Independent Venue Week is kicking off the 2026 edition tonight (Monday, January 26), and over 700 shows are planned around the country over the next seven days.
The event celebrates and helps support the live music spaces across the UK, and has been running since 2013. For this year’s edition, 236 independently-owned venues are set to participate – a 10 per cent increase on 2025 – and over 700 events are on the calendar between now and February 1.
Nova Twins have been named as 2026 Artist Ambassadors for the UK and will be returning to their South London home for a one-off gig at the intimate, 300-capacity Amersham Arms tomorrow (Tuesday, January 27).
Falkirk folk-punk band Brògeal are Scottish ambassadors for 2026, performing at MacArts in Galashiels on January 30 and The Venue in Dumfries on January 31, and Eve Goodman is 2026 Welsh ambassador, and set to perform at Mold’s Caffi Isa tonight, Swansea’s Tŷ Tawe on January 30 and Pembroke’s Cwtch Coffee on February 1.
Independent Venue Week comes at a vital time this year, with Music Venue Trust reporting just last week that 2025 had been another concerning year for grassroots spaces across the country, and 30 venues closed permanently between July 2024 and July 2025.
With the week of live events organised by IVW, venues in cities, towns and villages are being filled at a traditionally quiet time of year, and more opportunities are presented for artists to get out there, play live and build connections with fans.
Beavertown will support Independent Venue Week for the fourth consecutive year by sponsoring seven shows across seven cities, and there will also be extensive coverage on BBC Radio 6 Music throughout the week – including live Teatime Session from The Isle of Wight, where Steve Lamacq and Huw Stephens will present a performance from Coach Party from 4pm today.
Gigs lined-up include Ebi Soda at Voodoo Daddy’s Showroom in Norwich, Wu-Lu at London’s The Dome, Antony Szmierek at Cardiff’s Clwb Ifor Bach, Jaykae at Birmingham’s Hare & Hounds, Reverend & The Makers at Leeds’ Brudenell Social Club, Calum Bowie at Edinburgh’s Stramash and more.
Other acts taking to stages for IVW this year include Dove Ellis, Sorry, Mika, Buzzcocks, HotWax, Pigs x7, The Molotovs, Pale Blue Eyes, Lucy Spraggan, Nyah Grace, and more.
As well as live performances, this Thursday (January 29) will see PPL host a Q&A at London’s Paper Dress Vintage with Scottish band Walt Disco, ahead of their gig that night. On top of that, IVW is partnering with the PRS Foundation and their Early Career Promoter Fund. This goes towards supporting five previous ECPF grantees to promote their own shows around the country during the week.
You can find all the details about events and participating venues on the IVW website.
“It’s brilliant to see our second highest ever number of venues taking part in IVW. I think that’s a very clear sign that venues want the opportunity to enjoy a positive and celebratory week that shines a light on the brilliant work they do year-round,” said Sybil Bell, CEO & Founder, Independent Venue Week.
“With over 700 shows on sale all around the country, IVW allows artists and the public alike to come together and recognise what these spaces mean to them – supporting local creative businesses whilst kicking off 2026 with some epic live music. More than ever, fans are also showing that they want to be out, in person with mates, being in the moment and not on a screen.
“I’m really excited by the sheer range and diversity of shows on offer, and this year looks set to deliver some magical moments creating lasting memories for the future.”
Since launching, more than one million tickets have been sold for Independent Venue Week events, boosting the plight of the struggling live music economy. In 2025, Gwenno and rEDOLENT served as ambassadors.
The aforementioned figures from Music Venue Trust concerning the worrying circumstances that faced live spaces in 2025 were shared as part of their annual report.
The findings were outlined at London’s Victoria & Albert Museum last week, and MVT CEO Mark Davyd said at the event that they had “reached the absolute limit of what goodwill can possibly absorb”.
“For years, grassroots music venues have quietly carried problems that should never have been theirs to solve. Rising costs. Shifting policy. Regulatory confusion. Political drift. Industry indifference,” he said. “And because they didn’t collapse overnight, everyone else has been able to pretend that the system more or less works… Well, here’s the headline from this report: It does not work.”
Also at the MVT event, Employer National Insurance increases were cited as the main driver of job losses, and it was also shared that the increase in business rates has proven devastating too.
Last year’s MVT report showed that the UK was losing one music venue every fortnight in 2024, but fortunately, 2025 saw the rate of venue decline slow to its lowest point since 2018.
Efforts to help support grassroots venues have come from bigger spaces like the Royal Albert Hall in London. The historic venue last year became the first arena to commit to a LIVE ticket levy to help support grassroots venues. That levy sees £1 from every ticket sold invested back into the UK’s live music scene.
Others who have shown backing include big names like Coldplay, Sam Fender and Katy Perry – who have all vowed to donate a portion of their respective tour revenues towards grassroots spaces.
Last year, people behind new venues in London, Manchester, Portsmouth and Southampton spoke to NME about why they were determined to survive amid ongoing battles. They also praised IVW as being something that “kickstarts the touring season again.”
“It definitely brings great awareness to independent venues, but I think it’s important for that awareness to be spread all year round – not just in one week at the end of January,” said Alice Frith, venue programmer at Papillon and KOLA. Check out the full interview here.
