Bristol's Festival Scene

Bristol festivals draw huge crowds year on year - from commercially run events like Tokyo World Festival in Eastville park to free (and community minded) events like Trinity Garden Party and St. Paul's carnival. There are a string of multi-venue festivals (in the style of Sonar in Barcelona) around the Stokes Croft area including Simple Things and Rave on Avon. Simple Things has expanded somewhat in the last few years and taken over the city's flagship venue, Colston Hall.

As well as music festivals, Bristol's deep historical connection to street art is celebrated in day events like Upfest. Centred around the recently created (and unofficial) street art district - North Street - you can spend the day watching apartment blocks getting a new lick of paint from head to toe. Truly a festival not to be missed!

Buy tickets for festival events in Bristol

Our recent festival recommendations

Sell out warning! A fresh and accessible way into the Bard from award-winning writer, director and performance storyteller Debs Newbold. She transforms the Cube’s stage into the Tempest’s otherworldly isle in a playful, one-woman reimagining of Shakespeare’s most enigmatic work. The Tempest - Retold, by Debs Newbold at The Cube.

Sell out warning! A Queer Vision Valentine’s treat in the form of BFI Flare-featured indie flick Drip Like Coffee – part slow-burn self-discovery story, part celebratory Black sapphic romance, it overflows with warmth and is shot gorgeously against a modern-day Brooklyn backdrop. FILM NIGHT: Drip Like Coffee at Easton Community Centre.

An LGBTQ+ History Month special from the good folk of Raise The Bar, showcasing four visionary queer voices in verse: award-winning British-Syrian writer Lisa Minerva Luxx, former Birmingham Poet Laureate and beatbox maestro Jasmine Gardosi, radical poet-activist Aflo and theatre-maker-cum-storyteller Anita Karla Kelly. All profits to MAP, so dig deep! A special Queer Solidarity event to mark LGBTQ+ History Month.

Free entry! An evening of sensory hijinks: multi-disciplinary artist and DJ Olukemi Lijadu’s film and sound work Feedback explores the drum as a spiritual and communal force, and Phillip Lai’s sculptural commissions twist everyday materials into brain-teasing shapes. Catch Lijadu on the decks too, linking African diasporic beats to electronic grooves. Join us to celebrate the opening of our winter exhibitions, Olukemi Lijadu: 'Feedback' and Phillip Lai: 'RAIN / RUIN'

What our editors say

“Next year, we’re welcoming a slightly bigger community, unveiling a brand new wellbeing area, and offering a rich mix of fresh and already adored dance workshops. Ah, and of course, the unforgettable club night sessions too! The farm is ready to host us once again for what promises to be a truly sensational celebration of movement and togetherness. One and only festival of this kind :)”
From: Dancing Body Festival 2026

“Welcome to KINDOM: a festival for Women, Non Binary and Trans people to connect, resource our bodies and political movements, and get the f!ck down. Expect dance and creative workshops, political discussions, drag performances, banging DJ sets + a healthy side of wholesome with locally-sourced food, sauna sessions and swims.”
From: KINDOM

“A big hit at film festivals worldwide, Laila Abbas' enthralling and uplifting West Bank-set black comedy will have you rooting for Mariam and Noura as they race against time to secure their inheritance while putting aside their own personal differences. Sisters really are doing it for themselves!”
From: Gaza Film Fundraiser: Thank You for Banking WIth Us

“Travis Alabanza is a writer, performer and theatre maker from Bristol. For stage, Travis wrote and performed in their debut show BURGERZ which won the Total Theatre Award at the Edinburgh Fringe Festival, sold out at Southbank Centre and Traverse Theatre and toured internationally. It was also voted one of The Guardian Readers Top Shows of The Year. The text is published by Oberon Books. In January 2026, the show will be remounted in Australia at the Sydney and Melbourne theatre festivals.”
From: Queer Poetry Cabaret | Travis Alabanza + Guests

“Levanted Dance, who brought us ‘The Band’ in 2025, are delving into how this physical dialogue can inform narrative, emotion and trust, while also imagining what other elements (equipment, props or materials) might enrich and expand the creative process. Who are Levantes Dance? Levantes Dance Theatre is an award-winning female-led circus dance company known for their trademark bold visual design and blending this with aerial dance and physical theatre. Their work ranges from immersive indoor performances to outdoor pop-up spectacles. They perform in spaces from theatres to garden parties, from large scale festivals to care homes.”
From: Counterweight by Levantes Dance