Shambala Festival has announced a massive second wave of programming for its 2026 edition, adding over 80 new artists and a raft of blockbuster speakers to what is already shaping up to be one of the festival’s boldest editions yet. The announcement comes hot on the heels of the festival’s landmark transition to employee ownership earlier this month.
Headline new music additions include acid house heroes Paranoid London, electronic music legend Luke Vibert, K-Lone of Wisdom Teeth, and Bristol-based underground stalwart Om Unit. They join a late-night Enchanted Woods programme that also features genre-defying collective Ishmael Ensemble (playing a DJ set) and afro-latin bass specialist Cal Jader, cementing the wooded late-night area as one of the most exciting spaces on the site.
Elsewhere, the new additions span a wide stylistic range. Acclaimed Welsh harpist Catrin Finch brings a rare moment of delicate beauty to the bill, while Birmingham’s self-described “post-apocalyptic party band” Diddy Sweg and the wildly theatrical Electric Swing Circus offer something altogether more chaotic. Egyptian-Australian multi-instrumentalist Joseph Tawadros and UK-Ghanaian duo Mina & Bryte bring global sounds to the programme, alongside emerging London talent Summer Pearl and post-punk provocateurs Dream Nails.
Community and co-curation are a major theme this year. A Decolonise Festival takeover brings Bona Rays and steel. to the Rebel Soul venue, while the youth-led Hertz So Good stage hosts a Ladies Bathroom Songwriters Takeover. Drag Syndrome, the internationally acclaimed drag collective featuring artists with Down syndrome, also join the bill, as does Vespa Cougourdon Ourchestra, who promise an anarchic show built around homemade gourd instruments.
The first wave of artists announced in November already featured the likes of Bob Vylan, Goat, BCUC, Los Bitchos, Hollie Cook, The Selecter, Orchestra Baobab, Emma-Jean Thackray and Penguin Cafe. The new additions more than double the announced programme, with the full A-Z of new acts below.
On the speakers side, 2026’s programme is equally impressive. Transition movement co-founder Rob Hopkins explores how to fall in love with the future, while Green Party leader Zack Polanski brings a live edition of his Bold Politics podcast to the site. Led By Donkeys, who drew a packed-out crowd at Shambala’s sold-out 25th anniversary edition in 2025, return for another call to resistance. The festival’s long-running debate over introducing wild venison to its meat-free menu is also set to continue in the provocatively titled Deer Oh Deer Now What?
The most striking non-music addition is a UK festival exclusive from the CERN Festival Programme and Big Bang Collective. The world-leading physics laboratory will stage a four-session residency across the weekend, bringing cutting-edge science and technology topics to the heart of the festival. It is the first time CERN has taken up residency at a UK festival.
Tickets for the 27-30 August event at Kelmarsh Hall and Gardens in Northamptonshire are moving quickly. Tier 1 and Tier 2 tickets are completely sold out across Adult, Elders and Young Adult categories, with only limited Tier 3 Adult, Young Adult and Green Traveller tickets remaining. To improve access, Shambala has introduced new payment plans allowing fans to secure their place for an initial outlay of under £30, with the remaining balance spread across weekly, fortnightly or monthly instalments.
Tickets and full information are available at shambalafestival.org.
New music additions A-Z
ADJ / Anna Ling / Anything but Becky / Arif Najak / Aviator Brass / Big Band of Boom / Bona Rays (Decolonise Festival takeover) / Broken Joe / C@ in the H@ / Catrin Finch / Christy / Diddy Sweg / Divinus / Diz Undone: Love & Rage PA / DJ Cal Jader / DJ Chicha Morada / DJ Escape / DJ Kez b2b DJ Azure / Doikayt / Drag Syndrome / Dream Nails / Dr George / DRPS / Ekata / Electric Swing Circus / Emily Dust / Emma Lea and the Weird Kids / FFSYTHO / Frenetic / George Bloomfield / George Powell / Gracie Samara / Heavy Beat Brass Band / Hong Kong Ping Pong / Huns ‘N’ Roses / Inwards / Ishmael Ensemble (DJ Set) / Jack Herer / Jay Dubz / Joseph Tawadros / K-LONE (Wisdom Teeth) / Kenny Ken / Kim Cosmic / Ladies Bathroom Songwriters Takeover / Lazy Jane / Loud Noises / Lowkonic / Luke Vibert / Maxxi Soundsystem / Mina & Bryte / Mistress Mo / Neally Furtado / Nick Maxwell / Nookie & Madcap & FiveAlive / O. / Old Hag / Om Unit / Ombie / Paranoid London / Phat Sam / Plant43 / Plena Sound / Professor Elemental / PuttyRubber / Riesh Tafari / Romy Taylor / Sleep’s Cousin / Spicy Ivy / Static Ella / steel. (Decolonise Festival takeover) / Suboptimal / Summer Pearl / Swingamajig Allstars / TaliAble / Tina Edwards (DJ) / The Daniel Wakeford Experience / Tom ESC / Tuxedo Junction / TVOD / Veronica Green / Vespa Cougourdon Ourchestra / Vytol B2B Kjah / ZOBOL LIVE
Image credits: Leora Bermeister, Luis Kramer
In this article: Shambala Festival, Luke Vibert, Om Unit, Ishmael Ensemble, Catrin Finch, Joseph Tawadros, The Electric Swing Circus, Dream Nails, Bob Vylan, Bantu Continua Uhuru Consciousness, Los Bitchos, Hollie Cook, The Selecter, Orchestra Baobab, Emma-Jean Thackray, Penguin Cafe, Rob Hopkins, Zack Polanski, Led By Donkeys, CERN, Kelmarsh Hall, Northamptonshire, Green Party of England and Wales. Generated by Wikidata Schema Link Builder.
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