Episode Details

Meet the man behind festivals including BST Hyde Park, All Points East, Lido, Forwards, Roundhay Festival and Rock en Seine.

While enjoying some much-needed shade under the ancient oaks backstage at BST, Access All Areas’ Chris Barrett caught up with Jim King to discuss his eventful career path. 

Jim got his first taste of promoting events at school. Now CEO UK & European Festivals at AEG Presents, he is one of the international industry’s leading players.

After meeting James Barton in a Liverpool record shop, Jim played an integral part in the rise of clubbing empire Cream. Since he branched out into festivals with the launch of Creamfields, Jim has been involved in the launch of many remarkable events. Before joining AEG, he was behind the debut of festivals including RockNess and Bestival, and in 2004 he launched his own event production agency Loud Sound – now known as LS Events.

Among the many subjects touched on are how Jim brought his initial vision for BST Hyde Park to life in 2013, and its evolution since. He also discusses the launch of Leeds’ Roundhay Festival this summer, and the next steps for the event after the inaugural edition attracted an attendance of more than 100,000. 

Having been an independent promoter for many years, Jim outlines why he believes independent festivals are more important than ever. “The UK is the leading festival market and that comes from the independent sector,” he says. 

As well as making suggestions that if implemented would help put independent festivals in a stronger position, Jim discusses other pertinent industry-wide issues and offers advice to budding promoters.