ARTS & CULTURAL FESTIVALS IN 2026
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Arts & cultural festivals in 2026

Not every festival is about big PA stacks. This collection focuses on arts and cultural festivals for 2026 - theatre, performance, visual arts, literature and city-wide celebrations. Perfect if you'd rather watch a play, explore installations or catch a talk than stand in a field all weekend. Use the filters to find the scenes that match your taste.

Edinburgh International Festival runs across three weeks in August as the largest arts event on the UK calendar. JORVIK Viking Festival in York fills February with longship history and Viking immersion. Just So Festival in Cheshire mixes forest arts, storytelling and music for families in August. Hidden Door Festival brings artist-led events to disused Edinburgh spaces in May. Use the filters to find what fits your calendar and region.

11 festivalsFebruary to September 2026Biggest: Edinburgh International Festival (25,000 cap)Reenactment · Living History · LARP · Arts & Culture
All 11 festivals
💡 Click the + button on cards to compare up to 3 festivals side-by-side
Featured
Featured25,000 cap

Berliner Philharmoniker, LA Philharmonic & Angels in America headline. Edinburgh International Festival of arts, 7-30 Aug 2026.

Music
Tickets
Festival

Cumbria

Avant-garde arts & literature
Tickets
28-31 Aug

Curious Pastimes

Weston-under-Lizard
Festival

Long-running UK high fantasy LARP with four events in 2026, including the flagship Renewal at Weston Park, Shropshire over the Au...

LARP
Tickets
Festival

Europe's largest Viking festival, running for seven days across York city centre with around 500 reenactors and 50,000 visitors....

Reenactment
Tickets
27-31 Aug

Lorien Trust The Gathering

Spondon, Derby
Festival

Lorien Trust The Gathering 2026: LARP at Locko Park, Derby, 27-31 Aug. Faction battles, guild plots, ritual magic in Erdreja. Gat...

LARP
Tickets
Festival

Wales's national festival of language and culture moves to north Pembrokeshire for 2026, marking 850 years of the Eisteddfod trad...

Multi-genreWelsh-language music👨‍👩‍👧
Tickets
Festival

Profound Decisions Empire is a long-running UK LARP campaign running four 3-day events per year at Steeplechase LRP Centre near C...

LARP
Tickets
7-12 Sept

SOE Resistance

Bovey Tracey
Festival

SOE Resistance is a high-budget immersive LARP set in WW2, running two consecutive 3-day residential weekends (7-9 and 10-12 Sept...

LARP
Tickets
9-13 Sept

The Brandywine Festival

Telford
Festival

Brandywine Festival 2026: Tolkien LARP in 1,000 acres of Weston Park, 9-13 Sep. Folk music, Four Farthing Games, feasting & campf...

LARP
Tickets
4-6 Sept

The Victory Show

Cosby
Festival

The Victory Show 2026: 150+ WWII re-enactment groups, military vehicles, static aircraft & 80+ traders at Foxlands Farm, Cosby, L...

Reenactment
Tickets
11-13 Sept

We Have Ways Fest

Stowe
Festival

We Have Ways Fest 2026: WWII history festival by James Holland & Al Murray. Blackpit Brewery, Stowe, Bucks, 11-13 Sep. Weekend £1...

Reenactment
Tickets

Arts & cultural festivals month by month

September

4 festivals
4-6 SeptThe Victory ShowCosby · Reenactment
7-12 SeptSOE ResistanceBovey Tracey · LARP
9-13 SeptThe Brandywine FestivalTelford · LARP
11-13 SeptWe Have Ways FestStowe · Reenactment

February

1 festival · already run for 2026
16-22 FebJORVIK Viking FestivalYork · Reenactment

July

1 festival · already run for 2026

August

4 festivals · already run for 2026
7-30 AugEdinburgh International FestivalEdinburgh · Music
27-31 AugLorien Trust The GatheringSpondon, Derby · LARP
28-31 AugCurious PastimesWeston-under-Lizard · LARP

FAQs

When are the next arts & cultural festivals?

The next arts & cultural festivals are SOE Resistance (7-12 Sept), The Brandywine Festival (9-13 Sept), We Have Ways Fest (11-13 Sept).

What is the biggest of the arts & cultural festivals?

Edinburgh International Festival is the biggest of the arts & cultural festivals in our directory, with a capacity of around 25,000.

How many arts & cultural festivals are happening in 2026?

Fezzy lists 11 arts & cultural festivals for 2026, running February to September 2026. New events are added as they are announced.