2026 in British music

See also: Timeline of musical events

This is a dynamic list and may never be able to satisfy particular standards for completeness. You can help by editing the page to add missing items, with references to reliable sources.

This is a summary of the year 2026 in British music.

Events

January

• 1 January – Radio X listeners have voted the Wolf Alice single "The Sofa" as their Record of the Year for 2025 in the station's annual poll of music for the year.
• 7 January
  • Aurora Orchestra announces that John Harte is to stand down as its chief executive in July 2026.
  • The London Symphony Orchestra announces the appointment of John Harte as its next managing director, effective in August 2026.
• 9 January – Skye Newman is named as the BBC Sound of 2026.
• 12 January – The Orchestra of the Swan announces the appointment of Zoë Curnow as its next executive director, effective 1 April 2026.
• 19 January – Scottish singer-songwriter Jacob Alon is named as the winner of the 2026 Brits Critics' Choice Award.
• 23 January – Robbie Williams' latest album, Britpop, reaches number one in the UK Albums Chart, giving him his 16th number one and surpassing a record previously held by The Beatles.

February

• 13 February – It is announced that the 2026 Eurovision Song Contest live tour, scheduled to begin in London on 15 June, has been postponed due to unforeseen circumstances.
• 16 February – Organisers of the 2026 Meltdown Festival announce that the event will be curated by Harry Styles.
• 17 February – The electronic music and YouTube content creator Look Mum No Computer is chosen to represent the United Kingdom at the 2026 Eurovision Song Contest.
• 20 February –
  • Sam Fender and Olivia Dean make UK chart history after their track "Rein Me In" reaches number one after 35 weeks on the chart.
  • The winners of the 2026 Radio 1 Dance Awards are announced.
• 25 February –
  • Phil Collins and Oasis are among artists to be nominated to the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame.
  • Cruz Beckham, the youngest son of David and Victoria, embarks on his first headline tour with his rock band, Cruz Beckham and the Breakers at a venue in Birmingham.
• 28 February – The 2026 Brit Awards are held at the Co-op Live arena in Manchester, the first time in the ceremony's history that it has been held outside London. The event includes the presentation of a Lifetime Achievement Award for the late Ozzy Osbourne to his wife, Sharon.

March

• 3 March – Award winning rapper Ghetts is sentenced to 12 years in prison for killing a student in a hit-and-run in north east London.
• 13–15 March – The 2026 C2C: Country to Country festival is scheduled to take place at The O2 Arena in London, OVO Hydro in Glasgow, and SSE Arena in Belfast, headlined by Zach Top, Keith Urban, and Brooks & Dunn.

April

• 16 April – The 2026 Jazz FM Awards will take place at Koko in London.
• 25 April – BBC Radio 1Xtra stages its first club night with the 1Xtra Takeover at EartH Hall in Hackney.

June

• 12 June – Harry Styles is scheduled to play the first of 12 dates at Wembley Stadium as part of his Together, Together tour, and will set a new record for the number of concerts played at the venue when he completes the Wembley leg of his tour on 4 July.
• 19 June – Richard Ashcroft is scheduled to headline the opening night of the 2026 TRNSMT festival in Glasgow, with his set scheduled to finish early so that concertgoers can see Scotland's 2026 FIFA World Cup match against Morocco at 11pm.
• 27 June–1 July – A new music festival, the Blenheim Palace Festival, is scheduled to be held in Oxfordshire.

July

• 23–26 July – The WOMAD Festival returns after a year's hiatus with the festival now based at Neston Park Estate near Corsham, Wiltshire.

August

• 1–8 August – The National Eisteddfod of Wales will be held in Llantwd, Pembrokeshire.
• 12–16 August – The 2026 Boomtown Festival is scheduled to take place in Hampshire. Acts include Kneecap, Madness, Scissor Sisters, Faithless, Vengaboys and Groove Armada.

September

• 7–9 September – Radio 2 in the Park is scheduled to take place at City Park in Stirling.

Charts and sales

Number-one singles

The singles chart includes a proportion for streaming.

Chart date (week ending)	Song	Artist(s)	Chart sales	References
1 January	"Last Christmas"	Wham!	92,580
8 January	"Where Is My Husband!"	Raye	43,910
15 January	"End of Beginning"	Djo	47,898
22 January			53,743
29 January	"Raindance"	Dave and Tems	50,474
5 February	"Aperture"	Harry Styles	70,498
12 February	"Raindance"	Dave and Tems	43,829
19 February	"Opalite"	Taylor Swift	47,509
26 February	"Rein Me In"	Sam Fender and Olivia Dean	43,425
5 March			46,272
12 March

Number-one albums

The albums chart includes a proportion for streaming.

Chart date (week ending)	Album	Artist(s)	Chart sales	References
1 January	Christmas	Michael Bublé	20,818
8 January	The Art of Loving	Olivia Dean	16,903
15 January			17,141
22 January			16,836
29 January	Britpop	Robbie Williams	34,157
5 February	How Did I Get Here?	Louis Tomlinson	28,416
12 February	The Art of Loving	Olivia Dean	18,557
19 February			18,490
26 February	Wuthering Heights	Charli XCX	21,071
5 March	Prizefighter	Mumford & Sons	35,505
12 March	The Mountain	Gorillaz

Number-one compilation albums

The compilation albums chart includes a proportion for streaming.

Chart date (week ending)	Album	Chart sales	References
1 January	KPop Demon Hunters	10,673
8 January		11,111
15 January		9,229
22 January		8,993
29 January		8,620
5 February		8,224
12 February		7,966
19 February		7,608
26 February		7,926
5 March		7,007
12 March

Deaths

• 2 January – Tony Carr, 98, Maltese session drummer and percussionist (CCS, Hot Chocolate).
• 5 January
  • Andrew Bodnar, 71, English bass guitarist (The Rumour) and songwriter ("I Love the Sound of Breaking Glass"). (death announced on this date)
  • Andrew Carter, 86, classical choral composer and pedagogue
• 11 January
  • Sheila Bernette, 94, English singer (The Good Old Days, The Black and White Minstrel Show) and actress (The Magnificent Seven Deadly Sins).
  • Andrew Clements, 75, classical music critic
  • Matt Kwasniewski-Kelvin, 26, British guitarist (Black Midi). (death announced on this date)
  • John Wallace, 76, Scottish trumpeter, composer and arts educator.
• 15 January – Kenny Morris, 68, English drummer (Siouxsie and the Banshees). (death announced on this date)
• 26 January – Danny Coughlan, British singer and guitarist.
• 10 February –
  • Des de Moor, 64, English writer and musician. (death announced on this date)
  • Andrew Ranken, 72, English drummer (The Pogues).
• 21 February – John Bertalot, 94, English organist.
• 2 March –
  • Len Garry, 84, English musician (The Quarrymen), pneumonia.
  • Mike Vernon, 81, English record producer ("Albatross", "Hocus Pocus"), music executive and recording studio owner (Chipping Norton Recording Studios).

See also

• 2026 in British radio
• 2026 in British television
• 2026 in the United Kingdom
• List of British films of 2026