United Kingdom Holidays and Festivals: Festivals
Calendar
| Festival | 2024 | 2025 | 2026 | Affected |
| Glastonbury Festival | June 26–30 | June 25–29 | June 27–28 | none |
| Lord Mayor’s Show | Second Saturday in November | Second Saturday in November | Second Saturday in November | none |
Note: Festivals in the United Kingdom are too numerous to list. Each region has its own special tributes, events, and celebrations for anything from music, dance, food, and wine to art, fashion, history, ships, cars, boats, animals, and the list goes on. For example, a typical local harvest festival centers around the main crop of the region and offers music, food, handicrafts, and children’s activities. The events listed above are just a sampling of particular ethnic festivals known on a more national scale.
Key:
g = government offices and institutions
b = banks and financial institutions
o = non-retail businesses/offices
r = retail businesses
TBD = To be determined
Glastonbury Festival
Date(s):
Five days in June
Closures:
None
Description:
This festival of contemporary performing arts takes place in Pilton, Somerset, England. It features music, dance, comedy, theater, circus, cabaret, and other arts.
Background:
Regarded as a major event in British culture, the festival is inspired by the ethos of the hippie, the counterculture of the 1960s, and the free-festival movement.
How Celebrated:
Festival goers can watch a variety of performances on multiple stages throughout the grounds as well as enjoy food and camping.
Lord Mayor’s Show
Date(s):
Varies in the month of November
Closures:
None
Description:
An 800-year-old tradition in which the Lord Mayor of London travels through the City of London to Westminster to swear allegiance to the Crown
Background:
The Lord Mayor’s Show is an annual procession that originated in 1215 when King John authorized the residents of the City of London to elect their own mayor, provided that the new mayor must appear before the king at Westminster and take an oath of loyalty.
How Celebrated:
On the day of the Lord Mayor’s Show, all roads are closed. Thousands participate in the parade, including marching bands, servicemen, and business and trade organizations. Floats, vehicles, carriages, and the city’s traditional guardians, the wicker giants Gog and Magog, add color to the nearly 5-kilometer-long (3-mile-long) procession. The event starts with aerobatics by the RAF, followed by a two-minute silence in homage to veterans. The procession then winds through the streets of the City of London to the Royal Courts of Justice. Here, the Lord Mayor pledges allegiance to the British monarch before the Lord Chief Justice and the Judges of the Queen’s Bench Division. The procession then proceeds to Mansion House where the Lord Mayor is greeted by the Livery Company Masters and City Aldermen. In the early evening, the new Lord Mayor launches a grand fireworks display from a barge on the Thames to celebrate the commencement of his year in office.
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