There’s just 9 weekends ‘til your heavy metal brethren thunder their way onto Catton Park’s (un)holy lands for BLOODSTOCK OPEN AIR 2025! So it’s about time to reveal the first batch of winners from this year’s hotly contested Metal 2 The Masses finals that have been taking place across the country, earning spots on the Timothy Taylor New Blood stage! These bands have battled their way through their local scenes to claim a coveted slot this August.
Friday will see Belfast victors If It Bleeds, a five-piece delivering hardcore-infused metal in spades, make their mark on the New Blood Stage. Joining them are Sheffield champions ThunarWülf, fusing folk melodies, myths, and thunderous riffing; Manchester’s Vmbra, offering a fresh progressive rock/metal hybrid; Compounds, who won over the Southampton final with their punked up, melodic hardcore edge; and Baelfýr, the top dogs in Leicester, bringing a blackened death metal assault with accessible bite.
Saturday welcomes Edinburgh’s Nothing Speaks, winners of the Scottish final. This young hard rock outfit blend grunge and groove with nods to classic influences like Alice In Chains, bringing gritty energy to the day’s proceedings.
Sunday rounds out the weekend with Leeds champions Theocracide, furnishing headbangers with a hefty dose of thrash metal steeped in crossover/hardcore intensity. Representing further afield, Speak In Whispers - conquerors of the Cyprus final - will showcase their progressive groove metal, and are reputed for their high-energy performance and intricate heaviness.
Catch these rising names - and many more still to be announced - at BLOODSTOCK this summer, where the future of heavy music is forged in fire!
Got your ticket and making plans already? BLOODSTOCK’s dedicated one-stop-shop with Preo is now up and running, featuring an array of festival goodies from nice-to-have to downright essential! From cold beers (and 4 pinters of mango cider) to merch, plus airbeds, chargers, and more, you can secure your items in advance from one online shop. And then just collect on your arrival at BLOODSTOCK! For more info and to explore the online shop, visit the Bloodstock Festival Preo store.
Did you miss the fancy dress themes being announced last month? In case you did... On Thursday, it’s all about pink, Sylvia Lancaster’s favourite colour. Whether it’s an accessory or a full head-to-toe vision, pink up in support of the Sophie Lancaster Foundation. Friday is the domain of gamers - BLOODSTOCK cordially invites Mario and Luigi, Lara Croft, Sonic, Pikachu, Princess Zelda, Chun-Li, Master Chief, and all their gaming character friends. Saturday brings a clash of titans as heroes meet villains! Which side of the eternal epic showdown will you choose? On Sunday, it’s the return of the dinosaurs, with Catton Park becoming Jurassic Park! It was just SO much fun last year, BLOODSTOCK thought you should get to do it all over again. BLOODSTOCK’s official photographers will be roaming throughout the weekend looking for the best dressed to feature on social media!
Trying to decide which campsite to be in? Every campsite has its own vibe - just ask the regulars if they have a favourite! If you’re looking for the designated quiet campsite, you’ll want to head for Ragnarok. Kyrr is also a designated quiet campsite this year (but you must have a Kyrr ticket to camp there). Niflheim is the accessible campsite for those who have applied successfully in advance to camp there. Coming on your own and/or a bit anxious about that, or perhaps it’s your first time at BLOODSTOCK? Consider joining unofficial Bloodstock group Camp Loners & Newbies, who always camp in a corner of Valhalla. With Ironwood, Midgard (this is the lively one, party fiends), Jotunheim, Asgard, and Hel to choose from too (plus Vanaheim for our campervan pals & the Serpent’s Lair campsite for VIPers) you’re sure to find your home away from home!
Want to chat to fellow BLOODSTOCKers before you get there and get some tips? There are a number of unofficial Facebook groups, including BMF666, Bloodstock Festival Girls Group, LGBTQIA+ Bloodstock Fans, Niflheim Community, Parents, Family, and Baby Bloodstockers, and more. You might even find festival management popping in and joining the chatter from time to time.
