The Best UK Festivals
It’s boom time for British summer festivals. Here’s our guide to the very best of the UK’s tickets
Summer may be an ideal time for lounging about in the sun and at the beach, but it is also the best time to explore new ideas and invest in your personal development. Festivals are the perfect places to both unwind and stimulate your mind, offering the opportunity to meet new people and explore diverse creative avenues.
No matter what your preference– innovative summer music festivals or long-established literary giants – there is a field this summer that is perfect for you.
Hay-on-Wye Festival
The 30th anniversary of the delightfully British, literary festival has a packed lineup of thinkers, learned experts and leaders to ignite and inspire fresh thinking. Listen to a talk about becoming an expert by Anders Ericsson, author of Peak: Secrets from the New Science of Expertise. Or, join Alain de Botton, author and essayist, to explore the question, ‘What happens after Happily Ever After?’. Plu Jacob Rees-Mogg, Conservative MP for North-East Somerset, looks into the fallout resulting from Brexit. Whatever your interests, Hay-on-Wye is a trusted path to greater knowledge, innovative thinking and enhanced creativity.
www.hayfestival.com 25 Hay-on-Wye, Wales. 25 May – 4 June. Prices for talks vary.
Glastonbury
Those lucky enough to have snagged tickets to the UK’s largest music festival can expect musical legends, mud, and much, much more. The main lineup is yet to be announced, but Radiohead, Ed Sheeran and Foo Fighters have already confirmed. It is the final time before its fallow year in 2018, when the legendary site at Worthy Farm gets a well-earned break. While live, the big daddy of festivals will boast a population greater than Reykjavik, and a hugely eclectic array of delights spanning theatre, poetry, comedy, talks, cinema, crafting and wellness pursuits. If you have not already bagged yourself a ticket for this year’s festivities, put your wellies down and get a plan together for 2019.
www.glastonburyfestivals.co.uk Worthy Farm, Somerset. 21-25 June. Sold out.
Citadel
Are you anti-camping, but still want to experience top music in the great outdoors? London’s brightest festival, Citadel, is back for its third year with headliners Foals, Bonobo, Wild Beasts and Laura Marling. Much more than just tunes, a galaxy of experiences and activities are served up to discover, including inspiring talks and debates, wellbeing workshops, dance classes, arts and crafts, fashion boutiques and family fun. This year, Citadel also offers an out of this world array of scientific experiments, a series of talks to expand your mind from guest speakers, scientists, artists and acclaimed institutions, as well as stand-up comedy and poetry.
www.citadelfestival.com Victoria Park, London. 16 July. Tickets available from £49.50.
Green Man
To celebrate the Welsh festival turning 15, and organisers are going all out with stellar music headliners that will not be seen at any other UK festival, including Ryan Adams, Future Islands, PJ Harvey and two-time Mercury nominated Michael Kiwanuka. Away from the great pull of the music there’s the best in Comedy and Literature in Babbling Tongues and beaker-fizzing experiments in Einstein’s Garden. Plus, you will find over one hundred beers and ciders, and food to enjoy in the beautiful Brecon Beacons setting. There is no better place to dive-in and say ‘yes’ to exploring ideas and yourself.
www.greenman.net Brecon Beacons, Wales. 17- 20 August. Tickets available from £180 for the weekend.
