End of the Road Festival is an annual music festival in England which focuses on independent rock and folk music. It is hosted at the Larmer Tree Gardens, on the border of north Dorset and Wiltshire, and usually takes place over the last weekend of August or the first full weekend in September. The first festival took place in 2006, and after selling out for the first time in 2008, it has sold out in advance every year since.
Origin
The festival was started by Simon Taffe, who continues to run it , and his friend Sofia Hagberg, who retired in 2015. Taffe, who ran a building and decorating business before starting the festival, described its origins in an article in 2024. Planning started in 2004; Taffe mortgaged his house and borrowed widely to raise funds for the festival, which then lost money for the first three years.
Description The festival has six stages: the Woods Stage, the Garden Stage, the Big Top Stage, the Folly, The Boat and the Talking Heads, as well as a clearing in the woods around the Garden Stage containing a piano at which semi-secret sets take place. There are also children's areas and workshops, a healing field, a film tent, comedy, a library in the forest and a games area (ping pong, table football etc.). Late night entertainment usually includes high-profile DJ sets, a silent disco, unpublicised pop-up performances and karaoke. Due to the nature of the gardens the festival is set in, it is not unusual to see peacocks wandering around the area.
The festival has a capacity of 15,000 (2014). The site opens for camping on Thursday afternoon and the entertainment runs from Thursday evening to Sunday inclusive.
In 2011, the festival won an award for 'Best Small Festival' at the UK Festival Awards. In 2012 claims were made that the festival was secretly organised by Scientology. The festival stated that it had no formal link with Scientology, although two directors were Scientologists. In 2016, 2017 and 2019, the festival won an award for 'Best Small Festival' at the NME Awards.
The 2020 festival was cancelled as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic. The festival returned in 2021 with some of the same artists including King Krule, Little Simz, The Comet Is Coming, Squid, Dry Cleaning and Richard Dawson.
End of the Road 2026 will take place between 3 and 6 September.
Line-ups
2025 festival End of the Road 2025 ran from 28 to 31 August. Woods Stage Thursday Friday Saturday Sunday Sharon Van Etten & the Attachment Theory Caribou Self Esteem Father John Misty Youth Lagoon Goat Mount Kimbie Squid Westside Cowboy Bombino Sofia Kourtesis Tropical Fuck Storm Daraa Tribes The Bug Club Jim Ghedi Sylvie Kreusch Rosali The Golden Dregs Ryan Davis & the Roadhouse Band Good Looks The New Eves Floodlights
Garden Stage Thursday Friday Saturday Sunday Matt Berninger Viagra Boys Black Country, New Road Lisa O’Neill Geordie Greep Sorry Broadside Hacks Presents: A Celebration of the Incredible String Band Emma-Jean Thackray Katy J Pearson The Orchestra (For Now) Personal Trainer Vieux Farka Touré Wild Pink Tyler Ballgame Tucker Zimmerman Daisy Rickman Jerron Paxton Jake Xerxes Fussell Hayden Pedigo Muireann Bradley Shovel Dance Collective
Big Top Thursday Friday Saturday Sunday Erol Alkan (DJ) DIIV John Maus Joy Orbison Throwing Muses For Those I Love These New Puritans Moin Blawan (Live) Ela Minus Moonchild Sanelly Mabe Fratti Dame Area Ex-Easter Island Head Miso Extra C.O.F.F.I.N Mary in the Junkyard Bambara Man / Woman / Chainsaw TVOD Cryogeyser Cubzoa Search Results Rob Auton & JFabraham Present Words with Music
The Folly Thursday Friday Saturday Sunday Getdown Services Chastity Belt BDRMM Fabiana Palladino Anna Erhard Florist Ducks Ltd. Sofie Royer Rogê Warhaus Jasmine 4.T Trace Mountains La Sécurité Horse Jumper of Love Greg Freeman Anika Shortstraw. C Turtle Titanic Adult DVD Silver Gore Scott Lavene Dutch Interior Dove Ellis Lily Seabird Slow Fiction Ellie O’Neill The Sophs Uwade
The Boat Thursday Friday Saturday Sunday Tom Ravenscroft (DJ) Takuya Nakamura Astrid Sonne Mandy, Indiana TAAHLIAH (Live) Aunty Rayzor Jackie-O Motherfucker Kassie Krut Aili Six Organs of Admittance Black Fondu Glasshouse Red Spider Mite Smote RIP Magic Eva May Gal Go Dactyl Terra Rubie Talking Heads Thursday Friday Saturday Sunday Sabine McCalla Merce Lemon Ned Collette Mohammad Syfkhan Jennifer Castle Christopher Owens Bridget Hayden and The Apparitions Miriam Elhaji Yoshika Colwell
2024 festival
The 2024 festival ran from 29 August to 1 September.
