As Rebellion Festival’s landmark 30th anniversary draws to a close today, the punk pilgrimage was about far more than the bands on the bill. We hit the streets to find out what a town full of leather, tartan and homemade jewellery had to say about the real spirit of the weekend.
Four days, nine stages, more than 300 bands and a sold out Winter Gardens – Rebellion Festival’s 30th birthday has been every bit the Punk Christmas its faithful crowd call it.
Headliners The Stranglers, Cock Sparrer, Stiff Little Fingers and Sham 69 topped a bill stacked with the genre’s founding names – UK Subs, Cockney Rejects, Die Toten Hosen, Subhumans, Buzzcocks, Rezillos, GBH and Anti Nowhere League among them – alongside newer names like Millie Manders and the Shut Up, Split Dogs and Dirtbox Disco. Thirty years on from its first outing as Holidays in the Sun, and with punk itself turning 50 this year, it’s still the biggest gathering of its kind in the world.
But the festival is only half the story. For plenty of Blackpool locals, the real pull of Rebellion weekend or being at the front of the crowd in the Empress Ballroom – it’s what happens outside it. Bootleg, Brew Room, The Tache and other local venues all do their bit to bring a programme of events around the festival, and for four days the town centre turns into one enormous fringe stage – no ticket required.
You don’t need to be inside the building to feel it. The punk spirit spills out of the doors, down Church Street, into the pubs, onto the Prom and, this year, even flew its flag from the top of the tower. Mohawks and leather jackets outnumber holidaymakers for one weekend a year and all locals seem to be in agreement that the punks are some of the friendliest visitors we get in Blackpool all year.
They also bring an explosion of colour and noise with them and this year we hit the streets to ask that what their style means to them.
Jake & Kira
Kira’s been coming since 2019 while Jake’s on his third Rebellion, having been introduced to it by Kira not long after they got together.
“We look forward to it every year,” he says, “and we’re always excited regardless of the travel. It might be a pain in the ass to get down here, but it’s so, so worth it – seeing everyone out and about, meeting up with friends we don’t see all year round. I think it’s perfect.”
Kira’s favourite set of the weekend was a tough one to track down by name, while Jake singled out UK Subs as a highlight, with Dirtbox Disco still to come when we met them.
On style, Kira keeps it simple: “I’m inspired by my friends, to be honest.” Jake agrees the environment does a lot of the work. “You do get a great bit of inspiration from everyone around you. I don’t necessarily dress the part, but we’ve all got different styles at the end of the day, and being punk is all about non-conformity – so there’s nothing wrong with that.”
Liz Lethal
Liz is in four bands and comes to Rebellion “all the fucking time”. This year she played Scream and Shake with her band – “it was mental” – and, like a lot of the people we spoke to, the real draw is reunion as much as music.
“All my friends come to Rebellion from all over the world – America, Ireland, the Netherlands. It’s just nice to see them all. You don’t get to see everyone all the time.”
Her style, she says, is less about fashion and more about function. She’s worn the same denim jacket since she was 14.
“I always just kind of wanted to look more punk so people feel safer around me. Seeing a punk is like seeing a pride flag in a bar.
“When I was growing up, all the punks looked after me,” she adds, “so I feel like other people should get the same treatment – especially today, in a world where there’s so much violence and hate.”
Ana & Remy
Ana’s on her third Rebellion – Remy’s clocked up seven or eight. Split Dogs took the top spot for Ana so far, while Remy still had Subhumans to look forward to when we met.
For Ana, the appeal is freedom, plain and simple.
“It’s just the freedom to be myself, and wear whatever I feel comfortable in. I don’t feel like anyone looks at anyone differently here and everyone’s just unique – I don’t take inspiration from anyone. It’s literally just me, and what I feel good in.”
Remy takes a different approach: “If I had inspirations, it’d just be street punks – my friends, people I’ve grown up around.”
Both agree the friendships are what keep them coming back. “You always leave with more friends than you came with,” says Remy. “It’s a nice thing, and then you can hang out with them throughout the year. It’s like a massive family – you can hang out with them all across the world.”
Teddy
Last year, Teddy was outside Rebellion rather than in it – “just drunk on the street, to be honest.”
This year with her wristband, she’s caught Thrown Away (a smaller Edinburgh band he rates highly), Buzzcocks, RPC, Split Dogs and Rivaled.
Her look shifts by the day. “I see people wear things and I’m like, that’s quite cool – I’ll wear that. So that’s pretty much it. I go between skinhead and punk – I like my Docs and my Fred Perry, but sometimes I like to punk it up a bit. Fashion is fluid, so I just dress how I feel.”
The standout piece is a necklace made entirely from ring pulls, strung together with a small lock at the bottom.
“It’s just work with what you’ve got,” she says. “There’s no point spending money when you can make everything yourself — DIY.”
