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Festivals in Brighton

Brighton & Hove really is a city of festivals. From the biggest arts Festival in England to comedy, food, music, film and artists' open houses, you'll usually find somewhere in the city that is in full festival swing.

And it’s not just the summer months that draw the festival crowds. The city knows how to celebrate arts and culture year round with Brighton festivals packing venues and filling the streets right across the calendar.

From silver screen and comedy gold to the local fare of the Brunswick Festival and Sussex Beer Festival, there is something for everyone. The festival season starts with the Brighton Science Festival in February and then festival fever really kicks in May when we have Brighton Festival; Brighton Fringe; Artists Open Houses and the Great Escape. Although that’s not all as in Sussex we also have Elderflower Fields and the Charleston Festivals.

In July we have Europe’s largest free beach festival – Paddle Round the Pier – which includes tons of events for sports novices and experts, as well as food, live music and of course the infamous title event! Also in July is the Brighton Kite Festival, a colourful display in the picturesque setting of Stanmer Park.

August the city celebrates Brighton Pride with a weeklong programme of events culminating in the big parade through the streets followed by a party in Preston Park. Also in August is the Brunswick Festival celebrating the diverse nature of this part of Hove.

The festival fun carries on into autumn with a mixture of music, film, photography and visual arts. The Brighton Early Music Festival aims to discover the tangled origins of classical music and the Brighton Art Fair and MADE Brighton provide opportunities to buy art and craft work directly from the creators. In alternate years we welcome HOUSE Biennial, a curated contemporary visual arts festival or the Brighton Photo Biennial curated photography festival.

As the year draws to a close we celebrate the silver screen at the CineCity film festival with a programme of international cinema including premieres and previews. Finally the year draws to a close with Burning the Clocks, a traditional Brighton event which celebrates the Winter Solstice with a lantern parade.

The above is just a snapshot of the fantastic array of Brighton festivals which happen throughout the year. For more details browse the listings below or use the search bar at the top of the page.

Number of results:

Number of results: 15

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Brighton Pride 2017

Dates:

From:

4 Aug 2017to6 Aug 2017

Location:

Various locations
Brighton
East Sussex
BN2 1EN

Type:

Festival

Headliners - Pet Shop Boys.
Pride Brighton & Hove parade is one of the most colourful and exciting visual events in the city’s calendar bringing the whole community out to Brighton’s streets and stopping traffic to view the spectacle in all it’s...

More info for Brighton Pride 2017
Festival of Racing

Dates:

From:

9 Aug 2017to11 Aug 2017

Location:

Brighton Racecourse
Brighton
East Sussex
BN16XZ

Type:

Festival

Welcome back to another superb & thrilling FESTIVAL OF RACING! a 3 day event held at Brighton Racecourse that includes the much sought after Frosts Ladies Day & Checkatrade Festival finale.
12 noon-5:30pm, prices start at £17 (early bird/adv...

More info for Festival of Racing
CheeseFest UK

Dates:

From:
12 Aug 2017

Location:

Victoria Gardens
Grand Parade
Brighton
East Sussex
BN1 1WN

Type:

Food

Join Cheese Fest UK for the first time in Brighton! Experience some of the cheesiest cheeses in the world with melted Raclette, Cheese Wheels, Gooey Mozzarella sticks and a whole host of cheesetastic tastes from the UK's best cheese traders!

More info for CheeseFest UK
Brunswick Festival 2017

Dates:

From:

19 Aug 2017to20 Aug 2017

Location:

Brunswick Square
Hove
East Sussex
BN3 1EH

Type:

Festival

Something for everyone! A fun filled family weekend with a full programme of live music, dance, circus skills, healing area, children’s activities, arts and crafts.
12 noon - 7pm, free

More info for Brunswick Festival 2017
Brighton Thai Festival

Dates:

From:
26 Aug 2017
From:
27 Aug 2017

Location:

Preston Park
Brighton
East Sussex
BN1 6AU

Type:

Festival

Treat yourself to a weekend wonder and bring along your families and friends to feel a touch of Thai culture, where you can challenge your taste buds and feast your eyes on world class food and performances.
10am, £4 (under 12's go free)

More info for Brighton Thai Festival
Big Sussex Market

Dates:

From:

26 Aug 2017to28 Aug 2017

Location:

Hove Lawns
Brighton
East Sussex
BN3 2WN

Type:

Food

The south of England’s biggest food and drink festival returns to Hove Lawns for our FREE ENTRY event for all to enjoy.
10am.

