festivals

Fête de la musique, France

Paris has some great festivals, such as Cercle (22-24 May), with dance music stars against the backdrop of planes and rockets in an outdoor aerospace museum, but the most accessible and democratic is Fête de la musique, which began in Paris in 1982 but is now popular across the country. It is a loose event encompassing dozens of free, semi-impromptu outdoor performances all over each host city, including plenty in Lille, which is even cheaper and quicker to get to than Paris on the Eurostar from London.

While the UK may cock its ear occasionally to English-singing bands like Phoenix and the “French touch” scene that birthed Daft Punk, Justice and more, Fête de la musique is a chance to immerse yourself in the music that rarely crosses the Channel, from spirited chanson to Francophone hip-hop and the breakneck carnival styles of shatta or bouyon, where MCs rattle through commands on tracks of more than 160 beats per minute.

Eurostar goes to Paris 12 times a day from London, and to Lille six times (eight at weekends).
21 June, free, fetedelamusique.culture.gouv.fr

Roadburn, Tilburg

If you don’t mind changing trains after arriving in Amsterdam or Rotterdam on the Eurostar, there are several Dutch festivals to choose from. Le Guess Who? in Utrecht (5-8 November) is celebrating its 20th year this year, and hands over some of the curation to a series of invariably excellent left-field musical guests: the likes of Animal Collective, Lonnie Holley, Mabe Fratti and Stereolab have held the reins in recent years. Rewire in The Hague (9-12 April) is even more out-there, calling on a global array of dynamic artists, from the most pristine ambient to the most audiologist-troubling extreme noise.

But the most prestigious is Roadburn, hosted in the little visited (by Brits, anyway) university town of Tilburg, which is also accessible via a change in Brussels. It has ringfenced its own black, slippery zone of adventurous heavy music, encompassing alt-metal, noise, desert rock, drone and the fringes of punk, hip-hop and electronics. Bands often play albums in full – or two albums, in the case of Japanese legends Boris this year – and thanks to a relative dearth of hotels and B&Bs in Tilburg, many festivalgoers stay on a municipal campsite complete with its own noisy (but not sleep-disturbing) live sets.
16-19 April, €284 (£247); two-day and day tickets also available, roadburn.com

The Black Lights, Blackpool

With rail-friendly Glastonbury taking a fallow year this year, June has a festival hole that needs filling – so the timing is perfect for the arrival of the most promising new British festival in years, the Black Lights. Conceived by the White Hotel, a Salford venue that has become a cornerstone of northern underground culture, it will be hosted across multiple venues – including the beach, hosting “a modern-day War of the Roses in brass”, as brass bands from Lancashire and Yorkshire perform together.

The rest of the music programme draws from the fraying edges of rave culture, ambient, rap and dream-pop, with artists including the Caretaker – whose ultra-poignant compositions have made him an unlikely hero to gen Z on TikTok – as well as industrial-trance producer Evian Christ, lo-fi singer-songwriter Joanne Robertson, and film composer and alt-pop icon Mica Levi playing with the BBC Philharmonic Orchestra.

Blackpool’s location, halfway up the British Isles and close to dozens of large conurbations across north-west England, makes it quick and accessible via train to millions, including direct routes from London, and only one change involved from Glasgow, Newcastle, Sheffield or Bristol.
26-28 June, £150, theblacklights.uk

Westival, Pembrokeshire

A NEW 1,000-plus capacity rooftop destination will open in London this year.

Freight Brixton in South London will open on May 7 as an open-air food, drink and music venue.

And it is set to become the capital’s largest rooftop venue.

There will be chef residencies, cocktail bars, live music, DJ sets, food festivals and major sports screenings, amongst other events.

With the upcoming World Cup, the rooftop will boast a dedicated World Cup Fanzone with screenings of the matches.

Food festivals include Taco Fest and Bite Twice presents Dine Hard.

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And brunch lovers won’t miss out either as there will be Reggae Brunch and Maggi Brunch.

There will be family-friendly daytime sessions in the summer too.

When it comes to grabbing a tipple at the venue, guests will be able to choose from a number of speciality bars.

One bar will be the Casamigos ‘House of Friends’ and another will be Hotel Milano, centred on the much-loved Italian aperitivo concept.

Hotel Milano will also form part of the new Brixton Cocktail Club.

Each Thursday, the venue will host South of the South as well, which is a collaboration with Cross The Tracks Festival and includes jazz, funk and soul music.

The line-up for the opening of the venue will include reggae musician Davis Rodigan on May 9.

Laurence Guy will then perform house music on May 16 and on May 30, Ghosts of Garage will take over the rooftop.

In total, 50 jobs will be created as well and the venue aims to also host grassroots events, youth programmes and charity fundraisers.

Dan Morris, Managing Director of Freight Island, said: “Freight Brixton is an incredible rooftop in the heart of South London and will be a place for locals and the city beyond to come together and enjoy themselves with the best food, drink and music.

“I cannot wait for us to get this open – we have seen what creating these kinds of spaces can do for a community in Manchester, and we are all very excited to build something just as special in Brixton.”

Freight Island already has a destination in Manchester, located near Piccadilly Station.

And another new destination was recently announced for Leeds, inside the Trinity Leeds shopping centre.

In addition to street-style food stalls and independent bars, there will also be an outdoor terrace which will look over City Square.

