New Approach for the Hanwell Hootie This Year


May festival will include a busking boat but no event on Viaduct Meadow

Crowds enjoying a previous Hanwell Hootie
Crowds enjoying a previous Hanwell Hootie

February 8, 2024

The date for this year’s Hanwell Hootie Music Festival has been officially confirmed as Saturday 11 May.

There will be some changes to the format after the organisers rethought the future of the event while putting on a series of pop-up events since the last time out including gigs at Hanwell Town FC , Hanwell Carnival and Ealing Broadway.

In a statement they say, “Our fundamental ethos remains the same. We want to nurture young and emerging artists, celebrate the areas rich musical heritage and create a sense of pride in our little corner of west London, putting Hanwell firmly on the musical map! We have always paid all artists a good fee whilst keeping the festival free to attend and we are continuing with these core values!

“Since our inception in 2013 we have been entirely volunteer led, run by a very small team of directors, this has always been a labour of love for us. We have poured huge amounts of our time and energy into making the festival the best it can be year on year. Eleven years on, this tiny core group of directors remain. Inevitably as our individual circumstances have changed over the years, we simply don’t have the capacity to put as much of our time and energy into running the festival. This is why the Hootie this year will be slightly different to previous years.”

Bands will still be hosted at St. Mellitus Church
Bands will still be hosted at St. Mellitus Church

The two most iconic venues associated with the Hootie, the Sandy Park stage and St Mellitus Church will continue to host live music and will open earlier than in previous years. There will also be a youth stage at Hanwell Library but there will be no festival events on Viaduct Meadow and instead of the Busking Bus there will be a Busking Boat , more details of which will be announced soon.

Other pubs and venues where the Hootie team have curated events in previous years will now be organising things themselves with support from festival volunteers. They will be part of the ‘Hootie day’ but will be acting independently.


Sandy Park will continue to be a venue for the annual festival

The application process for bands that wish to be part of the festival is opening shortly. Acts can submit all their music and details for consideration. Applications will be open for a few weeks and applying through this process will also allow you to apply for various other festivals throughout the UK with a few clicks.

The Hootie team encourages anyone who wants to be part of this year’s festival to reach out to volunteers@hanwellhootie.co.uk.

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