We set ourselves a new challenge in 2025 – to run a 3 day festival focussing on New Wave art, music and theatre alongside our heritage project featuring The Songs and Ballads of Bloomsbury and St Giles. This enabled development of a month-long festival in 2026 celebrating 20 years since the Bloomsbury Festival was founded.
In 2025 we presented a platform for musicians, artists and theatre makers moving from higher education into their professional careers, and offered numerous artists, volunteers and choirs the opportunity to take part.
One highlight was the exhibition of artist Michael Craig Martin’s sculptures in Russell Square presented by the Commissioners of Russell Square Sculpture Programme and Gagosian. Another highlight was the presentation of street artworks newly commissioned by the festival from artist Dryden Goodwin working with musician Vivien Ellis. Our ongoing partnership with Bloomsbury Radio at the Bloomsbury Institute broadcast daily coverage of the festival. Thank you to all our venue providers including Conway Hall, City Lit and Capital City College Group, Holy Cross Church, St Giles-in-the-Fields Church and The Music Room who deserve a special mention for offering the festival multi-day performance spaces.
As always there are so many individuals and organisations to thank (the official partners are listed on the final page of this report) and we hope to highlight some of the outstanding moments of the 2025 festival.
Rosemary Richards, Festival Director
20 YEARS OF BLOOMSBURY FESTIVAL
In 2026 Bloomsbury Festival marks 20 years Celebrating Creativity in Bloomsbury. Established in 2006, the festival is an annual celebration of arts, culture and community. Each year the people of Bloomsbury come together with institutions and local communities to host a vibrant celebration of Bloomsbury’s creativity.
The annual festival transforms the historic streets and venues of Bloomsbury. A wide programme of events includes performance, film, visual arts, exhibitions, literature, and the local community.
“A festival that embodies the spirit of London –diverse, innovative, and thought-provoking”
The Guardian
“One of the capital’s most exciting cultural events, bringing together art, science, and community in a truly unique way”
Time Out
OPENING EVENTS
Opening Reception at the Kimpton Fitzroy
The 2025 Opening reception was hosted by the Kimpton Fitzroy London Hotel as a private view for Michael Craig-Martin’s artworks. The Commissioners of Russell Square and Gagosian, and festival participants and supporters, enjoyed a splendid event in the Palm Court to celebrate the opening of the 3 day festival.
Michael Craig-Martin in Russell Square
The Commissioners of Russell Square Sculpture Programme (Curator Joe Duggan) and Gagosian presented a new exhibition of three of Michael Craig-Martin’s sculptural artworks: Umbrella (magenta) 2024; Headphones (blue); 2020 and Bright Idea, 2016.
With a footfall of 12,000 daily through Russell Square these artworks were viewed by tens of thousands of visitors during October 2025.
Supported by the Henry Moore Foundation.
Festival Opening Singing Showcase at Conway Hall
Local choirs and singing groups came together to share an evening of ballad singing, showcasing the history of the streets of Bloomsbury and St Giles, and the global cultures of communities who live here now.
15 choirs and singing groups took part in this uplifting evening featuring historic ballads, new ballads composed and performed by local choirs; and traditional songs in the ballad tradition from East Asia, South America and the Caribbean.
Supported by National Lottery Heritage Fund.
NEW WAVE THEATRE
In 2024 the festival held a call for new writers and theatre makers to submit scripts and proposals for devised work. The theatre productions included work from global heritage creatives including Korean and Caribbean focussed productions and featured a student musical and youth theatre productions.
NEW WAVE VISUAL ARTS
The winner of the 2025 Bloomsbury Festival Fine Art prize was Beth McAlester with an exhibition presenting artwork reflecting her home country and contemporary life in Northern Ireland. This was presented at the City Lit Gallery with a moving musical and discussion event Songs of Peace. Shortlisted artists were presented in Holy Cross Church as a free and open gallery alongside New Wave music events through the festival weekend.
NEW WAVE MUSIC
Nine musical groups and musicians were selected to perform in the 2025 showcase across three venues in City Lit, The Music Room and Holy Cross Church. The outstanding talents of the next wave of professional musicians offered an inspiring musical programme across the festival.
New Wave Theatre performances included:
UP IN THE MANGO TREES
BY BRITNY VIRGINIA
Tas’xi - a young disabled woman living on the Caribbean island of Saint Lucia - is encouraged to run for the prestigious title of Carnival Queen.
CANCELLING TIGER
BY NAMOO CHAE LEE KASSNA KOLLEKTIV
Cancelling Tiger explores cancel culture, restorative justice, and intergenerational memory through Korean folklore and ritual.
SEE IT. SAY IT. SORTED. THE MUSICAL! CROSSROAD PRODUCTION
One bag. Five strangers. A station full of secrets. A new original musical about what happens when we finally stop and listen.
8-BIT DREAM BY BEN GRANT MACREADY THEATRE YOUNG ACTORS COMPANY, DIRECTED BY TIM COKER
Eight teenagers invite you to a brand-new, time-travelling, absurdist comedy about, well, life!
FACILITY 111: A GOVERNMENT EXPERIMENT BY INGE-VERA LIPSIUS
A surreal new audio play, written and performed live by the American-Dutch director Inge-Vera Lipsius.
STRANGE DOINGS IN LONDON - THE
SONGS AND BALLADS OF ST GILES
Ballad Walks
Vivien Ellis and volunteers, working in partnership with Camden Guides, created two ballad walks. One featured the area of St Giles and Seven Dials and the other, linked with the archives in the Dickens Museum, starting outside Charles Dickens old home in Doughty Street.
Quicken (St Giles)
by Dryden Goodwin
The festival invited artist Dryden Goodwin to produce a permanent display of engraved etched panels on the streets of St Giles, drawing inspiration from the ballads researched by Vivien Ellis and historic artworks relating to this period of history. Six character studies are now permanently displayed on lamp posts in St Giles High Street.
2025 FESTIVAL FACTS & FIGURES
The 2025 festival took place from 17-19 October 2025 with additional opening events on the evening of 16 October and heritage project showcase events for Strange Doings in London on 14-15 October.
6 days of events and activities
500 participants in live events
50 volunteers, stewards and work experience trainees
19 Bloomsbury venues
Signed up email and social media platforms amalgamated reach over 15,000
60,000 audience of which 5,000 attended ticketed and indoor events, 50,000 audience for outdoor exhibitions and artworks including Russell Square artworks, and a further 5,000 digital audience for broadcasts
168,000 unique website visits during 2025
MAJOR PARTNERS
Thank you to numerous local institutions and organisations for your partnership and provision of venue space including:
Bloomsbury Institute’s Bloomsbury Radio
Conway Hall | Holy Cross Church | St Giles In The Fields | The Russell Square Commissioners
