The British Country Music Festival has unveiled its 2026 programme, confirming a strong homegrown presence at the top of the bill. Now in its seventh year, the Blackpool based event continues its mission to champion UK country and Americana talent, with two of the three headliners coming from British soil.
The festival returns to the Winter Gardens from 4 to 6 September, transforming the historic indoor venue into a multi stage celebration of songwriting and live performance. With more than one hundred artists appearing across five stages, the event has built a reputation for platforming both established names and emerging voices from all four nations.
Cammy Barnes Takes the Main Headline Slot
Leading the lineup is Scotland’s Cammy Barnes (main photo), who takes the main headline slot on Saturday night. His rise has been rapid. More than one hundred million combined views and streams, two Barrowland Ballroom shows that sold out within minutes, and an Ireland tour heading the same way. His breakout single Whiskey Roll became a UK Top 40 hit and reached the Top 10 in both the Official Singles Sales Chart and the Official Singles Downloads Chart. In the space of a year he has amassed a social following of more than 1.2 million.
Barnes draws heavily on his Scottish roots, blending contemporary country with traditional instrumentation, including the bagpipes that have become a signature part of his sound. Splitting his time between Scotland and Nashville, he has carved out a distinctive lane that festival organisers believe will resonate strongly with Blackpool audiences.
Elles Bailey Returns as Friday Night Headliner
Friday night sees Bristol born Americana blues artist Elles Bailey headline the Empress Ballroom. Bailey first appeared at the festival in 2021 as a support act, but returns in 2026 as one of the UK’s most decorated roots performers. She was named Live Act of the Year at the UK Americana Awards 2024 and Vocalist of the Year at the UK Blues Awards. Her recent single Growing Roots was the most played track on BBC Radio 2 for the first three weeks of the year.
SmithField Close the Weekend
Closing the weekend on Sunday afternoon are Nashville based duo SmithField. Originally from Texas, the pair have built a loyal following with their harmony driven, contemporary country sound. Their catalogue has generated more than 150 million streams and they have appeared at the Grand Ole Opry multiple times, as well as supporting major US artists including Morgan Wallen and Kane Brown.
Festival Organisers Call for Greater Recognition of UK Country Artists
Festival promoter Martin Blore of Fit The Bill says the event remains committed to giving UK artists equal footing with their international peers.
“We have always championed UK artists. Whilst the UK continues to lead the way in almost every other genre of music, our homegrown talent is getting overlooked and pushed down many festival bills, often because the streaming numbers can rarely compete with US artists,” he said.
“We should celebrate the talent and the contribution made by the UK to the history of the genre. British and Celtic settlers travelled across the ocean to the Appalachian Mountains and shared their fiddle playing, their stories, ballads and dance reels. This was enhanced with African American music and instruments and out of that country music emerged. It was created by our joint nations and we should be celebrating our contribution to the fastest growing music genre.”
Blore added that UK artists have now developed their own lyrical identity, rooted in local culture rather than American tropes. “They write about pubs and the countryside, not saloons and cowboys. We need to keep providing an equal platform for them alongside talent from across the globe.”
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Line up in Detail
Canada Takes the Lead Among International Guests
International representation this year is led by Canada, which now shares the same country music market share of on demand streaming as the USA at 8.5 percent. Multi award winning songwriter Lennie Gallant, rising artist Jessica Sevier and Ontario’s Ryan Langdon all join the main stage lineup. New York based Annie Keating also appears, while the remainder of the programme is made up of UK acts.
The festival also expands its immersive offering for 2026, introducing dance classes led by professional instructor Emma Gill and a poetry workshop and performance hosted by Festival as Form.
The complete 2026 programme is available on The British Country Music Festival website and here on Countrymusic.co.uk