If you are looking for more rooftop venues to explore in the capital, here’s London’s best rooftop bars including one that feels more like Mykonos.

Plus, Europe’s highest rooftop bar is in the UK and it is like ‘stepping into another world’.

WE’VE officially entered the first month of spring after what feels like a long, cold and wet winter.

And now the sun is starting to come out again and the days stretch longer, you are probably willing to leave the house a little more often.

Well, luckily for those venturing outside, the beginning of spring also brings a lot of new free events across the UK.

This month there are some big dates in the calendar, including St Patrick’s Day, to look out for.

So without further ado, here are some of the top events you can head to this month without spending a penny.

World Book Day, various

World Book Day officially takes place on March 5, but up and down the country destinations are running events over the coming week.

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For example, in London, children aged between two and 15 that are dressed as a book character get a free 30-minute ride on the London Eye, from March 7 to 10.

And over at Battersea Power Station, there is A Station of Stories festival, which will be a year-long celebration.

As part of the event, this World Book Day weekend there will be a number of events.

Visitors can step into the world of Mr Men Little Miss through interactive activities including a treasure hunt, for example.

There will also be other free creative workshops across the weekend and the chance for kids to meet their favourite book characters.

If you are based in or near Manchester, then you can head off on the Manchester Literature Trail which explores multiple venues across the city and informs participants of Manchester’s literary history.

A map for the trail can be downloaded online.

St. Patrick’s Day, various

St Patrick’s Day falls on March 17 this year and across the week there will be events all over the country.

For example, you could head to the parade in Digbeth, where there will be floats, marching bands and of course, a lot of green.

The parade is taking place on March 15 on Digbeth High Street.

One of the world’s largest celebrations outside of Ireland will take place in London with a parade starting from Hyde Park Corner at 12pm on March 15.

There will be a free event at Trafalgar Square too, with live Irish music, dancing and food stalls.

In Manchester Irish Festival Parade, which is the biggest outside of London, there will be 30 floats and marching bands, and it will take place on March 15.

Earth Hour, London

For something a little different, head into central London on March 28.

For one hour, in the evening, London will switch off its lights for the World Wildlife Fund’s Earth Hour to raise awareness about the impacts of global warming.

Households can take part too, but it might be your only chance for a year to see the famous sights of London go dark.

Southend City Day

Southend City Day takes place on March 7 and celebrates Southend getting city status in 2022.

The event will involve a number of performances, workshops and family-friendly activities such as face painting and pig races…

For example, there will be a stage at the top of the high street which will host performances by local dancers and youth music groups.

Fancy seeing something sparkle? In the evening make sure to catch Disco City’s light installations that will stretch across Royal Square and Pier Piazza.

For classic car fans, make your way to City Beach where there will be a lineup of parked classic cars over 25 years old between 11am and 4:30pm.

River Race, London

On March 28, you can head down to the Thames to watch the River Race.

Now this isn’t the Oxford versus Cambridge race (that happens in April), but during this River Race you will see up to 400 teams of eight racing down the river.

Six Nations, various

The rugby isn’t quite over yet which means you still have time to catch a game with your friends.

Lots of pubs up and down the country show the matches on their TVs, or you could head somewhere like The Old Crown in Digbeth, which has large outdoor screens, a heated garden and live DJs.

If you are in the capital, make your way to Walthamstow’s Big Penny Social – which is supposedly the biggest beer hall in the UK spanning across 2,415sqm.

Entry is free, though you will need to pay for a tipple if you want one from one of the 20 taps of beer on offer…

For something a little more unusual, head to Battersea Barge, where each match is being shown on the lower deck via a large projector.

It is free to attend, though if you do pre-purchase a £1 ticket you can grab a free pint of Camden Hells on arrival.

National Lottery Open Week, various

Between March 7 and 15 – so spanning both this weekend and next – hundreds of attractions that you usually have to pay entrance to across the UK, are opening for free or less than the usual admission fee.

If you are based down in Cornwall, or perhaps visiting for Mother’s Day weekend, then head to the Eden Project which is slashing its entrance fee.

For free, you can explore the largest indoor rainforest in the world, measuring 3.9acres.

Or perhaps you’re a history fan? Well, then venture to one of the many English Heritage properties across the UK scrapping entrance fees for the week.

Examples of properties include Audley End House and Gardens and Eltham Palace.

Head to the National Lottery Open Week’s website and enter your postcode to see attractions and destinations near you.

St Piran’s Day Lantern Parade, Cornwall

Have you ever wanted to experience a moment like that scene in Tangled where they are on the lake watching hundreds of lanterns venture into the sky?

Then get down to Helston’s St Piran’s Day Lantern Parade on March 7.

The event begins at 5:30pm with live music at Helston Boating Lake and Coronation Park and then the lantern parade will begin at 6:30pm.

Members of the public including school groups show off their handcrafted lanterns, alongside installations by City of Lights.

On The Line: 100 Years of Solidarity and Strikes, Manchester

Launching this month at the People’s History Museum in Manchester is a new exhibition which takes visitors on a journey through a century of industrial relations.

The exhibition begins with the 1926 General Strike and then addresses key moments throughout the past century of communities facing poor working conditions.

It also delves into the impact strike action has on society and will start on March 21.

For more things to do this spring, here’s a huge list of 100 free family days out in the UK – from concerts to kids festivals.

Plus, the UK tech-free attractions that my kids prefer to theme parks – and spring is the best time to visit.