The V Festival is an annual rock festival in England, the first to be held simultaneously at two sites - currently Hylands Park in Chelmsford, Essex and Weston Park in Staffordshire. Originally, the festival took the name of the current year, with the first festival "V96" including a Leeds leg. It discarded its year specific name in 2003 since it has been known as simply the V Festival.
The "V" represents the Virgin Group, and began as another means of promoting Richard Branson's companies. The event is sponsored by Virgin Mobile, with Virgin Radio the official radio station.
The festival generally takes place during the penultimate weekend of August. Its critics dislike its corporate sponsorship and reputation for being the most "posh" of the major British music festivals. However its weekend format, low queuing times and professional organisation have given it a loyal audience. The festival sold out in record time in 2005.
Official Website: http://www.vfestival.com