The full line-up has been revealed ahead of the 2025 Reggae Land Festival held at the National Bowl in Milton Keynes.

Over 100 artists will perform across two stages during the two day event, which will be held on Saturday August 2nd and Sunday August 3rd.

The event will be the fifth Reggae Land event and will also mark its third time being held at the MK Bowl after first appearing there in 2023.

Tickets go on sale Friday 31st January 9AM. Day tickets start at £59.50 with weekend tickets from £110. People seeking to sign up for access can do so via www.reggaeland.co.uk. 

Event promoters JBM Music said in a statement that they were excited to bring the festival back for another year.

They said, “Reggae Land has grown into something truly special over the past five years and we couldn’t be prouder of what it’s become. Starting as a dream to celebrate reggae music and Caribbean culture, it has now become the UK’s biggest reggae festival, attracting tens of thousands of people from all over the world.

“The incredible growth we’ve seen reflects the passion and love for reggae, as well as the unique atmosphere we’ve created – one that brings together iconic artists, amazing food, vibrant cultural experiences, and a sense of community you won’t find anywhere else. Year five is set to be our best yet!”

The Main Stage line-up will include reggae and dancehall legends and global stars such as Chronnix, YG Marley, Protoje, Capelton, Steel Pulse and Kabaka Pyramid, as well as a return for “Hold You” hitmaker Gyptian, who was one of the most in demand acts from last year’s event, with a very special guest still to be announced later in the year. The organisers have also said they intend to bring an increased production with sound and screen improvements for 2025.

In addition, the One Love Stage offers up more reggae icons, including Morgan Heritage, Etana, Spragga Benz, Christopher Martin, Israel Vibration, Marcia Griffiths & Tanya Stephens, while the Carnival Stage is catered to the ravers, featuring jungle heavyweights including Serial Killaz, Mampi Swift, Ed Solo, Benny Page and Ragga Twins.

Rompa’s Reggae Shack will host special takeovers from Iration Steppas and Channel One, while the dub lovers can head over to record store themed Dub Stage soundtracked by the likes of Mungo’s Hi-Fi, Mad Professor, Trojan Sound System and many more.

Festival goers can also expect a wide variety of attractions celebrating Caribbean culture, including a Caribbean food village that contains over 50 food vendors, a reggae flea market, reggae museum, VIP zone, festival merchandise stalls, Rum Shack and Caribbean cocktail bars.

Milton Keynes City Council has encouraged local residents and visitors to share their views in the annual Community Safety Survey.

As part of the Safer MK Partnership, the City Council is seeking to hear residents’ opinions in a survey that gathers feedback and concerns from the community, which is then used to inform proposals aimed at tackling anti-social behaviour and other local crime concerns.

Results from the survey play a crucial role in shaping community safety measures. In recent years, feedback has helped the city council secure almost £750,000 in funding to enhance safety in the city centre, with the installation of improved street lighting and CCTV.

Concerns about anti-social behaviour have driven improvements such as a new management system for cases, ensuring a swift resolution and better support for victims. The city council is also continuing its work with Thames Valley Police to address violent crime through awareness campaigns and targeted action. 

The Community Safety Survey is open until 31 January 2025. It takes just a few minutes to complete and can be accessed via the city council’s website. 

Cllr Amber McQuillan, Cabinet Member for Community Safety, said, “We’re dedicated to working with our partners, local people, and businesses to create a safer, more welcoming Milton Keynes. Your feedback ensures that our resources are directed towards addressing the issues that matter most to you. The results from previous surveys clearly demonstrate the power of community input in delivering meaningful change.”

Contactless ticketing is set to become available at Bletchley railway station as part of an expansion of the service.

The station is one of 14 stations served by London Northwestern Railways (LNWR) to have upgraded Pay As You Go (PAYG) contactless technology to be installed from Sunday 2 February.

The technology comes as part of a £20 million government investment to modernise the network, which was previously intended to be introduced in 2024 and is intended to offer simpler and more flexible payment options across the South East at 47 more stations on lines across the region heading into London.

Contactless PAYG technology has been introduced on more rail lines in recent years, having first been introduced in the UK on suburban rail routes in London.

It is as yet unknown when this technology may be expanded to Milton Keynes Central, Wolverton, further stations northwards on the West Coast Main Line or stations on the Marston Vale line connecting Bletchley with Bedford.

LNWR confirmed that as well as Bletchley station, the infrastructure will be introduced to Apsley, Berkhamsted, Bricket Wood, Cheddington, Garston, Hemel Hempstead, How Wood, Kings Langley, Leighton Buzzard, Park Street, St Albans Abbey, Tring and Watford North stations.

The equipment had already been introduced at Watford Junction and stations down to London Euston.

In a statement, LNWR said, “Passengers travelling to and from these stations will only need their contactless card or device to travel, providing easy access to the best priced adult fare available on the day. The PAYG upgrade also allows customers to benefit from daily and Monday – Sunday caps. Current methods of ticket purchasing such as paper tickets and online purchases, remain available.”

Jonny Wiseman, customer experience director at LNR, said: “We’re excited to launch this upgraded PAYG technology across more of our stations in the South East, bringing flexible travel to customers across the Abbey Line, and between Watford Junction and Bletchley.

“Ahead of the launch, we encourage passengers to read up on the new system before they travel, with information available via our website.”

The government’s Rail Minister Lord Peter Hendy, said in a statement that the system was intended to try to help simplify purchasing rail tickets for travellers.

Lord Hendy said, “The ticketing system is far too complicated, so we’re taking the stress out of navigating the labyrinth of fares and replacing it with new technology so passengers can simply tap-in tap-out, while being guaranteed the best fare available at the time on the day.

“This hassle-free technology will simplify thousands of journeys every day for passengers across the South East, and it’s something we will roll out to other cities as soon as we can, unlocking growth across the country as part of our Plan for Change.

“We are delivering the biggest overhaul of our rail network in a generation, putting passengers at the heart of every journey and encouraging more people to choose rail.”

Police have released an E-fit image of a man we wish to trace in relation to a robbery in Bletchley.

The incident happened at approximately 11.17am on Tuesday 17 December at the bus station in Bletchley.

During the incident, the offender has attempted to steal the victim’s bag and jacket.

The offender is described by Thames Valley Police in their incident report as a white man, aged between fifty and sixty, with grey unkempt hair and a grey medium length beard.

In addition, the report stated that the offender was seen to be wearing a big green coat, black trousers and black shoes and was seen to be carrying a black bag on his shoulders.

Investigating officer Detective Constable Kateryna Shamshuryna-Acland said, “We are releasing an E-fit depicting a man we are looking to trace in connection with this incident.

“We would particularly like to speak to two individuals who spoke to the victim following the incident. 

“We would ask anyone who recognises this man to please come forward and contact us on 101 quoting reference 43240609911.

“If you do not wish to speak the police you can call the independent charity Crimestoppers on 0800 555 111.