More info for Big Sussex Market
British Science Festival

Dates:

From:

5 Sept 2017to9 Sept 2017

Location:

Co hosted by The University of Brighton and The University of Sussex
University of Brighton
Grand Parade Campus
Brighton
East Sussex
BN2 0JY

Type:

Festival

The British Science Association (BSA) is pleased to announce that the British Science Festival 2017 will take place in Brighton, 5-9 September. The annual event is one of Europe’s leading and longest-established science festivals and this year the...

More info for British Science Festival
Wildfire Women 2017

Dates:

From:

9 Sept 2017to10 Sept 2017

Location:

Purple Playhouse
Brighton
East Sussex
BN3 6EP

Type:

Festival

This September, Brighton will be host to performances from over 15 women (and a few cheeky Wildfire Men!) from multitalented stars of TV & film, to world class musicians to brilliant business owners, life coaches, indie publishers and many, many...

More info for Wildfire Women 2017
Women Over 50 Film Festival

Dates:

From:

14 Sept 2017to17 Sept 2017

Location:

2 venues: Duke of York's Picture House and Sallis Benney Theatre
Brighton
East Sussex
BN2 0JY

Type:

Film

The Women Over 50 Film Festival celebrates the work of older women on both sides of the camera. The festival looks to them to drive its stories – as film-makers and performers.
various times and prices

More info for Women Over 50 Film Festival
Brighton Print Fair

Dates:

From:

15 Sept 2017to24 Sept 2017

Location:

Phoenix Brighton
10-14 Waterloo Place
Brighton
East Sussex
BN2 9NB

Type:

Arts

BRIGHTON PRINT FAIR is a new print selling event. A 10-day exhibition promoting printmaking in its various forms. From classic printmaking, letterpress, posters, screen-printed gig posters to print products, the show will be a celebration of...

More info for Brighton Print Fair
Fiery Foods Festival

Dates:

From:

16 Sept 2017to17 Sept 2017

Location:

Victoria Gardens
Brighton
East Sussex
BN1 1WN

Type:

Festival

A celebration of spicy foods and in particular the chilli. Live music, fabulous food and craft beer and wine, with over 50 stallholders selling all kinds of chilli related produce.
11am, £5

More info for Fiery Foods Festival
HOUSE Biennial

Dates:

From:

30 Sept 2017to5 Nov 2017

Location:

Various locations
Brighton
E Sussex
BN1 1EE

Type:

Festival

HOUSE is a curated contemporary visual arts event, taking place biennially in October across Brighton and Hove.
various times and prices

More info for HOUSE Biennial
Witchfest

Dates:

From:
6 Oct 2017
From:
7 Oct 2017

Location:

Brighton Centre
Kings Road
Brighton
East Sussex
BN1 2GR

Type:

Festival

Witchfest features up to six talks/workshops each hour. Also live bands, DJ, and a team of drummers. There are more talks and workshops than ever before given by the most famous Witchcraft/Wiccan authors and experts in the world. This page will be...

More info for Witchfest
Brighton Early Music Festival 2017

Dates:

From:

27 Oct 2017to12 Nov 2017

Location:

Various Venues
Brighton
East Sussex
BN1 1EE

Type:

Festival

Brighton Early Music Festival 2017: ROOTS
Exploring the Entangled Origins of Classical Music.

More info for Brighton Early Music Festival 2017
Brighton Tattoo Convention 2018

Dates:

From:

24 Feb 2018to25 Feb 2018

Location:

The Brighton Centre
Kings Road
Brighton
East Sussex
BN12GR

Type:

Special Events

The 11th Edition of the Brighton Tattoo Convention will be held on 24-25 February 2018.
More info to follow.

More info for Brighton Tattoo Convention 2018

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