Features
Towersey Festival UK Says 60th Anniversary Edition Will Be Its Last
Towersey Festival, the UK’s longest-standing independent festival, announced that this year’s 60th anniversary edition, taking place Aug. 23-26 at the Claydon Estate in Buckingham, England, will be its last.
Towersey organizers say, they can no longer run a sustainable festival due to the increasing financial and economic challenges they’ve been facing since the COVID lockdowns.
The cultural impact of losing Towersey can hardly be overstated.
Towersey Festival was founded by Denis Manners in 1965, the grandfather of the current festival directors, five years before even Glastonbury opened its gates. Towersey has a long legacy in roots and folk music, bringing communities together through the celebration of traditional dance, culture, and creative experiences.
Three generations have run the festival through six decades of profound cultural and societal changes, but it took a complete shut down of live during COVID, and everything that followed economically, to end Towersey.
Despite the news that this exceptional 60–year legacy is coming to an end, the team refuses to be overshadowed, “focusing instead on celebrating a cultural landmark that, across successive generations, has played a significant part in the lives of both festival goers and organizers alike,” according to the press release announcing the last edition of Towersey Festival, Aug. 23-26.
The Towersey main stage will be graced by its most eclectic line-up to date, including legendary folk-rock singer-songwriters Billy Bragg, and Seth Lakeman, harmonious female folk outfit The Staves, Scottish folk rockers Tide Lines, American singer-songwriter Pokey Lafarge, a career-spanning set from the godfathers of punk folk Oysterband, Radio 2 and BBC 6 Music-favorites The Hawkmen, and Paul Simon’s iconic Graceland reimagined by the London African Gospel Choir.
The packed four-day program off the main stage offers dance, street theatre, silent discos, comedy, literary, podcasts, circus skills, storytelling, children’s entertainers, and much more.
See: 40 UK Festivals Cancelled In 2024
Towersey Festival’s 60th birthday will also look back with a 1965-themed dance party and dressing up day, and conversations with some of the festival-goers that were there at since the very beginnings.
“Whether a festival first-timer or a seasoned festival-goer, this is the last and the best time to celebrate an incredible 60-year heritage of music, dance and friendship at Towersey Festival, and to be part of what will be one very special – and emotional – event,” the press release concludes.
Towersey Festival being forced to shut it doors is one of many sad stories in the UK independent festival sector. According to the country’s Association Of Independent Festivals (AIF), 40 festivals have already been lost in 2024, a number that could rise to 100 without government intervention.
Without new investment partnerships, or a fundamental change to the industry, the 60th Towersey Festival has to be its last. In fighting spirit, organizers promise its last will be its best, as it says goodbye with generations of festivalgoers this August.
Tickets for this historic edition of Towersey Festival are on sale: day passes start at £65 ($83) for adults, and £40 ($51) for guests aged 5-17. Weekend tickets start from £202 ($258) for adults, and £72 ($92) for 5-17-year-olds. Under 5’s go free.