Bigger Than Ever Before – This Year’s We Invented the Weekend Festival Delights Visitors of All Ages

Record audience numbers with 117K visitors attending in 2026

We Invented the Weekend now the biggest free festival in Greater Manchester

“An amazing cross-generational event”

Although it took place just over a month ago, the positive impact of this year’s We Invented the Weekend festival is still being felt. Saturday 6 and Sunday 7 June saw Salford Quays and MediaCity, host one of the UK’s most ambitious, creative, original and fun-filled festivals celebrating the weekend – in the place it was born.

Festival partners included the BBC, MediaCity, Lowry, Salford City Council, University of Salford, Sports England, English National Opera, Walk the Plank, Play England, RHS Bridgewater, Quayside, Imperial War Museum North, British Cycling, Salford Community Leisure, CBeebies, Sounds from the Other City and many more. Over 117,000 visitors of all ages came to take part and celebrate the amazing variety of ways in which we love to spend our free time.

All activities were free and included an eclectic mix of live music, action-packed sports, family fun, theatre, DJ sets, exclusive tours, party boats, art and creative workshops, gardening and making, thought-provoking talks, street food, wellbeing sessions and much, much more. With exclusive backstage and gallery tours, Salford’s Lowry was at the heart of the festival action. Visitors enjoyed a vibrant programme of family-fun; bringing the excitement of CBeebies to life, with loveable pup Bluey and laugh-a-minute storytelling. Outside in the Plaza, crowds were captivated by the spectacular aerial circus show – Pirates of the Carabina – Pirate Taxi and musical performances as part of the (North) West End Live showcase.

Another highlight was Perfect Pitch – co-created by English National Opera and Walk the Plank. Bringing together 437 singers including community choirs, football fans and ENO artists along with Bury FC Women’s team, the spectacular performance included a penalty shoot out set to rousing opera favourites including Puccini’s ‘Nessun Dorma’, famously associated with the 1990 World Cup.

Brand new for this year was Club Culture dedicated to electronic dance music, past and present. Crowds danced to wide-ranging sounds from local DJ’s and collectives including Living Room Dance Club, Semi Peppered and Aficionado. We Invented the Weekend featured every kind of music from musical theatre to Northern Soul, to DJs from BBC’s Radio 6 Music, Sing-a-long-choirs to Acid Brass Bands and tunes for baby ravers and a Sounds from the Other City takeover on the Sunday.

Visitors of all ages shared their appreciation for the free festival, with many emphasising the sense of community and variety of activities on offer:

“Recommend it to absolutely everyone”

“What I particularly enjoyed this year was the demographic of people taking part. From little ones and teenagers to mums, dads, and pensioners, it felt incredibly inclusive and welcoming.”

“It’s amazing to see how many people are here”

“An amazing cross-generational event”

“Loved the mix of types of people, there are probably lots of people that maybe wouldn’t engage with cultural activity otherwise because it’s free and easy to access.”

With over 117,000 visitors in 2026, We Invented the Weekend is now one of the largest free festivals in the North of England and the largest free festival in Greater Manchester.

Some famous faces at the festival included Salford legend, Peter Hook who chatted with BBC Presenter Mark Radcliffe as part of the talks programme. TV names included BBC’s Great British Sewing Bee’s, Patrick Grant, actress Julie Hesmondhalgh, Judge of Channel 4’s The Great Pottery Thrown Down Keith Brymer-Jones and many others.

Sports took centre stage at the festival with breathtaking displays of BMX free-styling and workshops with British Cycling, running clubs, a climbing wall, guided bike rides, British Taekwondo demos, Boxing, RnB Yoga and much more. Football activities were delivered by ManUFoundation Street Reds and the National Football Museum. And in the waters of Dock 9, U-Swim gave festival-goers the chance to take part in open water swimming taster sessions.

A Uniquely Salford Celebration

We Invented the Weekend embraced all that is happening across Salford this year, especially as we mark the centenary celebrations. Many festival-goers were also amazed to discover Salford’s connection to the origin of the weekend. In 1843, the modern weekend was invented in Greater Manchester when Salford Lyceum Director and workers’ rights activist Robert Lowes (Sir Ian McKellen’s Great Grandfather) campaigned to win mill workers the right to leisure time on Saturday afternoons. In this triumph, Greater Manchester gave an enormous gift to the world, and We Invented the Weekend honours this, celebrating leisure time, free time, quality time and me-time.

We Invented The Weekend will return in summer 2027 – dates will be announced soon.

See photo highlights here.

Watch the highlights film on YouTube.