- Play Hard
- 21st May 2026
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The ultimate North East festival round-up for 2026
If there’s one thing the North East does exceptionally well (besides parmos, proper coastline and belter nights out), it’s festivals.
From huge music weekends that draw crowds from across the UK to tiny village celebrations that somehow become the highlight of summer, the region knows how to throw a party.
And the best part? You don’t need to trek to Glastonbury and spend five days ankle-deep in mud to get your festival fix.
Whatever you’re into, there’s a North East festival with your name on it. So, here’s your ultimate guide to the festivals worth pencilling into the diary across the region.
MUSIC FESTIVALS TO BOOK
VERITAS FESTIVAL, NEWCASTLE UPON TYNE
Saturday 30th May
Rock fans, this one’s for you. Returning to Anarchy Brew Co in May, Veritas Festival is bringing a full day of heavy riffs, mosh-pit energy and some of the best rising alternative bands in the North East to Newcastle’s favourite brewery venue. With acts like LASTELLE, HEADCAGE, HIVEMIND and Goodnight Kid on the line-up, expect everything from emo and post-hardcore to full-blown metal chaos.
Unlike some polished mega-festivals, Veritas leans fully into the sweaty, loud, independent gig atmosphere. Add craft beer, pizza and a warehouse full of rock fans, and you’ve got one of the coolest alternative festivals on the North East calendar.
MARRAPALOOZA, OUSEBURN VALLEY
Friday 5th – Sunday 7th June
Marrapalooza is an independent festival, created in 2023 by two small Newcastle-based promoters. The festival champions emerging artists and DIY music culture across multiple venues, including The Cumberland Arms, The Tyne Bar, as well as Newcastle and Northumbria University.
The weekend will blend indie, punk, folk, experimental and alternative acts into one giant music crawl through Newcastle’s creative quarter. It’s intimate, slightly chaotic and brilliantly community-driven – exactly the sort of festival that reminds you why the North East’s grassroots music scene is so special.
MUNRO FESTIVAL, STOCKTON ON TEES
Saturday 6th June
MUNRO Festival is quickly becoming one of Teesside’s must-know music weekends for indie fans who like their festivals loud, local and packed with future headline acts. Returning to KU Stockton in June after a sold-out year, the all-ages festival is bringing together bands including The Lilacs, Pentire, The Rolling People and My First Time for a full day of singalong indie, buzzing crowds and serious “small festival, big atmosphere” energy.
There’s something refreshingly unfussy about MUNRO – no giant queues, no trekking between massive stages, just a packed venue full of people discovering new bands and living their best indie-sleaze revival fantasy.
PUNK ON THE TYNE, GATESHEAD
Friday 3rd – Saturday 4th July
Punk on the Tyne is bringing a full day of punk, ska and alternative music to Gateshead – all while raising money for Parkinson’s UK. Held at The Black Bull, the charity festival combines live bands, proper old-school punk energy and a genuinely good cause, proving you can have a brilliant day out while supporting something meaningful.
Expect loud guitars, crowd sing-alongs, and the kind of atmosphere where everyone feels instantly welcome, whether you’ve been part of the punk scene for decades or just turned up for the music and a pint. It’s community-driven, a little rough around the edges and exactly the sort of independent event the North East does best.
IN THE PARK FESTIVAL, NEWCASTLE UPON TYNE
Wednesday 8th – Sunday 12th July
In The Park Festival, located in Newcastle’s Exhibition Park, is set for another huge summer as it returns with one of its biggest line-ups yet. From emotional singalong moments with Lewis Capaldi to indie favourites Wolf Alice and the unmistakable cool of Paul Weller, the festival is pulling in some seriously major names.
What makes In The Park feel different is the atmosphere. There’s all the excitement of a major music festival, but without trekking through a campsite carrying your life possessions in a backpack. Instead, you get a weekend of huge live music in the heart of Newcastle, surrounded by food stalls, festival bars and thousands of people pretending they definitely still know all the words to early-2000s indie tracks. One thing’s certain: tickets won’t hang around for long.
MOUTH OF THE TYNE FESTIVAL, TYNEMOUTH
Thursday 9th – Sunday 12th July
Few festival locations can compete with Tynemouth Priory and Castle. Perched dramatically above the sea, Mouth of the Tyne Festival turns one of the North East’s most iconic landmarks into an open-air concert venue every summer. Previous years have welcomed everyone from pop legends to orchestras and indie favourites, with the sea breeze and sunset doing a lot of heavy lifting for the atmosphere.
The best part? You can spend the afternoon mooching around Tynemouth Market, grabbing fish and chips on Front Street or paddleboarding in the sea before heading up to the gig. Festival-going, but make it coastal chic. This year’s lineup includes The K’s, Ministry of Sound Classical, Self Esteem, and many more.
