Festival Season Never Ends: Fifteen Festivals Happening Before the End of 2026
Are you sad that festival season is over? Well, I’m here to tell you that you don’t have to be sad because festival season is far from over. In fact, between now and the end of the year, there are plenty of one day fests, weekenders, and more to enjoy, and I am here to tell you about many that are happening across the country.
Let’s start with one that is right around the corner. It’s Amplified Festival and it is a one-day/two-stage event takes place on September 19th, 2026, at the Corporation in Sheffield. A celebration of the UK metalcore scene, it features 12 bands and zero clashes including the likes Siamese, The Five Hundred, Eschalon, Black Coast, Dacara, and more. Tickets cost £30 + booking fee – buy here.
Also taking place in September, but a little closer to home, it’s Stoomfest and it is a full weekend (including Friday) of carefully curated stoner rock, psych, doom, sludge, and metal music. Taking place at The Garage in London, it features twenty bands and zero clashes which includes the likes Colour Haze, Mount Hush, Khan, Astroqueen, Savanah, Kaiser, Slomatics, Black Willows, and Froglord. Alas, Sunday is completely sold out now, but you can still get to tickets for the Friday and the Saturday, priced at £44 or £66.75 (includes booking fee) respectively, or buy a combo ticket for both days for £91 (includes booking fee) – buy here.
That same weekend is also Sarcomafest XII, which takes place at Leo’s Red Lion in Gravesend, Kent, on Friday 25th and Saturday the 26Th. Two days of riffs and partying, whilst raising funds for Sarcoma UK, the Friday of the festival features Seething Akira as headliners with Secreum, Iron Slug, and Sanguis Mortem. Whereas the Saturday features the likes of Wretched Soul, Riff Dealer, Them Bloody Kids, Chub, and Davghter. All for the low price of £20 (weekend price – £25 on the door) or £12 for Friday (£15 on the door) and £15 for Saturday (or £20 on the door) – buy here.
Are you in Glasgow on October 10th? If so, or if you fancy heading up that way, then you’ll find one hell of a one-day festival taking place at Nice & Sleazy. It’s Ripcord Fest 2, hosted by Ripcord Records and featuring Mastiff, Hidden Mothers, The Grey, Pleiades, Kusanagi, Void of Light, Kakihara, Koba, and Dutch Elm. Tickets cost an absurdly reasonable £22 – buy here.
That same day, but over in Wolverhampton is the UK’s only all day fantasy festival dedicated to power, prog, heavy metal, TTRPG, gaming and more. It’s Quest Fest and it will happen at the iconic KK’s Steel Mill. Not just a day of music, it features retro gaming, tabletop skirmishes, a metal market, and more. However, if the music is what you’re there for then you’ll have All For Metal, Myrath, Masterplan, Battle Born, Serious Black, Fortune Teller, and Crown Solace to enjoy. Tickets will set you back a very fair £60.29 (includes fees) – buy here.
If neither of those take your fancy, how about something like CroftFest then? A memorial music festival for Ben Croft in aid of Muscular Dystrophy UK also taking place on the 10th of October at Southside in Lincoln. A full day of live music, food, prizes, activities, and plenty of surprises. With a unique atmosphere built around community, passion, and unforgettable performances. The lineup features The Five Hundred, Arkdown, Distance Divine, Heartstrung, Reckoner, Wrex, Veil Of Embers, FOXHAUNT, noiseless., EGO DEATH, LOWEST and roulette. Tickets cost £27.50 (includes fees) but will cost £30 if bought on the door – buy here.
Rounding out one hell of a busy October 10th, it’s Commotion Fest, returning for the third time to feature some of the best Essex rock and metal bands and rounded off by some special guest out of town bands. Taking place at Three Wise Monkeys in Colchester, the bands making a commotion in 2026 include Confessions of A Traitor, Akkadian, Broken Calling, Knocked for Six, and many more. Tickets will set you back a bargain £17 – buy here.
