Major Annual Events in Britain

Angel of the North, Newcastle
  • The Annual Events that take place in Britain throughout the year are listed below.

January

  • New Year’s Day Parade, London
    • 1 January. West End Parade with bands, acrobats and street performers.
  • Celtic Connections, Glasgow
    • 14-31 January. World Celtic Music Festival with Concerts, Talks and Workshops.
  • Burns Night
    • 25 January. Birthday of Robert Burns, National Poet of Scotland.
  • St. Dwynwens’ Day
    • 25 January. Welsh Patron Saint of Lovers, the equivalent of St. Valentine’s Day.

February

  • Chinese New Year, Chinatown, London.
    • Celebrations take place in Chinatown, the West End and Trafalgar Square.
  • Six Nations Rugby Championship
    • Principality Stadium, Cardiff, Murrayfield, Edinburgh, Twickenham, London.
    • The Six Nations are England, Ireland, Italy, France, Scotland and Wales.
  • Glasgow Film Festival.
    • Third largest Film Festival in Britain.

March

  • St. David’s Day, Wales
    • 1 March. St. David is the Patron Saint of Wales. National St. David’s Day Parade in Cardiff.
  • Glasgow International Comedy Festival
    • One of the largest Events in Europe.
  • Cheltenham Festival
    • Four Day National Hunt Horse Racing Event ending with the best jump-racing Event, the Gold Cup.
  • St. Patrick’s Day, Ireland
    • 17 March. The Patron Saint of Ireland is celebrated with Parades and Festivals across N. Ireland and Britain.
  • Cardiff Hall Marathon
    • Marathon run through and around Cardiff.

April

  • The Boat Race, Putney, London.
    • The Boat Race takes place between Oxford University (the Dark Blues) and Cambridge University (the Light Blues) along a 4.2 mile (6.8 km) stretch of the Tidal Thames between Putney Bridge and Mortlake.
    • The boats are 8 oared hulls (Eights) steered by a cox in the stern facing forwards.
  • Grand National, Aintree Racecourse, Liverpool
    • Horse Jumping Event covering 4.5 miles (7.2km) with 2 circuits and 30 fences.
  • London Marathon
    • Usually held in April, this is a 26 mile (42 km) flat course single day event to raise money for charity.
    • It is the third largest running event after the Great North Run and the Great Manchester Run.
  • Highland Games
    • Held across Scotland throughout the Year with Piping, Athletics and Highland Dancing.
  • St. George’s Day
    • 23 April. Celebrations held across Britain for the Patron Saint of England, with Dragon hunts and Banquets.
  • Liverpool Sound City
    • International Music Festival held over the Bank Holiday weekend.
  • Spirit of Speyside Whiskey Festival
    • Festival of Scotland’s Finest Whiskies over the Bank Holiday Weekend.
  • Cheltenham Jazz Festival
    • Held over the Bank Holiday weekend.

May

  • Brighton Festival
    • Starting on 1 May. Europe’s leading Art Festival with art, film, dance, music, theatre, literature and debates.
  • FA Cup Final, Wembley Stadium
    • The oldest domestic Cup competition in Football.
  • Chelsea Flower Show
    • One of several Royal Horticultural Shows around Britain with Floral Displays.
  • Hay Festival of Literature and Arts, Brecon Beacons National Park
    • Held in a tented village with talks and readings by world famous authors.

June

  • The Derby, Epsom Downs Racecourse
    • Famous Flat Race in Horseracing.
  • Trooping the Colour, The Queen’s Birthday
    • Horse Guards Parade, Whitehall. The Queen takes part in a military Pageant accompanied by horses and music.
  • Royal Ascot
    • 5 days of Horse racing preceded each day at 2pm with the Royal Procession passing in Royal horse drawn Landaus.
    • The Gold Cup is held on the Thursday, also referred to as ‘Ladies Day’ because it is a showcase for High Fashion.
  • Isle of Wight Festival
    • 4 day Music Festival.
  • Royal Highland Show, Edinburgh
    • A Festival of Scottish farming, food and rural life.
  • Jane Austen Regency Week
    • A 9 day festival held in Alton and nearby Chawton, Jane Austen’s House and Museum.
    • Dining, singing, drama, talks and the Regency Ball.
  • Stonehenge Summer Solstice
    • 21 June. Held at Stonehenge, Wiltshire.
  • Wimbledon Tennis Championships
    • World famous tennis tournament that starts in the last week of June and lasts for 2 weeks.
  • London Pride
    • A festival of the LBGTQ+ community and ends with a carnival of floats, music and dancing.
  • Edinburgh Film Festival
    • A Festival of International Cinema that started in 1947.

