Like buses, you wait ages for The Mercury Prize to stop off in Newcastle and then two major celebrations of the best in British music come along at once. Hot on the heels of 2025’s Sam Fender-fuelled night of wild celebration, the 2026 awards show is back at the Utilita Arena on October 22. And with Geordie jazz band Knats flying the flag for the region this time around could the back-to-back party be even bigger?
That’s certainly the plan. But anyone thinking it’s for one night only doesn’t know Newcastle. In fact, This City Sings — the umbrella for an eight day celebration of the Toon’s music and culture — could, whisper it quietly, put the main event in the shade. This year’s Mercury Prize Fringe is on fire!
By the time Knats, JADE, Paul McCartney, Olivia Dean, Florence + The Machine et al descend on Tyneside, the people of the North East will have been treated to a wealth of diverse talent, unique industry insights, must-attend masterclasses and carefully curated creative experiences across Newcastle’s best-loved venues and spaces.
The only downside? Packing in all of the highlights and keeping pace with the music industry’s key movers and shakers.
“The awards night is really important but the Fringe is what keeps the city alive,” insists Adam MacDonald, programme manager at Generator. In tandem with the BPI and Newcastle City Council, the North East’s leading development agency has powered and designed a programme primed to showcase a music city in the ascendancy.
“The Mercury Prize awards is one night but I think the real legacy comes from doing a week-long celebration of music — shining a light on the promoters, the venues, the studios and the music hubs which look after the young children who want to pursue music.
“It’s the people who look after and build infrastructure in music, who are the people that need celebrating. That’s been at the forefront of what we’ve been thinking about from day one as we set about making this year’s Fringe happen.
“How do we celebrate music and culture — and show where music and culture is heading next — but not do that exclusively through an artist performing? The Mercury Prize Fringe is about showcasing the team around the artist and how that can be built collaboratively and with the help of a supportive and aspirational community.”
Navigating the New Era of Music Management (Live Theatre, October 19), The Art Behind the Song (Tyneside Cinema, October 16) and Generator Live (The Crowne Plaza, October 21) are just three of the myriad highlights that reinforce Adam’s vision for a fully inclusive Fringe. It’s not all about the music — it’s about the network around that music and the locally-based pool of expertise that has the potential to propel Newcastle’s best talent forward.
“Fostering that sense of community and working together is what will shine through during the Fringe,” adds Ant Thompson, the North East-based promoter and director of Notion Live Events. “We were involved last year and it’s fantastic to be working with Generator again to create an even better experience.
“This year we’re incredibly excited to be organising the Mini Mercurys. We’ll be taking a cohort of young musicians through a four-session project which culminates in a show as part of the Fringe.
“We’re going to teach them: the inner workings of the live industry; how deals work; how to market a show; how to go on sale with a show; and the ticketing. The students will take that learning through the whole process and deliver their own project with a final performance at The Grove.”
But will there be interest in the bigger picture from beyond the region?
“That’s the idea,” adds Ant. “Sure, the music industry historically lives in Manchester and London. For one day they’re all going to be turning their attention to Newcastle for the Mercury Music Prize. If we can persuade more of those people to focus on our city for a full week, then that’s going to create a lasting impact. And this year’s Fringe is clearly worthy of wider attention.”
The 2026 event comes as Newcastle City Council embarks on an ambitious 10-year programme to develop and grow its cultural events offer, strengthening the city’s reputation as a major destination for culture, creativity and live events.
And if the eyes of the music world will be on multi-million selling artists and record-breaking hall-of-famers come October 22 then, as Ant suggests, those passionate about songwriting and its unique craft would be foolish to ignore the Fringe. This year’s Grainger Market Unplugged — supported by Creative Central NCL — could be the perfect place to chance upon a star of the future.
Taking place in Newcastle’s historic and newly refurbished indoor market, an acoustic platform for many of the North East’s most exciting emerging artists further widens the scope of the inclusive Fringe. No tickets are required but passionate Geordie support — loud and proud — is demanded!
“Creative Central NCL are programming this gig on behalf of us in the Grainger Market,” explains Adam. “It’s the perfect opportunity to position the Mercury Awards and the Fringe right in the heart of the city. Anyone can pop along on October 17 from 11am-5pm and I’m hoping it will inspire the people of Newcastle to explore more of what we have to offer.
“I like to imagine a young child walking through the Grainger Market, stepping into the lovely foyer area, where the stage will be, and hearing a beautiful voice, a guitar or some keys. Imagine if that experience sparked something inside them that made them think ‘that’s what I want to do and that’s who I want to be’. Throughout the day there will be those moments of inspiration and it’s a wonderful platform for some of our best emerging artists to play in front of a whole new audience.”
Talking of the North East’s best emerging artists and one of the undoubted stars of this year’s Fringe will be Robyn Banks. The Gateshead singer songwriter is back where she belongs, following a stint in Leeds, and earlier this month she wowed the Hippodrome crowd as part of Darlington’s Last Train Home Festival.
So where does Banks fit in with the Fringe? Right alongside Tom A. Smith and Ellur is where — at The Glasshouse International Centre for Music, as part of BBC Introducing’s October 19 offering.
“Last year maybe some of us North East artists didn’t really capitalise on the Mercurys as much as we could have done,” muses Robyn. “This time we’re way more savvy. We’re looking at all the different events and we’re going to be everywhere! We’d hoped last year would be the catalyst for some humungous shift in attitude and opportunities but it didn’t quite happen. This year — as a community — we’re going to make it happen.
“The grassroots music scene is built off community but it’s still so hard to break through. The way that community thrives is simply from everyone supporting each other, building a core audience, speaking to fans after gigs and connecting with other bands. It’s very much like ‘I scratch your back, you scratch mine’.
“It’s an incredibly supportive environment but it isn’t enough. It’s not the same for artists in the North East as it is in Manchester, or even Leeds. People in the music industry don’t really come up here. It seems like my mates in London — every gig they go to there’s someone important in the room. So if The Mercury Prize is an opportunity to get those same people ‘in the room’ — even once a year — then we have to make the most of it.”
For information on This City Sings — the 2026 Mercury Prize Fringe, which runs from October 15-22 — visit the website.
Tickets for the 2026 Mercury Prize main event on October 22 at Newcastle’s Utilita Arena are available here.