Meltdown (festival)

Meltdown is an annual festival held in London, featuring a mix of music, art, performance and film. Meltdown is held in June at Southbank Centre, the arts complex covering 21 acre and including the Royal Festival Hall, the Queen Elizabeth Hall and The Hayward. Each year, the festival chooses an established music artist or act as director of the event, and they pick the performers of their choosing. Directors of the festival have included Elvis Costello, David Bowie, Patti Smith, Lee Scratch Perry, Morrissey, Jarvis Cocker, Nick Cave, Scott Walker, John Peel and Ornette Coleman, Grace Jones, and Chaka Khan. The festival has been held annually since 1993, except in 2006 when the Royal Festival Hall was closed for refurbishment, and when the 2020 Meltdown was postponed to 2022 due to the COVID-19 pandemic.