NEW MAJOR MUSIC FESTIVAL TO LAUNCH AT BLENHEIM PALACE IN 2026
Cuffe & Taylor and IMG Arts & Entertainment Announce Landmark Cultural Event Set at Iconic UNESCO World Heritage Site.
Image credit: Live Nation
A new five-day music and arts festival is set to launch in summer 2026 at Blenheim Palace, one of the UK’s most celebrated historic estates. The event is a major new collaboration between leading live music promoters Cuffe & Taylor, a Live Nation company, and event producers IMG Arts & Entertainment.
Set against the spectacular backdrop of the UNESCO World Heritage Site, Blenheim Palace Festival will feature an eclectic lineup of global superstars, award-winning artists, and emerging talent. The festival will also showcase immersive cultural programming and innovative culinary experiences, creating a unique destination event rooted in creativity, heritage, and community.
“This is an extraordinary moment for live events in the UK,” said Peter Taylor of Cuffe & Taylor. “Blenheim Palace is one of the most extraordinary locations in the country. To launch a major new festival here is incredibly exciting. We’re building an experience that will bring together music lovers, families, and cultural adventurers from across the country and beyond.”
With a legacy of promoting more than 150 outdoor shows each summer and over 1,000 nights of theatre annually, Cuffe & Taylor are known for transforming iconic locations into unforgettable live experiences.
IMG Arts & Entertainment brings its global expertise in event production to the collaboration.
Stephen Flint Wood, EVP & Managing Director, IMG Arts & Entertainment, said: "We are proud to be selected, alongside our partners Cuffe & Taylor, to produce the next evolution of live events at Blenheim Palace. We are excited to combine our experience creating world-class events with this iconic heritage site setting to deliver an exceptional festival that blends tradition, entertainment and unforgettable moments."
“This event marks a new chapter for Blenheim Palace,” said Dominic Harris, CEO of Blenheim. “Following a tender process to select a partner for the next five years we are pleased to now be working with Cuffe & Taylor (part of Live Nation) and IMG Arts & Entertainment, a unique collaboration by two world-renowned event producers. Our historic landscape will offer a spectacular backdrop for a new kind of festival – one that’s rooted in tradition but designed for the future. Blenheim has been synonymous with hosting live music events for over 20 years and we hope that the new collaboration will continue that tradition. We thank our outgoing promoter and their team who have successfully staged Nocturne for the past ten years. We are already discussing some very exciting artists to come to the venue in 2026 and announcements will follow later this year.”
CUFFE & TAYLOR
Cuffe & Taylor is one of the UK’s top live music, theatre and event promoters. Established for more than 10 years and part of the Live Nation family, they present breath-taking tours, festivals and shows across the UK filling football stadiums, arenas, theatres and major historical sites.
Cuffe & Taylor’s roster of artists is extensive and varied including Diana Ross, Lionel Richie, Britney Spears, Rod Stewart, Christina Aguilera, Mariah Carey, Lewis Capaldi, Sir Tom Jones, Bryan Adams, Kylie, Noel Gallagher’s High Flying Birds, Stereophonics, George Ezra, The Strokes, Sam Fender and Def Leppard. In 2023 they were recipients of an Olivier Award for their part in promoting and producing the hugely successful Hey Duggee The Live Theatre Show tour.
IMG ARTS & ENTERTAINMENT
IMG Arts & Entertainment is an event producer for globally renowned cultural events and attractions in the UK and around the world, including Hyde Park Winter Wonderland, Hampton Court Palace Festival, Taste Festivals, Big Feastival, Lift 109 at Battersea Power Station, Vivid Food at Vivid Sydney, and Dolce&Gabbana: From the Heart to the Hands.
BLENHEIM PALACE
Home to the Dukes of Marlborough since 1705, Blenheim Palace was designated a UNESCO World Heritage Site in 1987. Set in over 2,000 acres of ‘Capability’ Brown landscaped parkland and designed by Vanbrugh in the Baroque style, Blenheim Palace is also the birthplace of one of Britain’s most famous leaders, Sir Winston Churchill.
With over 300 years of history to share and one of the most important and extensive collections in Europe, the magnificent stately home has a rich variety of cultural highlights and an extensive programme of special events and exhibitions.
The total Estate expands into a further 10,000 acres outside of the designated UNESCO World Heritage Site and focuses on care for the land through sustainable means, pursuing net zero, the growth of the local economy, the provision of affordable homes, apprenticeship training and supported community groups as part of its ambition to make this part of Oxfordshire a fairer and better place.