Woods Stage Thursday Friday Saturday Sunday Bonnie "Prince" Billy IDLES Slowdive Yo La Tengo Richard Dawson Sleater-Kinney Jockstrap Altin Gün Laetitia Sadier Source Ensemble CMAT The Lemon Tiwgs Nation of Language Nusantara Beat Curtis Harding Jalen Ngonda MRCY Gently Tender Julianna Riolino Holiday Ghosts Brown Horse Girl And Girl
Garden Stage Thursday Friday Saturday Sunday Lankum Richard Hawley Floating Points Mdou Moctar Phosphorescent Ty Segall (Solo Acoustic) Gruff Rhys Camera Obscura Joanna Sternberg Bill Ryder-Jones Lisa O'Neill Ichiko Aoba Mary Lattimore SANAM Florence Adooni Sahra Halgan Cat Clyde Bonny Doon Kassi Valazza Julia Jacklin Molly Lewis
Big Top Thursday Friday Saturday Sunday Yu-Su (DJ) John Talabot (DJ) Cornelius Baxter Dury CASISDEAD English Teacher Sprints Billy Woods Water From Your Eyes Paranoid London Sam Morton Slift Militarie Gun Master Peace Thus Love Hotwax Lip Critic Upchuck Sextile Powerplant Malice K King Hannah The None The Orchestra (For Now) Senyawa Rob Auton & JFAbraham present Words With Music
The Folly Thursday Friday Saturday Sunday NewDad Heartworms Big Special Lambrini Girls MSPAINT Durry Flamingods Snõõper Gustaf Gurriers Mozart Estate The Tubs Plantoid House of All The Itch Ugly SOMOH RVG Odie Leigh Tiberius b Wine Lips Palehound Maple Glider Mui Zyu Freak Slug Deary Hello Mary Jellyskin Sarah Meth The Shits Cerys Hafana Fruit Tones
The Boat Thursday Friday Saturday Sunday ML Buch Tom Ravenscroft (DJ) MC Yallah & Debmaster Chanel Beads Still House Plants Tara Clerkin Trio Colossal Squid Nourished by Time H31R Blue Lake Mark William Lewis EBBB Joe Gideon Debby Friday OTGEx-Easter Island HeadElsy WameyoNiCky
Talking Heads Thursday Friday Saturday Sunday Clarissa Connelly Sam Amidon Dawn Landes performs the Liberated Woman's Songbook Jess Williamson Jeffrey Martin Me Lost Me Mary Elizabeth Remington Anastasia Coope
2023 festival End of the Road returned to Larmer Tree Gardens in 2023, from 31 August to 3 September. Woods Stage Thursday Friday Saturday Sunday Wilco Unknown Mortal Orchestra Future Islands King Gizzard & The Lizard Wizard Deerhoof Greentea Peng Wet Leg Fatoumata Diawara The Last Dinner Party KOKOKO! KOKOROKO Lee Fields King Tuff Oracle Sisters Charley Crockett Say She She CVC TEKE::TEKE Royel Otis Personal Trainer Divorce
Garden Stage Thursday Friday Saturday Sunday Angel Olsen Arooj Aftab Ezra Furman Cass McCombs Crack Cloud Allah-Las The Mary Wallopers Samia Caitlin Rose Daniel Norgren Caroline Alogte Oho and His Sounds of Joy Horse Lords Avalanche Kaito Joan Shelley Charlotte Cornfield John Francis Flynn Sweet Baboo Friendship Mabe Fratti Floodlights
Big Top Thursday Friday Saturday Sunday Marie Davidson (DJ) Elkka(DJ) The Murder Capital Panda Bear & Sonic Boom Overmono Biig Piig Yeule Charlotte Adigéry & Bolis Popul Bar Italia Flohio The Anchoress The Murlocs Ela Minus PVA Divide And Dissolve Okay Kaya Moin Geese Adwaith Big|Brave MADMADMAD Fat Dog They Hate Change Enys Men with Live Score by the Cornish Sound Unit Deliluh Saint Jude
The Folly Thursday Friday Saturday Sunday HMLTD Yunè Pinku High Vis Infinity Knives & Brian Ennals Heartworms Part Chimp Lime Garden Yot Club Louis Culture Wunderhorse Runnner Gretel Hänlyn Beige Banquet Ulrika Spacek Marina Allen Panic Shack Meadow Meadow The Prize Mary in The Junkyard Laundromat Katy Kirby Tapir! Master Peace Sylvie MF Tomlinson Indigo Sparke Laura Jean October Baby Gena Rose Bruce Blue Bendy Scott Lavene Jessica's BrotherUrsa Major Moving Group
The Boat Thursday Friday Saturday Sunday Tom Ravenscroft (DJ) Dungen MC Yallah & Debmaster Bodega 75 Dollar Bill System Exclusive Macie Stewart The Courettes University Oren Ambarchi 7ebra Julia Reidy Joyful Talk Donna Thompson Whitney KJon MckielThree SpoonsSculpture
Talking Heads Thursday Friday Saturday Sunday Nina Nastasia H. Hawkline Héloïse Werner Sessa Simon Joyner Sam Burton Angeline Morrison Cinder Well Kara Jackson
2022 festival End of the Road returned to Larmer Tree Gardens in 2022, from 1 to 4 September.
