Leicester’s Riverside Festival returns on Saturday 6 and Sunday 7 June with a free, family-friendly weekend spread across Bede Park, DMU Campus and Castle Gardens.
The festival opens at 12pm on Saturday, with music, arts, craft, theatre, street entertainment, heritage site access, food, drink and licensed bars across the city centre sites. Entry is free, and the programme is aimed at families as well as anyone looking for live music and outdoor culture over the weekend.
For readers planning the weekend, the most useful starting point is simple: arrive for the Saturday opening if you want the full spread of daytime activities, or head to Bede Park in the evening for the biggest music moments.
Dates, venues and free entry
| Detail | What has been confirmed |
|---|---|
| Event | Riverside Festival |
| Dates | Saturday 6 June and Sunday 7 June |
| Opening time | 12pm on Saturday |
| Main locations | Bede Park, DMU Campus and Castle Gardens |
| Cost | Free entry |
| Audience | Family-friendly |
| Organisers | Leicester City Council and DMU |
The festival sits across Leicester city centre rather than one single field, so visitors can move between Bede Park, the DMU Campus and Castle Gardens during the weekend. Leicester City Council says the full programme includes interactive experiences, hands-on activities and music across the festival area.
The arts, craft and theatre offer has been expanded with new funding from Arts Council England, adding more family activities and creative sessions to the weekend. A previous Munisha guide to Riverside Festival planning details also sets out the core dates and venues for anyone mapping out the visit.
Bede Park brings DJ sets, dance and family music
Bede Park is the main stage focus for some of the weekend’s biggest performances.
On Saturday evening, THE OLD BOY headlines at Bede Park from 7pm with a DJ set spanning soul, jazz, rare groove, funk, house, garage and hip hop. On Sunday, DJ Simon Philip closes the Bede Park programme from 6pm.
Across the weekend, the same stage will also host a Tots’ Rave with DJ Juvie and Louisa Darling, melodic grunge from Pretty Dirty Rats, and a collaboration between Nupur Arts and KAINE choir pairing Indian dance with African music.
Cllr Vi Dempster, Leicester’s assistant city mayor for culture, described Riverside Festival as “for everyone” and said the city was preparing to welcome thousands of people to enjoy music, art and activities.
DMU Campus and Castle Gardens add parade, poetry and street entertainment
At DMU’s campus, the Cultural eXchanges stage opens on Saturday with the Talent 25 carnival parade. Families taking part in the Talent 25 programme will lead a procession showing upcycled festival costumes.
The Cultural eXchanges stage will feature dance, music and spoken word from performers including DMU Dance/Moving Together, Syston Swing Band, Curve Youth Dance Group, Sam the Rapper and Mirchi Mob. Cultural eXchanges, DMU’s annual arts and creative writing festival, is being held in collaboration with Riverside and marks its 25th anniversary this year.
Dr Jacqui Norton, Associate Professor at DMU, said the partnership with Leicester City Council would showcase work by final-year Arts and Festivals Management students.
Castle Gardens and the DMU Campus will also host acoustic performers and street entertainers as part of Busk Leicester. A further Castle Gardens stage, curated by BrightSpark Arts, will feature spoken word, music, comedy and dance. The roaming Beatbox Jukebox is also listed as part of the weekend programme.
Heritage sites, family activities and food stalls
Beyond the stages, visitors can take part in arts, crafts, theatre activities, poetry, storytelling with Leicester Libraries and sports taster sessions. Vintage vehicles will also be part of the wider festival offer.
Several heritage sites are tied into the weekend. Riverside Festival visitors can get discounted entry to Jewry Wall, while St Mary de Castro Church will be open. Its bells are due to ring at 12pm on Saturday to mark the start of the festival, with choral evensong taking place at 5pm on Sunday.
Newarke Houses Museum, which is free to enter, will be open on Saturday. Heritage sites on the DMU campus, including the Great Hall at Leicester Castle, Trinity Chapel, the herb garden and the DMU Museum, will also be open over the weekend, with additional activities at the DMU Gallery.
Street food and drink will be available across the festival, including licensed bars. Leicester City Council says the full programme, accessibility information and travel information are available through the Visit Leicester Riverside Festival page.
Source: Leicester City Council
Source check Source trail
This preview is based on Leicester City Council’s published Riverside Festival programme and the event details supplied in the brief.
- Confirmed the festival dates as 6 and 7 June.
- Checked that entry is described as free and family-friendly.
- Matched the listed venues to Bede Park, DMU Campus and Castle Gardens.
- Kept transport, accessibility and end-time details limited to what the source states.
- Source
- Leicester City Council
- Scope
- Leicester
- Updated
- 2026-06-04 23:58
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