Last weekend, thousands of artists took to the stages of the UK’s grassroots music venues with organisers, musicians, venues and music fans declaring the inaugural Everywhere At Once festival a resounding success.
Taking place on what would have been the Glastonbury Festival weekend of June 26 to 28, 2026, more than 2000 artists performed at over 400 grassroots music venues across the UK, creating the UK’s biggest music festival and a nationwide celebration of grassroots live music.
Organised by the charity Music Venue Trust (MVT) and supported by The National Lottery (which has invested over £1.3billion in music related projects), artists including Fatboy Slim, Tinie Tempah, Rizzle Kicks, Glenn Tilbrook, Becky Hill and The Lathums played special intimate shows to shine a spotlight on these important spaces. The diverse line-up also included Lucy Spraggan, Gene, D Double E, P Money, Toddla T, The Divine Comedy, Jodie Harsh, Master Peace, Brooke Combe and Inspiral Carpets alongside hundreds of local and emerging artists who all performed shows as part of the festival.
From dance and electronic music to indie, rock, grime, pop, jazz, folk, punk, soul and more, Everywhere At Once showcased the extraordinary diversity and creativity thriving in grassroots venues across the country.
Glenn Tilbrook, frontman and founder of Squeeze said, “It was a real privilege for my son Leon and I to be part of the festival and support the work of Music Venue Trust. The Theatreship, where we played, is a great example of a grassroots venue with a unique character providing its community with such a rich programme of music and so much more. These spaces are so special and we need to ensure we do everything we can to celebrate and protect them.”
Mark Davyd, CEO of the organisers MVT said, “We want to send a huge thank you to the hundreds of venues and promoters who put together such an incredible weekend of live music featuring thousands of artists. Everywhere At Once could not have happened without the fantastic support of The National Lottery, so huge love out to them. But most of all, thank you to the tens of thousands of people who got off their sofa this weekend and got out to see some brilliant live music in their own town and city. Joe Strummer said “Without People, You’re Nothing” and in the end that’s what Everywhere at Once was; a huge vote of confidence by people in communities all across the UK that music belongs to all of us.”
National Lottery players are one of the biggest backers of grassroots music. Since National Lottery funding began in 1994, more than £1.3 billion has been invested in music-related projects, supporting over 35,000 initiatives across the UK. That investment ranges from small community grants to major cultural landmarks such as The Glasshouse in Gateshead, while also helping organisations that bring live music, education and creative opportunities to people of all ages and backgrounds. National Lottery funding also supports the next generation of artists through projects that provide music education, instruments, mentoring, rehearsal and recording facilities, giving emerging talent the opportunity to develop their skills and build sustainable careers.
Everywhere At Once, powered by The National Lottery, was delivered by Music Venue Trust alongside Save Our Scene and the Association of Independent Promoters, bringing the grassroots network together for a shared national moment of live music. The festival also supported War Child, Nordoff Robbins, Help Musicians, and Teenage Cancer Trust.