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Guilfest pulls Sophie-Ellis Bextor and The Proclaimers out of the hat for 2026

GuilFest is officially back from the dead and ready to reclaim its spot on the UK festival map, dropping a seriously bonkers lineup that mixes disco royalty with Scottish folk-punk[…]

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Festival Culture in Motion: New Line-Ups, Fresh Ideas and Community Wins for 2026

Times might be tough, but festival culture is stretching confidently into 2026, and the sense of momentum is unmistakable. That forward motion is captured neatly by Screen Daily’s regularly updated[…]

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Some USA festival announcements – plus a new home for WOMAD

The 2026 festival calendar is shaping up with both nostalgia and new names. Sadly, one long-lived local tradition has ended as Grand Rapids’ Festival of the Arts closes after 55[…]

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Imogen and the Knife and The Last Dinner Party – Brighton Centre Review

A night capturing the future of British alternative Words and Pictures by Sara-Louise Bowrey The Brighton Centre has seen more than its share of landmark shows, but this one carried[…]

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It’s very nearly a sell-out! Rockaway Beach is about to do it again

Rockaway Beach has almost done it again – this winter’s edition is down to its final handful of tickets. The UK’s favourite indoors-in-January alternative weekender has pretty much sold out,[…]

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Mutations Festival 2025 — 7th & 8th November

Multiple Venues, Brighton Words by Sara-Louise Bowrey with some by Peter Greenfoeld, all pics by Sara… Brighton’s Mutations Festival returned in 2025 with two days of thrilling unpredictability — a[…]

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Snapped Ankles – Live at The Piper, St Leonards-on-Sea

Friday 28 November** words and pictures by Sara-Louise Bowrey A Night of Pure, Unhinged Joy Snapped Ankles didn’t just play The Piper on Friday night — they lit the place[…]

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Truck Festival 2026: Indie Royalty, Chaos Merchants & Future Favourites Land at Hill Farm

With only 25% of tickets left and installment plans available to soften the financial blow (your bank account can stop hyperventilating now), Truck Festival has a frankly outrageous set of[…]

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Bastille – 15 Years On: A Memory Book Still Being Written

Brighton Centre – 16 NovemberWith Sofia Camara & Nadia Sheikh Words and pictures by Sara-Louise Bowrey Arriving at the Brighton Centre on 16th November, the loyalty of Bastille’s fanbase was[…]

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Gary Numan – Telekon at 45: Grief, Legacy & Electrifying Renewal

Two consecutive nights in London and Brighton revealed Gary Numan at his most intense, most vulnerable, and most deeply connected to his audience. The Telekon 45th anniversary tour was always[…]

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Delete Everything – except this new album by PWEI from your playlists

Here’s a feral, loud-eyed, slightly-unhinged review of the new PWEI album — loose, human, with typical PWEI energy. I’ve tried to let it breathe, snarl and punch as close to[…]

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English Teacher and The Orielles at Chalk, Brighton

Brighton’s Chalk hosted two of the UK’s most inventive acts: Mercury Prize winners English Teacher, fusing art‑rock intensity with poetic lyricism, and The Orielles, blending indie rock with disco grooves[…]

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GANS review – supporting PWEI, London Electric Ballroom, Nov 2026

The mark of a truly great support act is when they feel less like a booking agent’s afterthought and more like a carefully selected running mate. Birmingham’s two-piece powerhouse GANS[…]

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Victorious Festival 2026 – punching above its weight yet again

🎟️ Victorious Festival 2026: Tickets On Sale — Here’s Why You Should Be First In Line Ready your sunnies and seaside vibes — Victorious Festival is back for 2026, and[…]

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Music plus Big Ideas: Why next May’s Hay edition of HowTheLightGetsIn (2026) is one not to miss

300 events across 12 stages, including more than 180 music acts, performances, and parties and over 100 debates and talks, taking place from 22nd-25th May 2026. TICKETS HERE. If you[…]

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HUGE FESTIVAL CALENDER

We have compiled what is probably the largest single listings guide of festivals that you will find anywhere.

FESTIVAL NEWS

This is where you will find the latest news and posts from all the festivals we follow.

PHOTOS AND REVIEWS

We can’t get to them all, but the ones we do visit will be fully featured in our review section – with glorious photos  of bands and crowds.

