Nottingham’s beloved Hockley Hustle is celebrating its 20th birthday in style, with organisers promising its biggest and most ambitious edition yet.
The city-wide music and arts festival will return on October 25, taking over Nottingham’s independent quarter with more than 500 acts performing across 50 venues, from pubs and bars to churches, cinemas, galleries and chapels.
Over the last two decades, Hockley Hustle has grown from a grassroots fundraiser running in just seven venues into one of the UK’s most distinctive city festivals, helping launch artists including Sleaford Mods, Jake Bugg, Myles Smith, Alt Blk Era and Natalie Duncan while raising a quarter of a million pounds for local charities.
This year, organisers are aiming to raise a further £20,000 as part of the festival’s landmark 20th anniversary celebrations.
The sprawling one-day event has become synonymous with Nottingham’s creative spirit, packing streets with samba bands, silent discos and carnival processions while offering everything from intimate acoustic sets to large-scale orchestral performances.
Among this year’s headline attractions is the return of the UFO Orchestra at the spectacular St Mary’s Church. The 70-piece ensemble has previously teamed up with some of Nottingham’s best-known voices, including Liam Bailey, Natalie Duncan, Divorce’s Tiger Cohen-Towell, Rob Green and Alfie Sharp. Special guests for the anniversary performance are still under wraps.
Festival founder Adam Pickering reflected on the unlikely journey from a small Oxfam fundraiser to a cornerstone of Nottingham’s cultural calendar.
“It was impossible to imagine 20 years ago that Hockley Hustle would still be going now,” he said.
“When 18-year-old me was running around Nottingham asking promoters to host venues, I hadn’t even been alive that long.
“The music scene was already brilliant and full of love. It only ever took someone to say, ‘Let’s throw a party for a good cause’, and everyone would come together.
“Part of what’s made it work for so long is Hockley itself. It’s got that perfect mix of creativity, independent venues and neighbourhood energy. But the key thing has always been Nottingham’s community.
“We might be a small cub of a city, but we roar like a lion.”
Elsewhere, organisers are promising the biggest Hockley Hustle parade to date, filling the streets with music, dance and carnival energy, while Step N Groove will attempt to stage what is being billed as the world’s largest R&B line-dancing flashmob.
The festival is also significantly expanding its LGBTQIA+ programme following the success of last year’s events, with eight queer collectives helping curate performances, parties and takeovers throughout the day.
For many within Nottingham’s music scene, however, Hockley Hustle’s biggest contribution has been its role as a launchpad for emerging talent.
Alongside showcasing hundreds of grassroots acts every year, the festival runs mentoring opportunities for new promoters and supports developing artists, helping strengthen the foundations of the city’s independent music ecosystem.
Promoter and Cultural Vibrations founder Rasterella credited the festival with helping shape Nottingham’s modern cultural landscape.
“Twenty years of Hockley Hustle is twenty years of backing Nottingham’s creativity, community and charitable spirit,” they said.
“The impact can be felt right across the city in the vibrant and welcoming cultural scene it has helped build.”
The celebrations won’t be limited to festival day itself. A special warm-up show featuring legendary reggae outfit Channel One Sound System will take place on October 24, while Broadway Cinema will host an exhibition charting the festival’s journey from its DIY beginnings through to its status as one of Nottingham’s defining cultural events.
With tickets starting at just £15, the message from organisers remains much the same as it was in 2006: support local music, support local charities and throw one hell of a party in the process.
