Thousands of music fans converged on Hatfield for Slam Dunk's 2024 festival.

Slam Dunk Festival's opening leg took place in Hatfield Park on Saturday, May 25, with You Me At Six headlining the main stage at the 20,000-capacity event.

After great weather down south, the festival moved north to a rather wet and muddy Leeds Temple Newsam the following day.

The two Slam Dunk dates were You Me At Six's final UK festival appearances after announcing they will be splitting up following a huge farewell tour.

There was even a hearse on the Slam Dunk South site with a 'RIP YMAS' wreath on top of it. 

Elsewhere, I Prevail closed the Go Pro Stage, while the reunited Mallory Knox made a triumphant return to the Slam Dunk Stage. The Kerrang! Stage was headlined by Waterparks. 

  • You can see pictures from Slam Dunk Festival South at the top of the page.

Welwyn Hatfield Times: Festivalgoers at Slam Dunk Festival South 2024 in Hatfield ParkFestivalgoers at Slam Dunk Festival South 2024 in Hatfield Park (Image: Slam Dunk Festival / Eddy Maynard)

This year was the sixth time the pop punk, ska punk, emo, metal and alt-rock festival had been held in Hatfield Park since 2018, having previously been staged at the University of Hertfordshire's College Lane Campus from 2010 to 2017.

Following traffic tailbacks on the A414 last year and car parking problems, Slam Dunk organisers introduced a series of measures in Hatfield to improve traffic management in and out of the South festival site.

The arena's layout was also altered for the benefit of ticket holders after overcrowding complaints last year when Enter Shikari and The Offspring were the main headliners. More toilets and food outlets were also introduced.

Despite the festival being targeted by mobile phone thieves, the improvements were applauded by festivalgoers on Slam Dunk's social media.

One festivalgoer posted on Slam Dunk's Instagram page: "Well done for putting on a great event at South. Not sure on numbers this year but it felt less packed, queues were minimal and altogether better organised. Had a blast!"

"Much better organised this year - thank you," said a happy Slam Dunk fan. 

"Car parking was amazing. Plenty of food and toilets and felt super safe and a real community. You can really feel the love and care that goes into this festival. Thank you to the organisers for all the hard work. Amazing day," commented another attendee.

"So many great improvements from last year! It was a dream parking wise, food wise and toilet wise. Amazing weather and fantastic atmosphere," added another. "Now let’s just tackle the litter please… How about reusable cups or if nothing else just more bins and recycling initiatives?"

Another posted: "Gotta say, thank you for taking on all the feedback this year and making this one of the best organised, and most enjoyable slam dunks yet!"

Someone else wrote: "South was incredible. Well done Team Slam Dunk!", while another posted: "Best yet Well done @slamdunkmusic. You fixed all last years issues"

"Honestly was the best day! You nailed it, the facilities were amazing as well as the layout, thank you," another said.