Image source, Getty Images

Kanye West first appeared at Wireless in 2009, performing hits like Stronger and American Boy to a near-capacity crowd at Hyde Park.

His first headline appearance came five years later in 2014, performing in both London and Birmingham to mark the festival's 10th year.

Originally booked for one night in the capital, West performed two headline sets in London’s Finsbury Park on the Friday and Saturday after Canadian rapper Drake was forced to cancel due to illness.

He was reportedly booed by some sections of the Wireless crowd on the first night of the festival that year, after interrupting his own set to talk about his other projects and the media's treatment of him.

His return to Wireless this year would have been his first performance back in the UK since he headlined Glastonbury in 2015.

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The Community Security Trust, a charity which focuses on the safety and security of British Jews, says the government's decision to block Kanye West from entering the UK is a "sensible outcome to what has been yet another bruising episode for British Jews".

A statement from the charity reads:

"Preventing Ye from performing is a sensible outcome to what has been yet another bruising episode for British Jews, and ought to be entirely separate from the question of whether the festival as a whole goes ahead. Anti-Jewish hatred should have no place in society and cultural leaders have a role to play in ensuring that is the case.

"People who show genuine and meaningful remorse for previous antisemitic behaviour will always receive a sympathetic hearing from the Jewish community, but that process must come before this kind of public rehabilitation."

• As a reminder: This morning, West offered to meet the Jewish community in the UK, saying: "My only goal is to come to London and present a show of change, bringing unity, peace, and love through my music".

Image source, Reuters

We're now hearing reaction from the prime minister, who says rapper Kanye West "should never have been invited" to headline Wireless Festival.

He says in a post on X that the government "stands firmly" with the Jewish community, adding that it would not stop in its fight to defeat "the poison of antisemitism".

"We will always take the action necessary to protect the public and uphold our values."

In recent days, Starmer described the prospect of West headlining the festival as "deeply concerning".

In the days leading up to Wireless being cancelled, several major sponsors had withdrawn support from the event.

Pepsi - the festival's main sponsor - announced its decision to step back on Sunday.

Drinks giant Diageo similarly withdrew support for the event over the weekend, saying: "We have informed the organisers of our concerns and as it stands, Diageo will not sponsor the 2026 Wireless festival."

Rockstar Energy - owned by the same parent company as Pepsi - followed suit on Monday, while PayPal announced it would no longer allow its branding to be used on promotional material for the festival.

Earlier today - before Wireless was cancelled - the managing director of the festival's organiser Festival Republic said Kanye West's visa to enter the UK had been "issued in the last few days".

"He has a visa already issued to appear, to come into the country, and the home secretary may well rescind that today, I don't know," Melvin Benn told BBC Radio 4's Today programme. "If she [Shabana Mahmood] does, she does, and then the issue is over in terms of his appearance."

Hours later, as we now know, the government decided to ban West from entering the UK.

During his interview with Today, Benn also said Jewish communities had decided against meeting West: "We have reached out and they've refused to meet him."

However, a Board of Deputies spokesperson told the BBC: "Neither the Board of Deputies nor, we understand, the Jewish Leadership Council has refused any request to meet with the Wireless festival organisers.

"When the Board of Deputies received a letter from Melvin Benn on 6 April, proposing to meet, in response to a letter we sent setting out our concerns, we responded positively. In any event we are clear that the invitation to Kanye West to perform should be rescinded."

Image source, Reuters

Wireless Festival was due to be held in London over three days from 10 July, with American rapper Kanye West as headliner on all three nights.

But the decision to book him came under scrutiny over antisemitic remarks he has made in the past, including titling a song Heil Hitler and declaring himself to be a Nazi.

Festival organisers defended the booking, pointing out that West - who now performs as Ye - has apologised for his past statements, which he said were due to mental ill-health.

However, earlier today, the government confirmed it would deny West a visa to enter the UK. In light of that decision, the organisers of the festival say it will be cancelled, with ticket-holders issued a refund.

We'll bring you reaction to this as it comes in.

Before the festival was cancelled, West had said on Tuesday that he "would be grateful" to meet members of the Jewish community in the UK after controversy over his booking.

In a statement, the rapper, also now known as Ye, said he had been "following the conversation around Wireless" and offered to meet representatives of the community in person "to listen".

"I know words aren't enough," added the rapper, who has a history of making antisemitic comments. "I'll have to show change through my actions. If you're open, I'm here."

Confirming this year's festival has been cancelled, organisers Festival Republic say:

"The Home Office has withdrawn YE's ETA, denying him entry into the United Kingdom.

"As a result, Wireless Festival is cancelled and refunds will be issued to all ticket-holders.

"As with every Wireless Festival, multiple stakeholders were consulted in advance of booking YE and no concerns were highlighted at the time.

"Antisemitism in all its forms is abhorrent, and we recognise the real and personal impact these issues have had.

"As YE said today, he acknowledges that words alone are not enough, and in spite of this still hopes to be given the opportunity to begin a conversation with the Jewish community in the UK."