The Download Festival is a test to see whether mass gatherings can resume without triggering outbreaks of COVID-19.<\/b>
\nLONDON \u2013 Thousands of heavy metal fans were camping, singing \u2013 and even moshing \u2013 on Saturday at Britain\u2019s first full music festival since the start of the coronavirus pandemic. The three-day Download Festival, taking place at Donington Park in central England, is one of a series of test events to see whether mass gatherings can resume without triggering outbreaks of COVID-19. About 10,000 fans, a tenth of the festival\u2019s pre-pandemic attendance, secured tickets to watch more than 40 U.K.-based bands including Frank Carter & The Rattlesnakes, Enter Shikari and Bullet for My Valentine. Attendees all took COVID-19 tests before the event, and don\u2019t have to wear masks or follow social distancing rules during the festival. Promoter Andy Copping said there was a \u201creal sense of euphoria\u201d at the event, which runs through Sunday, despite the wet weather lashing much of the U.K. after several weeks of warm sunshine. \u201cIt wouldn\u2019t be Download unless there was a bit of rain,\u201d he said. Concertgoer Alexander Milas said rain and mud would not mar the event. \u201cIn a way it makes it better,\u201d he said. \u201cIt is amazing how that brings people together. The sheer misery and joy of being around a lot of like-minded, really wonderful people. I feel like it is perfect because it\u2019s like \u2018Weather be damned, we are going to have a great time.\u2019\u201d Britain has recorded almost128,000 coronavirus deaths, the highest toll in Europe. The government has delayed the lifting of remaining social and economic restrictions for four weeks from the planned June 21 date amid a rise in cases driven by the highly contagious delta variant first identified in India. Health officials are aiming to give everyone 18 and over in the U.K. a first dose of vaccine by July 19, and to have everyone over 50 fully vaccinated with both doses. All mass events in Britain were canceled in March 2020 when the country entered the first of three lockdowns. Crowds are starting to return to performances and sporting events as part of the pilot program, with capacity limits being increased despite a nationwide surge in infections. A Euro 2020 soccer semi-final and the tournament final at Wembley Stadium in July will be played in front of 40,000 fans, about half capacity. The government plans to allow full-capacity crowds of 15,000 to watch the women\u2019s and men\u2019s Wimbledon tennis finals on July 10 and 11. Success. Please wait for the page to reload. If the page does not reload within 5 seconds, please refresh the page. Enter your email and password to access comments. Forgot Password? Don’t have a Talk profile? Create one. Invalid username\/password. Please check your email to confirm and complete your registration. Create a commenting profile by providing an email address, password and display name. You will receive an email to complete the registration. Please note the display name will appear on screen when you participate. Already registered? Log in to join the discussion. Only subscribers are eligible to post comments. Please subscribe or login to participate in the conversation. Here\u2019s why. Use the form below to reset your password. When you’ve submitted your account email, we will send an email with a reset code. Send questions\/comments to the editors. \u00ab Previous<\/p>\n