The Wake Tickets and Dates

Badly Drawn Boy to Headline The Wake 2026

The third edition of The Wake, the festival set up by Green Man founders, Jo Bartlett and Danny Hagan will take place on Saturday 29 August 2026.

We are very excited to announce that our headliner for 2026 is Badly Drawn Boy (solo performance).

Perhaps best known for the Mercury Award winning album ‘The Hour of Bewilderbeast’ and the soundtrack to Nick Hornby’s film ‘About A Boy’, Damon Gough (AKA Badly Drawn Boy) continues to write and produce new music and perform live to sell-out audiences.

Badly Drawn Boy will be joined by:

Welsh / London band, The Tubs will be the main support.

Formed in 2018 by Owen Williams alongside previous members of his cult-band Joanna Gruesome, The Tubs have released two albums, and two Eps. All released on independent labels. 

‘Cotton Crown’ album reviews

‘A personal, stellar second from classic indie quartet at the centre of a London collective’ Uncut ****

‘An exceptional record.’ ***** The Observer

‘His striking voice, somewhere between Richard Thompson and Bob Mould, bolts through the band’s joyful jangle-pop.‘ The Guardian Best Albums of 2025.

Radhika create Scottish dream pop. Featuring Radhika Meera Dade on vocals and guitar, their current single ‘Starry Eyes’ includes special guest contributions from Teenage Fanclub’s Gerard Love and Mitch Mitchell of The Pastels.

‘That’s a great record, I love it!’ – Marc Riley, BBC 6 Music

Together, The Grand Old Echo create their affectionately named 'City-Folk' sound - witty and poignant story telling about life, death and everything in between, delivered through triple harmonies and the occasional rap verse, all laid over a variety of traditional folk instruments

The band members are originally from Essex, Hamburg and Hong Kong, they are all now based in London.

Meet Your Heroes are an instrumental jazz-rock trio from Brighton. Their music blends guitar melodies, swampy grooves, mathy riffs and deadly improvisation into a heady fusion brew.

Also from Brighton, Amelia & The Housewives get compared to C86 bands which they find confusing as they are trying to sound like The Impressions. Their debut album is out in June.

More artists, authors, DJs and children’s area to be announced.

As in previous years, great food, craft beers and bar, the glorious Loxwood Mead, camping and much fun!

‘Small but perfectly formed. Mark next year’s festival on your calendar now!’ Shindig Magazine

‘Such a beautiful setting’ BBC Radio Sussex

In 2026, The Wake will once again have three stages of music with Talks, DJs and a Children’s Area, more acts will be announced in January.

The festival takes place in the beautiful woodlands and countryside of West Sussex, on the fringes of the South Downs National Park, and is easily accessible from London and Brighton.

Tickets are Adult £40, £15 for 7-14 year olds and free to under 7s. Camping tickets can also be purchased with a festival ticket at a cost of £25 per pitch (up to 4 people). There are also a limited amount of Campervan pitches at £35.

For more details and information visit www.thewake.uk