Bristol’s flagship event, the Bristol Harbour Festival, returns to the city on Friday 14th – Sunday 16th July 2023 to celebrate another year of the city’s biggest and best talents. Organisers have worked around the clock to put on a spectacle of music, circus and children’s entertainment filling over a mile of the harbour.
Five unmissable and family-friendly performance areas will deliver what promises to be a highlight in Bristol’s cultural calendar, with a jam-packed programme of the city’s finest performers, award-winning foods and entertainment.
Harbour View, Lloyds Amphitheatre
The familiar amphitheatre will be christened Harbour View during this year’s Festival, providing the perfect spot to enjoy a bite to eat from the food court with a soundtrack courtesy of tunes from Access Creative College, which has been providing creative education in Bristol for more than 20 years – Bristol’s leading African & Caribbean community platform, Ujima Radio and community radio station BCFM Radio.
Brand new for 2023, Access Creative College will be curating the amphitheatre stage, kicking off proceedings on Saturday from noon with singer-songwriter, Sadie Gledson, who promises to bring a range of genres including pop, electronic and alternative. Plenty of homegrown talent will take to the stage throughout Saturday with other notable acts including Marns, a singer-songwriter infusing genres of acoustic soul, RnB, EDM House and more. A few in the crowd may also recognise her for more than her great music after her appearance in the BBC One’s Bristol-based hit comedy ‘The Outlaws’.
On Sunday, the Amphitheatre will once again be sparked into life by a double dose of Bristol-based indie bands Monday at Five and Lakedown, beginning at 12pm. The crescendo of diverse sounds will be closed by Bristol’s DJ Fitz, known as one of the most versatile House and D&B DJs in the city. He has almost a decade of experience on the decks and has spun records in every venue possible, from pubs to festivals.
Harbour View will provide the ideal spot to relax, listen to great music and look out across Bristol’s iconic floating harbour.
Music Quarter at Queen Square, programmed by Tony Benjamin Presents
Bristol Harbour Festival legend Tony Benjamin will be curating and programming the main stage at this year’s celebration. Perhaps the person who has had the biggest influence on the Harbour Festival’s distinct sound and vibe in recent history, Tony has been working with the event for almost two decades.
The main stage will be opened on Friday from 5pm to 10pm by all-female DJ troupe, Booty Bass, who will provide a smooth, hip-hop soundtrack to Friday Night in the Square. From noon on Saturday, festival-goers can catch an array of artists and genres ranging from the silky Afro-Brazilian rhythms and vocal harmonies offered by all-female group Safrole to Access Creative College graduate, Solo Jane’s hypnotic house tunes with a sprinkling of jazz, soul and electronic artists in between. Saturday will be headlined by Da Fuchaman’s Fire Blaze Band, the latest talent to emerge from Bristol’s thriving reggae scene.
Tony Benjamin will go just as big on the final day, serving up an extravaganza of musical delights starting with the Bristol Reggae Orchestra and Windrush Choir, fresh from performing on the Pyramid Stage at Glastonbury Festival, who will be marking the 75th anniversary of the HMT Empire Windrush arriving in Britain at this year’s event. Bristol’s fun-loving favourite, Doreen Doreen, will be performing from 5pm in what promises to be an unforgettable viewing for anyone yet to see the band perform live. The crowd will be waved off from this year’s event by the experienced hands of one of Bristol’s longest-serving DJs, John Stapleton, and his eclectic great taste in music.
On The Water, Bristol Harbourside
Showcasing the city’s incredible maritime heritage, the historic Floating Harbour will pull Bristol together by offering a range of on-the-water spectacles and events celebrating its rich history with free, family-friendly activities programmed on the water’s edge.
A hip-hop, soul funk and disco party will be held on the MV Balmoral Friday from 7:30pm, hosted by the Caravan Collective. The family fun kicks off on Saturday beginning with the Young Shipwrights Boat Race, which pits 100 model boats made by primary school children against each other. This is followed by the legendary Cardboard Boat Race where teams battle it out to bring their handmade vessels home!
British Freestyle Jetski champion, Jack Moule will be performing a masterclass on how to look cool on the water, performing big air backflips, barrel rolls, twists and jumps. This is bound to be a crowd-pleasing performance across Saturday and Sunday.
Circus Playground, College Green
The Circus Playground is being delivered as one of the activities under the City Centre and High Streets Recovery and Renewal programme, funded by Bristol City Council and the West of England Combined Authority’s Love Our High Streets project.
College Green will host a myriad show-stopping entertainers at this year’s festival – ranging from daredevil stunts and circus performers to comedy shows and children’s entertainment, courtesy of Bristol’s very own Cirque Bijou. The circus team will transform the green into the ideal spot for families to enjoy thrilling performances and a place for children to join in on the fun.
Cabaret and street entertainment veterans, Jones and Barnard will be stage comperes across both Saturday and Sunday. The duo are renowned for their wit, charm and a trunk full of a variety of tricks. On stage, contortionists, comedy sketch shows, world-record jugglers, dance groups and acrobatics will perform throughout the day. Meanwhile, circus workshops will be held off-stage on College Green as visitors can explore The Bee Garden, a bubble walkabout or play some Crazy Golf. The festival’s fan-favourite baby racing will also take place at both 12:30pm and 4:30pm to close out the first day on the playground.
Jones and Barnard will return on Sunday with Bendy Bendini and his sword-swallowing performance, a cultural performance from the Bristol 4 Tibet Community, a trapeze duet from Johnny and Tilly and much more.
Jelli Shack, Millennium Square
The team at Jelli Records have curated an acoustic programme offering attendees a chill-out beach bar location at Millennium Square, which will become the Jelli Shack. In keeping with the festival’s promise to push homegrown Bristol artists, a selection of the city’s finest will perform in the square on both Saturday and Sunday. The South West’s best musical theatre choir, the Show Choir will get things underway on Saturday from noon by singing songs from smash hit West End favourites as well as lesser-known off-Broadway gems, all in acapella. The collective will be followed by the aforementioned Windrush Reggae Choir before acts such as 80s dance trio Gold Fever and musical enigma, Karen Swan and her Creatures band.
Sunday will continue to deliver the goods with Break Out Voices, a 60-member strong community choir based in Windmill Hill, singing acapella renditions of classic pop and rock hits. Award-winning five-piece band, Terraplanes, will add its high energy, guitar and harmonica-driven Rhythm & Blues sound to proceedings before Chai for All’s classy, jazz-tinged renditions of Yiddish songs. Jamaican band, Onika Venus will close the Jelli Shack with a tracklist featuring reggae-based, soulful ballads.
Bristol Harbour Festival is part of Bristol 650, a year-long celebration of all things Bristol: who we are, where we come from, what we’ve done – and where we’re going – to mark 650 years since Bristol gained independent county status.
For more information see www.bristolharbourfestival.co.uk, or visit @Bristolharbfest on Twitter, @BristolHarbourFest on Instagram and www.facebook.com/bristolharbourfestival