Creamfields is a premier electronic dance music festival founded by British club promoter Cream. Originating in 1998 in Winchester, it moved to Liverpool in 1999 before settling at the Daresbury estate in Cheshire. Initially a one-day event with 25,000 attendees, it expanded into a four-day festival hosting 70,000 daily, held annually over the August Bank Holiday weekend. In 2022, Creamfields launched a second UK edition, Creamfields South in Chelmsford, returning again in 2023, though by 2024 the event reverted to its single northern location. It remains the UK’s most prestigious electronic dance music festival.
History
Creamfields initially began in 1998 as a one-day annual event run by the Liverpool night club Cream.8 This first edition was held in Winchester, Hampshire, and attracted 25,000 people.9 The following year Creamfields moved to the old Liverpool Airfield in Liverpool, Merseyside. The move put the festival closer to its parent night club and the new site was able to hold 50,000 people.1011 In 2016, Cream was demolished; however, the brand continued to run the festival. In 2006 the festival moved outside the city to its current location in Daresbury, Cheshire.12 On the 10th anniversary of the festival it expanded to a two-day event, with 50,000 people attending across the weekend.13 The festival site expanded over the next few years after its first sellout in 2009 of 60,000 across the weekend. In 2010, the site was expanded to accommodate additional ticket sales and growing demand from campers. The festival sold 80,000 tickets in 2010 and 100,000 in 2011.14
In 2012 the festival ownership changed hands as Cream was bought out by Live Nation, the current organisers of the event.1516 The festival was set to expand to a three-day event,17 but on the final day the festival was abandoned because of heavy rain.18 The following year the organisers invested £500,000 in the site to protect it against bad weather. The three-day event allowed an attendance of 150,000.19 2014 saw the edition of a second primary stage, the North and South Stage; and in 2015, the festival was live streamed for the first time, to 500,000 online attendees.20 The Steel Yard stage was introduced in 2016, spawning a spinoff mini-festival with events held in Liverpool and London;21 the same year, the festival become a four-day event with site expansion in 2017 allowing for a maximum attendance of 280,000.22 In 2019, £2,000,000 was invested to improve security and safety and to reduce environmental impact.23 The festival hosted Swedish House Mafia in their Save the World Reunion Tour, the supergroup's first UK show since 2012; the group were the sole occupants of the festival's iconic Arc Stage on the day of the event.24
The 2020 edition of the festival was cancelled because of the COVID-19 pandemic,2526 with a virtual festival taking its place.27 Following Boris Johnson's announcement on the 22 February regarding the road out of the UK's COVID-19 lockdown, Creamfields announced that the 2021 edition would go ahead. Tickets for the event sold out in record time.28
A second UK-based festival – Creamfields South – was introduced in 2022 at Hylands Park in Chelmsford, hosting headline acts such as David Guetta and Calvin Harris. Organisers said that they expected the festival to continue and become 'a solid and regular fixture on the UK festival circuit', with Creamfields South confirmed to be returning for 2023.29
Edition's summary
Nb: Artists shown in the table below were headliners for the event. For full line-ups see List of Creamfields line-ups.
Album
Main article: Creamfields (2004 album)
On 9 August 2004, British DJ Paul Oakenfold released his fifteenth DJ Mix album entitled Creamfields. The album was released in advance of the sixth edition of the festival in 2004 of which Oakenfold was due to perform. The album itself is third in a series of remix album with the other two being made by other DJs. In 2019, Oakenfold released a further DJ mix album to celebrate the festival's twentieth anniversary.71
Creamfields: Steel Yard
The 2016 edition of Creamfields saw the debut of the Steel Yard stage at the main event in Daresbury, Cheshire. The stage is a 15,000 capacity super structure designed and built by Acorn Events.72
Steel Yard Liverpool made its debut in 2016 at the city's Clarence Graving Dock, and now occurs annually in late November or early December.73
Steel Yard London initially took place in late October at Victoria Park, London in 2017,74 before moving to Finsbury Park for 2018 and 2019 respectively, with a new date on the late-May bank holiday weekend.75