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NO FESTIVAL LEFT BEHIND

No festival is too small so we list them all – and love them all

From huge international events showcasing the planet’s biggest stars to small one-day events in tiny spaces where grass-roots performers play to small but appreciative audiences – we believe every festival deserves to be celebrated and recognised…

Want more festival news?

A few things we love about festivals…

What makes a great festival? With so many shapes and sizes out there that’s not an easy question to answer – but here’s what we think…

CREATIVE PROGRAMMING

It’s all too easy to just book big names and established acts – but a truly great festival takes risks and scours the horizon for new and emerging performers who may have the talent to be the next generation of top stars.

VALUE FOR MONEY

We know it’s not cheap to stage a great festival, so ticket prices have to reflect this. But festivals need to get their pricing right and also be aware of how much they are charging for food and drink over the event, and how much of an impact this has on the overall experience.

INTERACTION

Going to a festival shouldn’t be a passive experience – it should be immersive and give you the chance to be a part of the action. Festivals that find ways for their audiences to engage with the performance will always find that more people come back year after year.

CUSTOMER CARE

How clean are your festival toilets and how many water points do you have in your campsite? How well briefed are your stewards and how friendly are your security staff? Is signage clear and is your program easy to read and understand? Get these thimngs right and you’ll win a lot of friends.

CASE STUDY

Beautiful Days – a true festival family

Created by the Levellers, a band who epitomise the free spirited philosophy of festivals in their 90s heyday, Beautiful Days ticks al the boxes…

LINE-UP

every year provides audiences with a fantastically curated and eclectic mix of music, theatre and comedy, with careful thought given to the tastes of the crowd but a willingness to try out new things.

THE PRICE IS RIGHT

Ticket prices are sensibly set, and on site food and drink prices are extremely fair.

LOOS

Clean enough to eat your dinner in – say no more.

STAFF WHO CARE

Many of the stewards and security staff are as much regulars as the fans who come back year after year. They know the festival and they interact with guests in the best way possible.

CASE STUDY

More than just an ego trip… Mik Artistik

Whilst festivals have a duty to get things right, performers also need to think about how they package themselves for a festival crowd – and there is probably no better example of this than Mik Artistik’s Ego Trip.

ORIGINALITY

Mik Artistik’s songs are far from formulaic. With subject matter ranging from plastic garden ornaments to leaves stuck under windscreen wipers his themes are heartfelt and obscure in equal measure…and the crowd loves him for it.

AUDIENCE ENGAGEMENT

In the manner of a great stand-up comic, Mik reads his audiences like a book and seaks directly to them at every chance he gets – and in so doing wins new fans with every show.

DEDICATION

At Glastonbury 2019 Mik put in at least 11 performances over the weekend (we lost count at that point) – ensuring that as many people as possible got to see himm at least once…

PASSION

There is a sense of fun at every Mik Artistik gig you ever see – but behind that fun is a serious side… the spirit of a man who is fully committed to his craft and puts every ounce of energy into even the smallest show.

Festival acts we love

What makes a great festival performance? For us it’s the ability to catch and hold the attention of a passing crowd…so here are just a few of our favourite acts who have what it takes to make your festival a memorable affair…

Kid Kapichi

Blistering indie rock

Beans on Toast

Contemporary poet

Funke and the Two Tone Baby

A one man band with bells on

Nova Twins

Mesmerising and passionate

Pete Bentham and ther Dinner Ladies

Indescribably delicioius

Greentea Peng

Pure roots funk

Samantics

Multi-talented troubadour

The Bar Steward Sons of Val Doonican

To know them is to love them

Some of our favourite events

There are too many to chose from, but if we had to recommend just a handful of our favourite festivals it would be these ones….

Top traders

Here are a few of our favourite stalls from around the festival circuit

Full trader listings

Although festival t-shirts are all well and good, most of the best clothes we’ve ever bought from festivals have been from vintage and charity shops. Oxfam often have some great and stylish bargains – but get in quick.

Oxfam

Vintage clothes

It’s simple and unpretentious, but filling, delicious and great value. The portions served up by the Roaming Rotisserie team always have us coming back for more – like Depeche Mode samg, we just can’t get enough!

Roaming Rotisserie

Chicken

The Really Good Bar Co bring a Real Ale selection to festivals – ranging from a small two-cask stillage on the back bar to racking and refrigeration for up to 100 casks. They source all the beers direct from  local breweries.

Really Good Bar Co

Real Ale

Contact us

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