Parklife attendees warn of UNBEARABLE heat on first day of Heaton Park festival

Parklife is well underway as 70,000 people flock to Heaton Park for a weekend of music, good vibes and, surprisingly, a bit of really nice weather.

Manchester-based rapper Aitch is headlining today’s festivities, whilst the likes of Little Simz, RAYE, Fred Again… and Annie Mac are also set to perform throughout the day.

This afternoon, festival-goers were well and truly soaking up the sun as temperatures hit a scorching 28C - and could get even hotter later in the day despite weather warnings in place for thunderstorms later today.

READ MORE: Parklife 2023 lineup, entry times, venue, stages and everything else you need to know

Food and drinks tents were packed out as crowds gathered to stay well-fed and hydrated, with bucket hats, sunglasses and sun cream an essential staple for the day.

17-year-old Phoebe, who was seeking out a little bit of respite in one of the shadier areas of the park, told the M.E.N: “It’s ****ing awful this heat,” she said. “I'd recommend bringing a little fan to keep cool."

Asked if she will be sitting the day out in the shade, Phoebe added: "Oh, no, we're getting back out there soon. We're just getting some drinks and then we'll be good.”

Best friends Emma, who hails from New Forest, and Daisy, originally from North Wales, are on the hill looking down on the Valley stage as they’ve pinpointed it out as an ideal spot “to get the best breeze”.

The pair, who now live in Manchester, are so close they even have tattoos for each other. Emma has a daisy while Daisy has a pigeon because she, quite affectionately, says Emma looks like a pigeon.

"It's very warm, it's actually getting a bit tricky,” Emma said of the heat. “It feels like this is the first proper warm day of the year, so we're trying to