The bid made by Reading Festival to extend its music license for Thursday night had been met with objections from local residents over noise concerns.
It was announced back in July that organisers of the dual festival had applied for a licensing change, which would allow acts to perform on a Thursday, making the festival a four-day event.
Usually, Wednesdays and Thursdays are seen as warm-up days, where festivalgoers can head to the site and set up for things kicking off on Friday and running until Sunday each August bank holiday weekend.
In the report last month from BBC News, organisers Festival Republic applied for amplified music to be added to the licence for Thursdays, on the main stage only, taking place between 5pm and midnight. If approved by Reading Borough Council, the change could come into effect from 2027.
This year’s festival runs from 27-30 August. Its sister festival in Leeds – which takes place on the same weekend – already has permission to perform music on a Thursday, and will do so for the first time this year with Kasabian headlining their main stage.
The hopes to have music between 5pm and midnight on Thursday in Reading has been met with some backlash from local residents, however, with hundreds opposing the planned changes due to noise concerns.
In a new statement, chair of the Warren & District Residents Association (WADRA), Elisa Miles, has said that the organisation is “not opposed” to the festival generally, but is concerned about the impact the change will have on local residents.
“Through this long-standing partnership, we have helped [Festival Republic] better understand the impact the festival has on nearby residents and have worked together to develop practical solutions,” she said (via BBC News). “Loud amplified music late into the evening will disrupt sleep for those who have no choice but to remain at home.”
Malcolm Pemble, from the Caversham and District Residents Association (CADRA) agreed, saying that the change would be “unfair” to residents in the area.
Festival Republic has defended the planned changes for the festival, and claimed that it carried out an assessment that found that the live music on Thursday would not “adversely impact” residents. It also said that it would allow visitors to come together and enjoy planned entertainment in the evening, rather than “being left to congregate in the campsites or less supervised areas”.
Fontaines D.C., Florence + The Machine, DAVE, Charli XCX, RAYE, and Chase & Status are all confirmed to top the bill for both festivals.
This year also sees a massive staging and arena overhaul, described by the organisers as the biggest in the events’ history. Both Little John’s Farm in Reading and Bramham Park in Leeds will see improvements to the Main Stage – now known as The Grid – along with new stages The Gallery and The Warehouse.
Speaking to NME about the changes, festival boss Melvin Benn explained that the move had made him “as excited about Reading & Leeds as I’ve ever been”.
“I’m as excited about Reading & Leeds from when I started Leeds, in fact, in 1999. This really is the next phase of Reading & Leeds festivals,” he shared.
Benn also spoke about how the focus on UK and Ireland headliners this year, and shared whether or not that was a conscious decision.
“We happen to have found ourselves this year in a position where we have six-seven headliners that wanted to play Reading & Leeds that are all UK and Ireland-based,” he said. “When you add people like Kneecap, for instance – who headlined their own show just two weeks ago down in Crystal Palace, with 25,000 people at it – it shows the strength of UK and Irish music. I do think festivals like Reading & Leeds have played their part in developing that.”
Ahead of the 2026 festival kicking off, Reading & Leeds have teamed up with Spotify to help fans discover new artists they’ll love at the festival through personalised playlists based on their listening habits.