Nottingham is building on the success of last year's first-ever Nottingham October Festival month to offer an even bigger programme of events this year - with more major festivals and events in October than any other city in the UK. Nottingham City Council has joined forces with Experience Nottinghamshire, Galleries of Justice, Broadway, Hockley Hustle, GameCity and CAMRA, to name but a few, to bring the city alive in October. More than 20 festival and major events will be taking place throughout the month, including, what is believed to be, the UK's first-ever Caves Festival. From family fun to music, arts to beer, to videogames and comic book heroes, Nottingham's festival fever really does offer something for everyone.
No festival in Nottingham would be complete without a celebration of its world-famous outlaw - Robin Hood - and this year's October Festival includes a number of events, including jousting and medieval merriment, at Nottingham Castle's Robin Hood Pageant, and sampling some of the 1,200 real ales on offer at the four-day Robin Hood Beer & Cider Festival, which is now in its 41st year.
For the second consecutive year, The Spiegel Tent will add a sprinkle of Victorian splendour to Nottingham's iconic Old Market Square. The largest surviving tent of mirrors in the world, this beautiful 100 year-old tent, which Marlene Dietrich once performed in, and which was loved by Marilyn Monroe, is the unique venue for various live events including comedy, burlesque and music as well as family fun and pantomime.
Beer and food lovers will be well catered for and, in addition to the annual Robin Hood Beer & Cider Festival at Nottingham Castle, the second Oktoberfest German Beer Festival at the Forest Recreation ground will have thousands of varieties of beer on offer, along with great food and live music.
The Hockley Hustle music festival, which celebrates its tenth anniversary this year, includes over 250 Nottingham acts performing at over 25 venues across the city. Along with great music, street entertainers and street food the event brings a carnival atmosphere to the streets of Hockley, and has been the springboard for much local talent including Jake Bugg.
Film buffs can enjoy the very best in horror at the ultimate fright fest, Mayhem Film Festival at Broadway Cinema, and the Nottingham International Microfilm Festival will be screening microfilms, training filmmakers and bringing industry professionals together from across the globe to discuss industry developments in short format content.
Councillor Dave Trimble, Portfolio Holder for Leisure and Culture at Nottingham City Council, said: “Our ambitious campaign to attract visitors during October will result in real economic and cultural benefits for our city. I'm delighted to be building on the great results achieved in 2015 with an even better programme of events and festivals that once again confirm Nottingham's status as the UK's festival city for October.”
David Wallace, Chief Executive, Experience Nottinghamshire, said: “Nottingham's October Festival provides us with a terrific opportunity to raise the profile of Nottingham as the UK's leading festival city in the month of October. This year's festival builds on the success of last year's inaugural event to make the 2016 programme even bigger and better.
“We are particularly excited to announce, what we believe to be, the UK's first-ever Caves Festival as part of the extensive line up. By holding such a diverse range of events we are hoping to attract a large number of visitors to the city, which will clearly have a positive impact on the region's visitor economy, especially as many of the visitors will incorporate an overnight stay in the city.”
