gallery

The sun shone during the day yesterday and Saturday although wellies were still part of the V uniform as parts of the campsite and music arena turned into mud baths thanks to overnight rain.

But a bit of mud didn't dampen the spirits of fans watching The Stone Roses – arguably the biggest draw of the weekend – when they closed the festival last night.

The Manchester indie rockers reformed last year and stormed their V debut, rattling off hit after hit to the ecstatic crowd including Fools Gold and I Am The Resurrection.

There were hugs all round from the four-piece - whose relations became severely strained during the band's 15-year hiatus - as a spectacular fireworks display polished things off for the weekend.

Noel Gallagher and his High Flying Birds warmed the crowd up for the main act with a set which leaned heavily on Oasis' back catalogue.

Gallagher, who told fans it was a pleasure to be performing at V, reeled off seven Oasis hits including Whatever, crowd favourite Don't Look Back in Anger and Supersonic, which the Mancunian dedicated to double Olympic gold medallist Mo Farah.

Hot new thing Emeli Sande attracted a big crowd for a soulful jaunt earlier yesterday afternoon, while dance chart-topper Example whipped the audience into a bouncing frenzy.

Saturday's headliners and long-time V favourites The Killers produced an exhilarating set, drawing songs from their three top 10 albums and previewing new material from the as-yet unreleased Battle Born.

A stunning light show provided an electrifying backdrop for hits such as Mr Brightside, Human, All These Things That I've Done, Somebody Told Me and When You Were Young, which closed their 90-minute performance.

The Las Vegas foursome and lead singer Brandon Flowers also delighted the crowd with a well-received rendition of Oasis's Don't Look Back in Anger, which fans were still singing late into the night.

Earlier in the afternoon huge crowds flocked to catch old favourites Madness on the main stage.

The sun came out just in time for the eccentric ska band who had fans as far as the eye could see dancing to classic tunes Baggy Trousers and House of Fun.

And fellow stalwart Tom Jones proved he could mix it with the predominantly young crowd, lighting up the stage with It's Not Unusual.

Frank Turner, who recently earned widespread praise for a performance at the Olympic Opening Ceremony, was a big hit with fans, as were Rizzle Kicks, Labrinth, DJ Fresh, James Morrison, Olly Murs, Snow Patrol, Keane and Wolverhampton soul songstress Beverley Knight.

There was a Britpop flavour to the 4Music stage with Dodgy, Shed Seven and The Charlatans – a replacement for late dropout Dappy – bringing back the 1990s to Weston Park.

David Guetta, on stage after Friendly Fires, headlined 4Music last night and gave a relentlessly energetic set of dance grooves.

Fans of Nicki Minaj were left disappointed when the unconventional Trinidad-born singer cancelled her appearance at the last minute citing strained vocal chords, with LMFAO filling in her headline set.

It wasn't all about the music though – a fourth stage provided welcome relief for the eardrums as some of the UK's top comedians had people laughing in the aisles.

Sean Lock, Milton Jones and Tim Minchin – whose unique brand of musical comedy proved particularly popular – were among those to perform.

Fans lapped up the classic varied assortment of acts found at V every year. Amy O'Boyle, aged 27, from Birmingham, was attending her first festival. She said: "The sun's come out so everyone's spirits are high. The vibe here is brilliant, it's a great atmosphere.

Warren Parish, 29, from Cannock, who runs fish and chip shop Chez Woz on High Green, said: "This is my fifth time and we're loving it – the weather's absolutely awesome.

"The guy who was selling wellies on Friday made a fortune and on Saturday it was the guy selling sunglasses.

"The acts are always great here, there's always a big variation."

The V festival party was today coming to an end for thousands of revellers.

The Weston Park campsite was rapidly becoming a mud bath thanks to this morning's heavy rain, as festival-goers packed up their tents and sleeping bags to head home following the two-day music extravaganza.

Once the last revellers have left the scene, the huge clean-up operation will begin as crews and Rotarians gather up the litter, including abandoned tents and wellies.

An on-site medical centre set up at the festival site treated more than 400 people over the weekend, while West Midlands Ambulance service was called out to the site on more than 100 occasions.

Review by Tim Spiers