Woods Stage Thursday Friday Saturday Sunday Khruangbin Fleet Foxes Pixies Bright Eyes Sudan Archives Tinariwen Perfume Genius Kurt Vile & The Violators K.O.G. Durand Jones & The Indications Los Bitchos Hurray for The Riff Raff Steam Down Starcrawler BCUC English Teacher The Umlauts Ural Thomas & The Pain Shovel Dance Collective The Heavy Heavy The Bug Club
Garden Stage Thursday Friday Saturday Sunday Black Midi The Magnetic Fields Aldous Harding Porridge Radio Kevin Morby Lucy Dacus Nilüfer Yanya The Weather Station Hailu Mergia Anaïs Mitchell Emma-Jean Thackray Ryley Walker The Golden Dregs Alabaster DePlume Cassandra Jenkins Naima Bock Margo Cilker Jake Xerxes Fussell Rosali Yasmin Williams Katherine Priddy
Big Top Thursday Friday Saturday Sunday Laurel Halo (DJ) I.JORDAN (DJ) Yard Act Battles Ross From Friends (Live) Scalping Soccer Mommy Moor Mother Purling Hiss DEHD Priya Ragu Willie J Healey WU-LU NewDad The Lounge Society Circuit Dex Yeux Grove Lee Patterson Mandy, Indiana Modern Woman Deathcrash KEG Warrington-Runcorn New Town Development Plan Stephen Durkan & The Acid Commune Automotion Sniffany & The Nits
The Tipi Thursday Friday Saturday Sunday Pigs Pigs Pigs Pigs Pigs Pigs Pigs Audiobooks Xenia Rubinos Ahmen Fakroun Apollo Ghosts Fruit Bats Mike Polizze Cola Vogues Bingo Fury Lynks Sinead O'Brien Joe & The Shitboys Skullcrusher TV Priest Grace Cummings Mess Esque Coco The Chisel M(H)AOL Lutalo Jana Horn Highschool Nukuluk Cobalt Chapel Keyah/Blu Jealous of The Birds Joanna Sternberg Lichen Tiny Leaves
The Boat Thursday Friday Saturday Sunday Snapped Ankles Tom Ravenscroft (DJ) James Holden & Wacław Zimpel Lunge Jockstrap Bad with Phones Fat Dog Taraka O. Party Dozen Bar Italia Robert Stillman Aga Ujma John Francis Flynn Duncan MarquissLara Jones
Talking Heads Thursday Friday Saturday Sunday James Yorkston Gwennifer Raymond Marlaena Moore Christian Lee Hutson Darren Hanlon Karima Walker Uwade Sophie Jamieson Lael Neale
2021 festival The 2021 festival took place from 2 September to 5 September. The line-up was as follows:
Woods Stage Thursday Friday Saturday Sunday Stereolab Hot Chip Sleaford Mods King Krule Kikagaku Moyo Damon Albarn The Comet Is Coming Little Simz Blood Wizard Teleman Field Music Black Country, New Road Balimaya Project Hen Ogledd Girl Ray Katy J Pearson Modern Nature Billy Nomates Pozi Junior Brother
Garden Stage Thursday Friday Saturday Sunday John Grant Jonny Greenwood Richard Dawson Arlo Parks Anna Meredith Arab Strap BDRMM Squid Crack Cloud CMAT Jane Weaver Shirley Collins Modern Woman Anteloper Jim Ghedi Aoife Nessa Frances H. Hawkline Charlie Cunningham Jonny Dillon The Golden Dregs Anna B Savage
Big Top Thursday Friday Saturday Sunday Warmduscher Auntie Flo Girl Band Trash Kit Romare Dry Cleaning Lorraine James Sipho Porridge Radio Vanishing Twin Chubby and the Gang WH Lung Just Mustard All We Are PVA Lonelady Penelope Isles William Doyle Goa Express Lee Patterson John Gwenno & Angharad Davies The Umlauts Oldboy Kiran Leonard
The Tipi