Your guide to Reading Festival 2026
Your guide to Reading Festival 2026
Charlotte Coles - South of England Sun, August 30, 2026 at 1:44 PM UTC
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Charli xcx, Chase & Status and Raye will headline Reading Festival this week
One of the UK's biggest festivals returns to Berkshire this week.
Reading Festival will welcome about 100,000 people, with headliners Charli XCX, Chase & Status, Raye, Florence and the Machine, Fontaines D.C. and Dave taking to the stage.
The annual festival will run from 27 August to 30 August at Richfield Avenue.
Here is some information to help you prepare for the event.
Who is on the line-up?
Friday's line up includes:
Charli XCX
Fontaines D.C.
Skepta
Declan Mckenna
Geese
Skye Newman
Josh Baker
Jamie T
Adéla
Saturday's line up includes:
Dave
Raye
Sombr
Gunna
Viagra Boys
Kingfishr
Nine Vicious
Duke Dumont
Sunday's line up includes:
Chase & Status
Florence + The Machine
Loyle Carner
Role Model
Kneecap
Men I Trust
Kettama
Chris Stassy
Raye is one of the headliners for this year's eventCampsite opening times
Weekend and Early Entry ticket holders can enter the campsites from 18:00 BST on Wednesday.
Weekend ticket holders can enter campsites from 08:00 on Thursday.
The campsite is open 24-hours-a-day and individuals can arrive at any time after they are permitted to enter.
The campsite will close at midday on Monday.
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Those who are leaving and returning after 20:00 on Sunday will need to get their hands stamped on their way out to be able to return later.
Arena opening times
Those with day tickets cannot re-enter the arena once they leave.
However those with a weekend ticket can leave and re-enter the arena and campsites.
Thursday: 17:00 – 03:00
Friday: 11:00 – 03:00
Saturday: 11:00 – 03:00
Sunday: 11:00 – 03:00
Card or cash?
Reading Festival is a fully cashless event.
Festivalgoers can pay by debit or credit card and can also use Apple or Google pay.
Do I need to bring ID?
The festival is operating a Challenge 25 policy, and IDs must be in date.
The following forms of identification are accepted:
A passport (not a photocopy)
Full driving licence or provisional licence
A proof of age card bearing a PASS hologram
A Ministry of Defence identity card
A national identity card issued by an EU member state
What can I bring?
Disposable BBQs are not permitted on site due to the hot weather and dry ground conditions.
Campfires are also not permitted and anyone found lighting one will be evicted.
Organisers are urging festivalgoers to be mindful of cigarette disposal and to not dispose of cigarette butts on the ground.
About 100,000 people are set to attend this year's event
Prohibited items for the arena and campsites include:
Aerosols (over 250ml)
Air horns
Animals (other than registered hearing dogs or guide dogs)
Balloons
Barbecues of any kind
Blowtorches
Drones and other flying devices
Fitted gas canisters/cylinders are only permitted in camper vans in the campsites
Firewood
Fireworks/pyrotechnics, flares/distress flares, smoke bombs
Gas cylinders/canisters of any size for non-cooking purposes (including nitrous oxide)
Glass bottles, jars, containers over 100ml. Items under this measurement, such as small perfume bottles, nail varnish, and small mirrors will be permitted
Illegal substances (drugs) and legal highs, herbal highs, new psychoactive substances and unidentifiable substances.
Megaphone
Motorcycle helmets
You cannot bring alcohol for personal consumption into the arena only.
Empty reusable plastic and metal bottles are allowed into the campsite and arenas.
All customers are permitted to bring a small amount of food for personal consumption into the arena.
Accessibility customers are permitted to bring additional food in excess of the usual amount into the arena.
All customers are permitted to bring a sealed, unopened 500ml bottle of water or soft drink into the arena.
Drug detection dogs will be operating throughout the event.
The full list of what you can and cannot bring can be found here.
Arriving by car
Reading Borough Council has asked people travelling to the town centre ahead of the festival to be prepared for longer travel times.
Parking restrictions, including no stopping for pick-ups, will be in place around the Richfield Avenue site as normal.
The Hills Meadow Car Park will be the dedicated area for drop offs and pick ups and people attending the festival can either walk to the site or use free shuttle buses.
Other festival car parking will be available at Kings Meadow and Mapledurham and a pedestrian bridge has been built to ensure easy and safe access at the latter.
Arriving by shuttle bus
Reading Buses are running a shuttle bus service which picks up and drops-off at:
Festival Side
Service 97/98 – Thames Side Promenade, Reading
Reading Town
Service 98 – Reading Station North, stop ND
Service 97 – Sainsburys Friar Street, Reading
Arriving by boat
At Kings Meadow, an official festival boat service will be provided free of charge for people going to the site.
The Thames Path will be closed between Scours Lane and the far end of Thameside Promenade from 19:00 to 06:00 on Thursday to Monday.
The council and festival organisers have produced official travel information, along with a wider information page.
The BBC's coverage of Reading and Leeds festivals is available on BBC iPlayer and on BBC Sounds.
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Related internet links
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Reading Festival
Source: “AOL Entertainment”
