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If you inquire about the most punk thing she's ever accomplished, Cathy Loughead responds instantly: “I played a show with my neck injured in two locations. I couldn't jump around, so I embellished the brace instead. That was an amazing performance.”

Cathy is a member of a rising wave of women redefining punk music. Although a new television drama focusing on female punk airs this Sunday, it reflects a movement already thriving well beyond the television.

The Leicester Catalyst

This drive is felt most strongly in Leicester, where a recent initiative – presently named the Riotous Collective – sparked the movement. She joined in from the outset.

“In the early days, there were no all-women garage punk bands here. By the following year, there seven emerged. Today there are twenty – and counting,” she explained. “Collective branches operate across the UK and globally, from Finland to Australia, laying down tracks, gigging, taking part in festivals.”

This surge extends beyond Leicester. Throughout Britain, women are taking back punk – and changing the environment of live music along the way.

Rejuvenating Performance Spaces

“Numerous music spots throughout Britain thriving because of women punk bands,” noted Cathy. “The same goes for practice spaces, music teaching and coaching, production spaces. This is because women are in all these roles now.”

They are also transforming the audience composition. “Women-led bands are performing weekly. They draw more diverse audiences – attendees who consider these spaces as protected, as for them,” she remarked.

An Uprising-Inspired Wave

An industry expert, programme director at Youth Music, commented that the surge was predictable. “Ladies have been given a vision of parity. But gender-based violence is at crisis proportions, radical factions are exploiting females to spread intolerance, and we're gaslit over issues like the menopause. Women are fighting back – via music.”

Another industry voice, from the Music Venue Trust, sees the movement reshaping local music scenes. “There is a noticeable increase in more diverse punk scenes and they're integrating with regional music systems, with local spots scheduling diverse lineups and building safer, more inviting environments.”

Mainstream Breakthroughs

Soon, Leicester will present the first Riot Fest, a multi-day celebration showcasing 25 all-women bands from the UK and Europe. In September, Decolonise Fest in London celebrated BIPOC punk artists.

And the scene is edging into the mainstream. The Nova Twins are on their debut nationwide tour. Another rising group's debut album, their record name, charted at sixteenth place in the UK charts this year.

One group were nominated for the an upcoming music award. A Northern Irish group earned a local honor in 2024. A band from Hull Wench performed at a notable festival at Reading Festival.

It's a movement rooted in resistance. In an industry still affected by sexism – where all-women acts remain underrepresented and music spots are closing at crisis levels – female punk artists are establishing something bold: a platform.

Ageless Rebellion

Now 79 years old, Viv Peto is testament that punk has no age limit. The Oxford-based musician in horMones punk band began performing just a year ago.

“Now I'm old, there are no limits and I can do what I like,” she stated. Her latest composition features the refrain: “So yell, ‘Fuck it’/ It's my time!/ I own the stage!/ I'm 79 / And at my absolute best.”

“I love this surge of elder punk ladies,” she commented. “I didn't get to rebel in my youth, so I'm doing it now. It's wonderful.”

A band member from her group also noted she couldn't to rebel as a teenager. “It's been important to finally express myself at my current age.”

Chrissie Riedhofer, who has toured globally with different acts, also views it as therapeutic. “It involves expelling anger: being invisible as a mother, as a senior female.”

The Freedom of Expression

Similar feelings motivated Dina Gajjar to form Burnt Sugar. “Being on stage is an outlet you were unaware you lacked. Women are trained to be obedient. Punk rejects that. It's noisy, it's raw. This implies, when bad things happen, I say to myself: ‘I can compose a track about it!’”

Yet, Abi Masih, a band member, stated the female punk is all women: “We're just ordinary, working, brilliant women who love breaking molds,” she said.

Maura Bite, of her group the band, shared the sentiment. “Women were the original punks. We needed to break barriers to get noticed. We still do! That fierceness is in us – it feels ancient, primal. We are amazing!” she declared.

Breaking Molds

Not all groups conform to expectations. Julie Ames and Jackie O'Malley, part of The Misfit Sisters, try to keep things unexpected.

“We avoid discussing certain subjects or use profanity often,” said Ames. The other interjected: “However, we feature a small rebellious part in all our music.” Ames laughed: “You're right. Yet, we aim for diversity. Our last track was regarding bra discomfort.”