LOST MINDS FESTIVAL, NEWCASTLE UPON TYNE
Saturday 11th July
If your idea of a perfect festival weekend involves lasers, huge drops and dancing for approximately 12 straight hours, Lost Minds needs to be on your radar. Returning to Exhibition Park in July for its fifth anniversary, the Newcastle dance festival has become one of the biggest electronic music events in the North East, bringing together massive DJs, immersive stage production and a crowd that fully commits to the rave aesthetic.
This year’s line-up is stacked, with names including Oliver Heldens, Holy Priest, Billy Gillies, Lilly Palmer, Darren Styles and Dash Berlin already announced. Add in five stages, afterparties, street food, surprise installations and thousands of people in glitter and sunglasses regardless of the weather, and it’s basically Exhibition Park’s most chaotic (and fun) day of the year.
NEWCASTLE PRIDE, NEWCASTLE UPON TYNE
Saturday 25th – Sunday 26th July
Newcastle Pride is returning to the city centre in July, and honestly, the line-up already looks iconic. Expect two days of live music, drag performances, street parties and pure feel-good energy, with names including Nadine Coyle, Katy B, Danny Beard and Bimini bringing the party to Times Square.
But what makes Newcastle Pride so special is the atmosphere across the whole city. From the colourful Pride March and market village to family spaces, LGBTQIA+ creatives and thousands of people celebrating together in true Geordie style, it’s one of the most joyful weekends in the North East calendar – glitter very much encouraged.
KENDAL CALLING, KENDAL
30th July – 2nd August
Kendal Calling may technically sit just outside the North East, but it’s become a rite of passage for festival-loving Northerners everywhere. Returning to Lowther Deer Park, the beloved Lake District festival blends huge indie and rock acts with woodland rave areas, secret stages, comedy tents and enough glitter-covered bucket hats to fill an entire field.
This year’s line-up is packed with crowd-pleasing favourites, including Biffy Clyro, Wolf Alice, The Kooks and Two Door Cinema Club, but half the fun of Kendal Calling is everything happening between the headline sets. One minute you’re belting out indie anthems in a muddy field, the next you’ve wandered into a hidden forest disco or somehow ended up watching comedy with a tray of loaded fries in hand.
NEW HORIZONS FESTIVAL, NEWCASTLE UPON TYNE
Friday 14th – Sunday 16th August
If discovering your next favourite local band before everyone else catches on sounds like your kind of weekend, New Horizons Festival deserves a spot in the diary. Taking place across three nights at The Grove in August, the grassroots festival is all about championing emerging North East artists and giving rising local talent the platform they deserve.
With 18 bands performing across the weekend, it’s a packed showcase of the region’s music scene – and one of the best-value festivals around too, with tickets priced at just £25 for all three days or £12 for a single night. Expect intimate gig energy and passionate crowds.
NOUGHTY 90’S FESTIVAL, NEWCASTLE UPON TYNE
Saturday 29th August
If you still know every word to Call On Me, own at least one regrettable denim photo from 2004 and think a key change is the height of musical excellence, Noughty 90’s Festival is basically your Super Bowl. Returning to Leazes Park for August bank holiday weekend , the festival is bringing a full day of throwback pop, dance and club classics to Newcastle – with acts including Vengaboys, Basshunter, Ultrabeat, East 17 and DJ Sash already confirmed.
Expect four stages, retro bars, glitter stations, questionable dance moves and thousands of millennials collectively pretending their knees don’t hurt anymore. It’s chaotic, nostalgic and unapologetically cheesy in the best possible way – exactly what a bank holiday weekend should be.
LINDISFARNE FESTIVAL, NORTHUMBERLAND
Thursday 3rd – Sunday 5th September
If you’ve never watched the sun set over Holy Island while dancing to a DJ set in a sequinned cape, are you even doing North East festival season properly? Held at Beal Farm near Berwick-upon-Tweed, Lindisfarne Festival has become one of the region’s biggest and most beloved music festivals. Set against the dramatic Northumberland coastline, it combines live music, comedy, wellness spaces, spoken word performances and more glitter than should reasonably exist in one place.
The beauty of Lindisfarne is that it never takes itself too seriously. One minute you’re watching a huge headline act, the next you’re in a tiny tent singing along to an indie disco at 2am with people dressed as Vikings. It’s proudly independent, fiercely North Eastern and somehow manages to feel both massive and intimate at the same time.
SECOND SPEED ACCELERATE FESTIVAL, GATESHEAD
Saturday 26th September
If your Spotify Wrapped is basically just techno DJs and BPMs that would alarm your parents, Second Speed: Accelerate Festival is your kind of weekend. Taking over Gateshead International Stadium, the one-day festival is bringing huge hard techno and trance energy to the North East, with artists including Kobosil, Onlynumbers, Anderex and Yoshiko.
