Bradford on Avon Green Man Festival

Where:	Bradford on Avon, Wiltshire at BA15 1LF and multiple town centre sites
When:	A Saturday in mid May
Time:	See Helpful Hints links (Formerly From 9 am until 6 pm, with closing Procession 5 pm & Striping at 5.45)

The Bradford on Avon Green Man Festival is a free family friendly community event of traditional dance, music, song and folklore throughout the town. Each year they hosted literally dozens of dance groups (in 2022 it was about 580 dancers and 150 musicians) so this may well have been the country’s largest such event; in 2026 the festival will continue but at a smaller scale for now. The 10 foot tall giant Jack in the Green, accompanied by his troupe of musicians (the Ganderflankers) led the day with dancing at 10 town centre locations, 2 samba bands, a mummers’ play, a Folk Club stage, a choral and classical concert in Trinity Church, live music in pubs, a kids’ zone including a fun fair, an artisan market, community groups’ hub, a pagan arts and crafts market and more. It was all FREE! In 2026 the scaled-back event will feature three local morris sides and a Green Man rather than the huge Jack in the Green.

Helpful Hints

In 2026 the smaller festival will take place on Saturday 9th May.

Sadly it was announced in November 2025 that the event would no longer take place because there aren’t enough committee members to fill all the necessary roles for what had become such a large event. However, by the end of January 2026 it had been announced that a smaller festival will still go ahead- check out the links for details and timings.

Bradford on Avon Green Man Festival from the organisers for 2024:

Experience the Bradford on Avon Green Man Festival, a vibrant, family-friendly community gathering featuring traditional dance, music, song, and folklore throughout the town centre on Saturday 11 May 2024. And the best part is, its free!Witness over 40 dance groups, including 320 dancers and 100 musicians, featuring Morris dancing and diverse European styles.Join the whimsical journey of our 10ft tall Jack in the Green and Jill in the Green, visiting 12 town centre venues with bands and fantasy beasts. You’ll can also discover the kid’s zone, artisan market, community hub, pagan arts and crafts.Groove to a samba band, mummers’ play, Folk Club stage, Wiltshire Music Centre stage, Blues @ The Shoes stage, live pub music, buskers and more!The full programme is available on the BoA Green Man Festival website: boagreenmanfest.orgThe BoA Green Man Festival has something for everyone – so dress up for the day and really get into the swing of things.The festival is from 9am to 5pm. Please use public transport if you can but there will be festival parking at BA15 1LF.

Click here for the event website: http://boagreenmanfest.org/welcome/

Click here for the Facebook page: https://www.facebook.com/BoAGreenManFest/