Next time you’re doing some online shopping, be sure to check out the online merch store for some awesome brand new items - from a S’tan rubber duck and bathrobe to a BLOODSTOCK hockey shirt and a beach towel! See all items here. And if you buy a hockey shirt this week and have a BOA24 t-shirt in your basket too, you’ll get the t-shirt free! There’s also a select range available to click & collect at the festival - browse those items here.
Got a burning question you’d like to ask Festival Management? Adam and Vicky will be holding a Live Q&A this week, on Thursday 5th June at 7pm. Tune in for the latest gossip or just to get excited with your metal family at Facebook or Instagram.
If you already have a weekend ticket, a limited number of Wednesday early access passes are available for an add-on cost of £25 for those who want to max out their BLOODSTOCK experience, staying in any of the standard campsites (including Kyrr if you have a Kyrr-specific ticket) or the campervan field. This option is not available for the VIP or accessible campsites.
Head to the ticket store to see all currently available options including pre-bookable car parking.
If you’ve missed out on your preferred ticket type, sign up to official resale partner Tixel. Simply set an alert for notification if your tickets of choice become available, or pre-authorise your card in advance, so no need for constant checking back. Tixel also allows you to safely re-sell tickets to a new home if plans have changed. You can sell ALL ticket types, including instalment plan purchases, plus any tickets sold via Ticketmaster or other third party ticket outlets. Click through to https://tixel.com/uk/bloodstock-tickets for more information on how it works.
If you're thinking about travel options, consider Big Green Coach, for the closest drop off on site. Check out all details here and reserve your spot for a £1 deposit. There are 34 pick-up locations this year, including: Birkenhead, Bournemouth, Bradford, Bristol, Cambridge, Cardiff, Carlisle, Chester, Coventry, Crewe, Edinburgh, Exeter, Glasgow, Gloucester, Leeds, Liverpool, London, Manchester, Middlesbrough, Newcastle-upon-Tyne, Newport, Nottingham, Norwich, Oxford, Plymouth, Preston, Sheffield, Southampton, Stoke-on-Trent, Sunderland, Swansea, Taunton, Worcester, and York.
Get more festival information over at bloodstock.uk.com. Watch a trailer here.
BLOODSTOCK will take place at Catton Park, Derbyshire on 7th-10th August 2025.
BLOODSTOCK’s 2025 Ronnie James Dio stage headliners are TRIVIUM, MACHINE HEAD, and GOJIRA. Headlining the Sophie Lancaster stage will be ME AND THAT MAN, KATAKLYSM, STATIC-X, and OBITUARY. You'll also be able to see MASTODON, NAILBOMB, MINISTRY, EMPEROR, FEAR FACTORY, LACUNA COIL, HERIOT, ORANGE GOBLIN, CREEPER, KUBLAI KHAN TX, CAGE FIGHT, RIVERS OF NIHIL, FLOTSAM & JETSAM, THE BLACK DAHLIA MURDER, FEUERSCHWANZ, LORD OF THE LOST, PALEFACE SWISS, AUGUST BURNS RED, WARBRINGER, UNDEATH, SPIRIT ADRIFT, THROWN, ALL FOR METAL, BREED 77, HIGH PARASITE, and 3 INCHES OF BLOOD. Joining them are SHRAPNEL, FAMYNE, KONVENT, THE SPIRIT, GHOSTS OF ATLANTIS, ONE MACHINE, MY DILIGENCE, SHADE EMPIRE, EIHWAR, WATERLINES, PHOENIX LAKE, NEONFLY, WALL, DOGMA, SIGLOS, DEADFLESH, FOURWAYKILL, GNOME, TURIN, LOCK HORNS, OFNUS, ROUGH JUSTICE, IREOSIS, BA’AL, FRAYLE, PENGSHUI, VNDER A CRVMBLING MOON, APATHY UK, BARBARIAN HERMIT and more! Stay tuned for more bands and on site activities to be announced over the coming weeks.
