Festival Thursday licence applied for
A potential change could happen
Clarity has been given on a major change that could happen at Reading Festival going forward.
The annual music festival is the biggest event in Reading each year, with more than 100,000 revellers attending.
Festival Republic, the organisers, recently applied to extend the hours for some of the activities it puts on.
Usually, the Wednesday and Thursday of the festival week are seen as warm-up days where people with camping tickets can arrive ahead of the main days from Friday to Sunday.
But in a landmark change, Festival Republic has applied for amplified music added to the licence for Thursday, on the Main Stage only, from 5pm until midnight.
This would have to be allowed through the approval of a variation of its existing events licence from Reading Borough Council.
A council licensing officer has clarified that the change, if granted, is intended to apply from next year, 2027, onwards.
Additionally, the organisers have applied to add the sale of alcohol from 11am to 3am on Wednesday, 10am to 5pm on Thursday, midnight to 3am on Friday, and 2am to 3am on Saturday and Sunday night. The application also mentions the sale of alcohol from 2am to 3am on the Monday.
It is understood this would apply to the Bank Holiday Monday.
Festival Republic has been emailed for further clarification and a statement.
The festival has undergone some changes since restarting after the coronavirus pandemic in 2021.
From that year until 2023, the site had two main stages, until the dual main‑stage format was replaced with the Chevron Stage in 2024.