July

  • Round the Island Race, Isle of Wight
    • A one day 50 mile (80km) yacht race, starting and finishing in Cowes, that attracts up to 1,700 competing vessels from around the world.
  • RHS Hampton Court Palace Flower Show
    • The worlds’ largest flower show with floral displays.
  • Formula One (F1) British Grand Prix, Silverstone
    • The most important racing event in British Mororsport.
  • The Open Championship, Royal St. George’s, Kent
    • A Golf Championship also known as the Open or the British Open.
  • The Royal Welsh Show, Llanelwedd, Powys
    • 4 days of Livestock competitions with sports and other entertainment.
  • RHS Flower Show, Tatton Park, Cheshire
    • Horticultural Festival with floral displays.
  • Goodwood Festival, Chichester
    • Horserace with Flat racing at the Goodwood Estate
  • Edinburgh Art Festival
    • 4 weeks of Events and Exhibitions in Edinburgh’s galleries and museums.
  • Cowes Week, Isle of Wight
    • Sailing Event with over 1,000 yachts participating.
  • The BBC Proms, Royal Albert Hall, London
    • Founded in 1895, it is an 8 week Event with classical music concerts held daily, ending with the Last Night of the Proms which includes the BBC Proms in the Park.
  • Test Matches at Lord’s Cricket Ground, St. John’s Wood, London
    • Lord’s was opened in 1814 and is known as the ‘Home of Cricket’.

August

  • Royal Edinburgh Military Tattoo
    • A three week Festival with Massed Pipe and Drums, Massed Military Bands and the Lone Piper in front of Edinburgh Castle.
  • Edinburgh Festival Fringe
    • The World’s largest Art Festival held over 3 weeks.
  • Bristol International Balloon Festival
    • A 4 day event held at the Ashton Court Estate, Bristol, with over 100 Hot Air Balloons taking off each dawn and afternoon.
  • Edinburgh International Book Festival
    • A 2 week Festival with famous authors giving talks and over 800 Events.
  • Reading Festival
    • This 3 day Event is Britain’s biggest Rock Music festival with 100,000 fans.
  • Leeds Festival
    • A similar Rock Music festival with 80,000 fans.
  • Notting Hill Carnival
    • Last weekend of August. Two day festival of Caribbean music and food with floats and costumes.

September

  • Last Night of the Proms, Royal Albert Hall and Hyde Park
    • Usually takes place on the second Saturday in September and ends the 8 weeks of Proms Concerts. It includes the BBC Proms in the Park, held opposite the Royal Albert Hall in Hyde Park.
  • London Fashion Week
    • Catwalk Shows by the worlds’s top designers.
  • Blackpool Illuminations
    • Started in 1879, the Switch-On Festival Weekend begins a 66 day Light Display using over 1 million light bulbs over the 6.2 mile (10km) Promenade. Certain Tram Cars are also illuminated. A separate Event called the Blackpool Festival of Light sees artists display light events around the town.
  • Great North Run, Newcastle upon Tyne
    • It is the largest half marathon in the world with over 50,000 contestants running between Newcastle and South Shields.
  • Goodwood Revival
    • A 3 day Festival held at the Goodwood Circuit for cars that would have competed there between 1948-1966.

October

  • Cheltenham Literature Festival
    • A one week festival held in Cheltenham, events include Book Launches and Talks by authors and other literary figures.
  • BFI London Film Festival, Southbank
    • Films and Documentaries screened from around the world with talks by leading Directors and Actors.

November

  • Guy Fawkes Night
    • 5 November. Also known as Bonfire Night, most towns and cities in Britain celebrate with an organised event where an effigy of Guy Fawkes is burnt on a large bonfire, accompanied by a firework display.
  • Oxford Street Christmas Lights
    • The annual Switch On ceremony for the main shopping street in central London has been presented by a celebrity ever since 1959.
  • Leeds International Film Festival
    • Events are held at all the city’s major venues including the Leeds Town Hall.
  • Kendal Mountain Festival, Cumbria
    • The world’s biggest mountain festival hosting outdoor sports, art, film and literature.
  • Winter Wonderland at Hyde Park, London
    • An Ice Rink hosts top shows, and there is a Ferris wheel with other rides accompanied by a Winter Market.

December

  • The Great Christmas Pudding Race, Brighton and London
    • Teams race wearing fancy dress race around a 500 ft (150m) obstacle course holding a christmas pudding on a paper plate. Obstacles consist of slippery inflatables, jets of foam, limbo poles, and balloons filled with flour.
  • Hogmanay
    • 31 December to 2nd January. Scotland’s New Year’s Eve Festival celebrated everywhere in Scotland with street parties, open-air concerts and fireworks.

 

Image above: The Angel of the North, Newcastle upon Tyne, home of the Great North Run held in September.

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