In 2018, Steel Yard Liverpool partnered with Tomorrowland and Dimitri Vegas & Like Mike to bring "Garden of Madness" to the UK for a special one-off event.76
Creamfields International
In addition to the two main UK events, Creamfields also operates a number of international spin offs including:77
- Creamfields Abu Dhabi
- Creamfields Australia (2010–2012; 2017)
- Creamfields Brazil
- Creamfields Buenos Aires (2001–2015; 2024–present)
- Creamfields Czech Republic (2002)
- Creamfields Chile (2004–2018; 2022–present)
- Creamfields China (2018–present)
- Creamfields Colombia
- Creamfields Hong Kong (2017–present)
- Creamfields Ibiza
- Creamfields Ireland (2000–2002)
- Creamfields Mallorca
- Creamfields Malta
- Creamfields Mexico
- Creamfields Romania
- Creamfields Paraguay
- Creamfields Poland (2003 – Kołobrzeg , 2006–2008 – Wrocław)
- Creamfields Portugal
- Creamfields Peru
- Creamfields Spain
- Creamfields Taiwan (2017–present)
- Creamfields Thailand (2022–present)78
- Creamfields Turkey
- Creamfields Ukraine
- Creamfields Vietnam
Awards and nominations
DJ Awards
See also: DJ Awards
Year | Category | Work | Result | Ref. |
---|---|---|---|---|
2014 | Special Award – Best International Dance Music Festival | Creamfields – UK | Won | 79 |
DJ Magazine's top 50 Festivals
See also: DJ Mag
Year | Category | Work | Result | Ref. |
---|---|---|---|---|
2019 | World's Best Festival | Creamfields – Liverpool, UK | 13th | 80 |
Festicket Awards
Year | Category | Work | Result | Ref. |
---|---|---|---|---|
2016 | Best EDM/Dance Festival | Creamfields | 3rd | 81 |
International Dance Music Awards
See also: International Dance Music Awards
Year | Category | Work | Result | Ref. |
---|---|---|---|---|
2011 | Best Music Event | Creamfields – Liverpool, UK | Nominated | 82 |
2016 | Nominated | 83 |
UK Festival Awards
See also: UK Festival Awards
Year | Category | Work | Result | Ref. |
---|---|---|---|---|
2004 | Best Dance Festival | Creamfields UK | Won | 84 |
2005 | Best Dance Festival | Won | 85 | |
2008 | Best Major Festival | Nominated | ||
Best Dance Festival | Nominated | |||
2009 | Best Dance Festival | Won | 86 | |
2010 | Best Dance Festival | Won | 87 | |
2011 | Best Dance Festival | Won | 88 | |
2013 | Best Dance Festival | Won | 8990 | |
2014 | Best Dance Festival | Won | 9192 | |
2015 | Best Major Festival | Nominated | 9394 | |
Best Dance Festival | Won | |||
2016 | Best Major Festival | Won | 959697 |
See also
- List of electronic music festivals
- List of Creamfields line-ups
- Creamfields Australia
- Creamfields BA
Notes
External links
Wikimedia Commons has media related to CreamFields.References
"Flashback: os Flyers usados na divulgação das festas nos anos 90 – Eletro Vibez". Eletro Vibez (in Brazilian Portuguese). 28 June 2018. Retrieved 31 October 2018. http://eletrovibez.com/blog/flashback-os-flyers-usados-na-divulgacao-das-festas-nos-anos-90/ ↩
"Travel to Creamfields". https://www.creamfields.com/travel ↩
"Creamfields 2021 | Festival Line up & Info". Ticketmaster.co.uk. https://www.ticketmaster.co.uk/creamfields ↩
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Woolston, Hope (7 June 2022). "Creamfields South will return to Chelmsford next year". EssexLive. Retrieved 9 June 2022. https://www.essexlive.news/whats-on/music-nightlife/creamfields-south-2023-dance-festival-7176431 ↩
Rice, Elle May (17 February 2022). "Calvin Harris joins Creamfields 2022 line up for 25th anniversary". Liverpool Echo. Retrieved 6 March 2022. https://www.liverpoolecho.co.uk/whats-on/whats-on-news/calvin-harris-joins-creamfields-2022-23130367 ↩
Whitehouse, Ellis (28 September 2023). "Creamfields South festival won't return to Essex next year". Essex Live. Retrieved 1 May 2025. https://www.essexlive.news/news/essex-news/creamfields-south-not-return-hylands-8786884 ↩
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"Creamfields History". Skiddle.com. https://www.skiddle.com/festivals/creamfields/history.html ↩
These attendance figures are for the whole weekend, therefore attendees with multi-day passes will be counted per day of their pass. ↩
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"Creamfields 08' Celebrates 10th Anniversary". Skiddle.com. https://www.skiddle.com/news/all/Creamfields-08-Celebrates-10th-Anniversary/2269/ ↩
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"Creamfields 2011 Line-Up Announced". Skiddle.com. https://www.skiddle.com/news/all/Creamfields-2011-Line-Up-Announced/8690/ ↩
The festival was abandoned on the 26 August because of heavy rain.[15] ↩
"Creamfields 2012 now on sale with Skiddle!". Skiddle.com. https://www.skiddle.com/news/all/Creamfields-2012-now-on-sale-with-Skiddle/11830/ ↩
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