Expect warehouse-rave vibes on a stadium scale – think industrial visuals, pounding bass, strobe lights and a crowd dressed almost exclusively in black despite it being broad daylight. It’s loud, chaotic and absolutely not the place for a quiet catch-up with your friends, but for dance music fans, that’s kind of the point.
FOOD AND CULTURAL FESTIVALS
OUSEBURN FESTIVAL, NEWCASTLE UPON TYNE
Saturday 4th – Sunday 5th July
If there’s one festival that perfectly captures Newcastle’s creative side, it’s Ouseburn Festival. The free weekend-long celebration takes over the Ouseburn Valley with live music, independent markets, street food, workshops, art, circus performances and plenty of opportunities to accidentally spend £40 on ceramics you absolutely don’t need.
What makes it so special is the setting itself. One minute you’re listening to live music in a beer garden, the next you’re wandering through hidden studios, watching performers in the woodland or queueing for street food beside the Tyne. It’s wholesome, chaotic and peak Ouseburn energy – basically Newcastle at its very best.
DURHAM BRASS FESTIVAL, COUNTY DURHAM
Sunday 12th – Sunday 19th July
Only in the North East could brass bands become genuinely cool again. Durham Brass Festival takes traditional brass music and gives it a modern twist, mixing community performances with contemporary acts and huge outdoor shows.
There’s something wonderfully cinematic about hearing brass echo through Durham’s historic streets and squares. It’s also proof that North East audiences will enthusiastically support anything literally if there’s excellent live music and a decent bar nearby.
SEAHAM FOOD FESTIVAL, COUNTY DURHAM
Saturday 1st – Sunday 2nd August
Every summer, Seaham’s seafront becomes packed with street food traders, local producers and visitors clutching enormous trays of loaded food while pretending they’ll save some for later. Alongside the food stalls, there are chef demos, live entertainment and plenty of opportunities to convince yourself that buying artisanal fudge counts as cultural enrichment. The sea views help too.
NOVUM, NEWCASTLE UPON TYNE
Friday 7th – Sunday 9th August
NOVUM transforms the heart of the city into a roaming arts festival where nothing is quite as it seems. Across three days, the city centre becomes part gallery, part performance space and part immersive theatre experience, with everything from large-scale installations and contemporary dance to circus, live music and interactive art popping up in unexpected corners.
What makes NOVUM stand out is its sense of play. It’s bold, slightly surreal and completely unafraid to blur the line between audience and performer, turning everyday Newcastle spaces into something far more magical than their usual Monday-to-Friday selves.
SALTBURN FOLK FESTIVAL, TEESSIDE
Friday 7th – Sunday 9th August
Saltburn already feels like somewhere that should have a folk festival. The cliff lift, the sea air, the colourful little streets – it’s giving wholesome-but-cool energy. Every summer, musicians and performers descend on the town for a weekend of folk music, dance and workshops. You’ll stumble across live performances in pubs, community spaces and on street corners.
Even if you don’t think folk music is your thing, there’s something incredibly charming about hearing live fiddles while walking along the coast with an ice cream.
THE BERWICK FOOD & BEER FESTIVAL, BERWICK-UPON-TWEED
Friday 14th – Sunday 16th August
If your dream festival line-up involves artisan cheese, local ales and “just one more” street food stop, the Berwick Food & Beer Festival is calling your name. Returning to the Parade in Berwick-upon-Tweed in August, the much-loved festival celebrates its 20th year with a weekend packed full of regional food producers, craft drinks, live music and plenty of reasons to loosen your waistband.
Organised by the volunteers behind Berwick Slow Food, the festival has become one of Northumberland’s best summer weekends – blending laid-back coastal charm with everything from fresh local produce and street food to cider, gin and real ale.
NEWCASTLE MELA, NEWCASTLE UPON TYNE
Sunday 30th – Monday 31st August
Newcastle Mela is one of those rare festivals that feels like a true celebration of the city itself. Returning to Exhibition Park, it’s the North East’s biggest showcase of South Asian culture – and completely free to attend, which instantly makes it a summer essential. Across two days, the park comes alive with vibrant music, dance, food and art inspired by Pakistani, Bengali, Indian and wider South Asian traditions.
Expect everything from high-energy Bhangra performances and live contemporary music to intricate crafts, family activities and stalls overflowing with clothing, jewellery and gifts you didn’t know you needed until you arrived. But arguably the biggest draw is the food – think rich curries, sizzling grills, sweet treats and street-food classics that will have you “just having a small plate” at least five times over. With its warm, welcoming atmosphere and mix of tradition and modern performance, Newcastle Mela isn’t just a festival – it’s a full sensory experience in the heart of the city.
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