12 pivotal moments celebrating 12 years of Greenbelt Festival at Boughton House
Don’t miss Greenbelt’s final hurrah at Boughton House before it heads for fields anew. Day tickets and festival app now live!
In 2014 Greenbelt Festival moved to the beautiful Boughton House. A place it called home for the next 12 years. ‘The Boughton Years’ have been filled with hundreds of unforgettable moments, celebrations, and trailblazing milestones. It’s time to look back at some of the most brilliant, pivotal and inspirational moments of the last 12 years.
1. SINEAD O’CONNOR - 2014
Where it all began. The late, great Sinead O’Connor headlined our first year at Boughton House. And despite all the weather and site issues thrown up in a first year at a new site, her mainstage set transcended everything and was perhaps the most unforgettable gig in Greenbelt's long history. What a brilliant first year!
2. JAMES ACASTER - 2016
James Acaster, Kettering local, originally came to Greenbelt as a teen. He returned in 2016 as the ‘whimsical master’ of comedy having been nominated for Best Comedy Show at the Edinburgh Fringe in 2012, 2013, 2014, & 2015. Absolute comedy gold.
3. PUSSY RIOT - 2018
Pussy Riot took residence at Greenbelt in 2018 performing on the main stage as well as hosting a number of talks and discussions on feminism, challenging state and church, railing against the patriarchal status quo, and standing up to the powers that be.
4. LEE BAINS - 2018, 2023 & 2026
Festival favourite Lee Bains first appeared at Greenbelt in 2018. The critically acclaimed southern-punk-gospel rocker from Alabama is back for Greenbelt’s final year at Boughton.
5. KAE TEMPEST - 2022
Greenbelt’s first full festival after COVID, Kae Tempest headlined one of Greenbelt’s most mesmeric sets. Bold, beautiful and fierce, the crowd went wild.
6. THE REBEL ROUSER VENUE - 2022
Greenbelt has always championed new talent and in 2002 the Rebel Rouser venue was introduced. Over the last five years of its time at Boughton, Vandal Factory, Menstrual Cramps, Generation Feral, Mouses, Alien Chicks and Kapil Seshasayee - plus many more - have made this venue a firm festival favourite.
7. GREENBELT IS 50! - 2023
The first Greenbelt Festival took place in 1974 on a farm with the words ‘If you’ve got a field, you’ve got a festival’. The Sun Newspaper reviewed the first one as ‘The Nice People’s Pop Festival’, but it was more subversive than it appeared. Its 50th celebration welcomed headliners Laura Mvula; Balaklava Blues; Milton Jones; Ezra Furman; Brian Eno; Josie Long; the Indigo Girls; Lowkey; Gordon Brown; and Lee Bains III’s Old Time Gospel Hour.
8. BOB VYLAN - 2024
The infamous grime, punk rock, and hip hop duo brought chaos, challenge and peace to Greenbelt’s Glade arena - the summer before it all blew up for them at Glastonbury!
9. STANDING OUT FROM THE FESTIVAL CROWD - always!
Whilst Greenbelt is not Glastonbury or Reading and can’t secure the big name artists filling stadiums such as the O2, it always aims to make its line-up as inclusive of gender, sexuality, race and religion as possible. It continues to lead the way in creating gender-inclusive line-ups in an industry where female artists are continually under-represented and curates thoughtful LGBTQ-inclusion programming that’s become recognised and valued by its community.
10. CORINNE BAILEY RAE - 2024
Grammy-winner Corrine Bailey Rae headlined with her critically-acclaimed, Mercury Prize-nominated album Black Rainbows. A giant leap away from her previous work; described as a ‘jaw-dropping revelation’ Black Rainbows bounces from ‘psychedelic soul to raucous rock’. Utterly amazing!
11. INTENTIONAL PROGRAMMING - every year!
From day one Greenbelt never shied away from intentional, deliberate scheduling. Each year it looks to create a festival where everyone feels welcome. Its programming reflects Greenbelt’s ethos as somewhere festival-goers feel represented, powerful and heard.
In its time at Boughton its: collaborated with Amal, an arts approach to growing understanding of British Muslims and their sense of belonging in the UK; created fearless, award-winning Muslim programming; established a platform to highlight issues around Palestine; build a dedication platform for climate and refugee programming at the Hot House venue; and nurtured its ongoing partnership with Trussell on UK poverty.
12. JEREMY CORBYN - 2025
Last year, former leader of the Labour party, politician and activist Jeremy Corbyn spoke on the dark and deceitful world of the global arms trade.
13. LUCKY FOR SOME! DAY TICKETS AND FESTIVAL APP NOW LIVE! - 2026
Not actually a pivotal moment but good news nevertheless! Day tickets are on sale and the festival app has just launched! Day tickets start from £10 for a child, £20 for youth, £35 for a concession, and £60 for an adult - you can get yours here. And you can download your festival app for just £5 here and get planning your festival weekend (or day)! Alternatively you can pop over to Greenbelt’s website and browse what’s on when for free. Enjoy!
BUT WHAT’S ON AT THIS YEAR’S FESTIVAL?
2026’s line-up is jam-packed with big names, hidden gems, unsung heroes, hot topics, burning issues, art, music, belief, dance, comedy, and a whole load of hope.
Don’t miss world-class music acts such as Arrested Development and The Proclaimers; phenomenal funk, hip-hop band BCUC and Afro-futuristic-punk collective Fulu Miziki; critically acclaimed theatre from ‘The Light House’; and top-of-its-game comedy from Luisa Omelian, Ria Lina and Reggie Watts.
Brilliant activists will be creating space for difficult conversations including this year’s Creativity under Trump panel, singer and activist Charlotte Church, Jordan Stephens and Guvna B on toxic masculinity and acting legend Michael Sheen.
Family fun from big kids and actual kids Play Shapes, the ultimate outdoor soft play; aerial dance and physical theatre where Levantes Dance Theatre invites everyone to rediscover the power of a HUG; and join Hot Poets for a fun, wonder-filled adventure, poetry, science and people power.
There’s just three simple price-points for adult tickets: Supported, Standard and Supporter. For Greenbelt 2026 adult weekend tickets will cost just £150 for those who choose the Supported price, £200 for the festival’s Standard ticket, and £250 for the pay-it-forward Supporter ticket. Young adults (age 18 to 25 years) tickets will start at £120, youth (12 - 17 years) from £50, children (5 - 11 years) from £25, and under 5s are free.