Also in October, but this time in Manchester, it’s Slammer 2026. Taking place the night of October 23rd (Friday) and all day on October 24th (Saturday). Hosted by Slammer MCR and 4GEN7, it all happens within the walls of Rebellion, Slammer 2026 features Ward XVI, Novacrow, Forever in the Making, and NRFTS on the Friday. Then, on Saturday, it’s Sworn Amongst, VLKA, Dislocator, Viral Strain, Fallen North, The Heir Apparition, and more. Friday tickets will set you back £12 (plus booking fee), Saturday tickets will set you back £16 (plus booking fee), and for both days you can pay the really reasonable amount of £20 (plus booking fee) – buy here.
For the next one, let’s head to Oxford on October 31st and November 1st for Rabidfest. An annual metal festival in the heart of Oxford that has proudly showcased unmissable sets from international icons, as well as the very best of up-and-coming heavy metal and hard rock talent. Taking place at The Bullingdon, the two day event features the likes of Hacktivist, BLDSUGR!, Novacrow, The Dead XIII, n0trixx, Lesbian Bed Death, The Crawling, Maatkare, and Swarm6ix. Tickets are priced at £27.40 (including booking fee) per day, or £46.38 (including booking fee) for the full weekend with all proceeds going to the Sophie Lancaster Foundation – buy here.
How about Damnation Festival though? A festival that should need no introduction as it is Europe’s largest indoor extreme metal festival. Expanding to a two-day event for the first time this year, it takes place on Saturday, November 7th and Sunday, November 8th, 2026, at the BEC Arena in Manchester and features a ton of incredible bands across three stages. Featuring the likes of Cult of Luna, Satyricon, Carcass, Triptykon, Igorrr, and Crowbar, Health, Wolves in the Throne Room, Eyehategod, Gorerotted, The Berserker, and many more. Saturday day tickets have now completely sold out, but you can still buy full weekend tickets for £176 or Sunday day tickets for £93.50. Although I wouldn’t be surprised if this information is out of date already as the festival seems guaranteed to sell out – buy here.
That’s not the only two day festival taking place on the 7th and 8th of November. Over in Reading, A two-stage, two-day alt-rock and metal festival called Reading Rising is taking place. The Facebar is the location and it boasts one hell of a line-up that includes INME, Lastelle, Employed to Serve, Cabin Boy Jumped Ship, Asleep at the Helm, Outlier, and many, many more. Tickets will cost you the bargain price of £49.77 (includes fees) – buy here.
London has something even more extreme though on November 21st at the New Cross Inn. It’s Capital Death Fest, presented by Beyond the Grave, and the one-day festival features the likes of Rectal Smegma, Infected Disarray, Pighead, Laceration, Pulsate, Rumination, and Erectomy. If you think you can handle it, tickets will cost you £33 (includes booking fee) – buy here.
It’s back to Sheffield and The Corporation for the next festival. Novacaine Festival which returns on Saturday 28th November 2026. A one-day festival headlined by post-hardcore heavyweights As Everything Unfolds and sub-headlined by Tropic Gold. Elsewhere, the likes of Hacktivist, Glass Bridges, The Heir Apparition, TheCityIsOurs, and FOXHAUNT. All for the incredibly low price of £30 + booking fee – buy here.
Finally, back for its second year, it’s Bloodstock’s Winter Gathering. Taking place at KK’s Steel Mill in Wolverhampton on Saturday December 5th, 2026. An extension of the summer festival, last year’s debut was a rousing success, and this year looks to be the same as it features a varied line-up that should help banish any Winter blues. Headlined by Rotting Christ, who are celebrating 35 years, and featuring the likes of 1914, Party Cannon, Witchsorrow, Moon Reaper, Red Rum, and Shrapnel, as well as a Q&A session with the team behind Bloodstock. Tickets cost a bargain amount of £59 (which includes fees) – buy here.
