WentFest "Doin' Fine" in 2026

Wentfest returns to Rotherham in 2026 promising an incredible family festival of music, comedy and performing arts with confirmed headline act – star of music, stage and screen – Jason Donovan!

The annual celebration was first hosted at Wentworth Woodhouse in Rotherham when it was dreamt up by radio and music pals, Toby Foster and Steve White in 2017, before moving to the beautiful campsite and open space space at Hooton Lodge Farm.

Taking place at Hooton Lodge Farm on Saturday June 13 this year, the organisers describe it as a "brilliant day out with your mates, your family, and the whole community."

Huge chart names from previous years include Blue, Scouting For Girls, Heather Small, Five, Tony Hadley, The Feeling, Lemar and Kim Wilde.

2026 welcomes Jason Donovan and his career sales of 13 million albums and 4 UK No.1 singles, fresh from his Doin’ Fine 25 tour and its encore dates this year. From “Too Many Broken Hearts” to “Especially for You,” plus potential hits from Joseph and Rocky Horror, Jason is set to deliver an unforgettable show that will have the whole festival singing along.

In addition to the Main Stage, there will be a Comedy & Spoken Word Stage, programmed by The Last Laugh Comedy Club, Yorkshire’s longest-running comedy club.

The addition of the New Music Stage provides the chance to support fantastic up and coming grassroots talent from the local area, giving them the chance to appear on the same bill as some of the world’s biggest chart acts.

RNN Group has recently been confirmed as the headline sponsor for Wentfest 2026.

The Group (made up of campuses including Rotherham College, North Notts College, Dearne Valley College and University Centre Rotherham (UCR)) will benefit from the opportunities it brings to its students including providing a platform for Performing Arts students from the College to programme and perform their own schedule of entertainment throughout the day, talks and workshops in a variety of industries including event planning / management, facilities management, catering, audio / visual creative production marketing, performing arts facilitated by the Wentfest team in the run up to the event, as well as work experience on the day at the event.

Mark Ryan, Vice-Principal, Curriculum, RNN Group said: “This is a fantastic collaboration for the RNN Group and its colleges and the opportunities for students will be immense.

“To be able to offer work experience and workshops on various key career opportunities to our students in the run up and on the day of a local Rotherham event of this scale is fantastic for our students across all of our sites.”

Toby Foster, Wentfest Founder, added: “This a fantastic partnership for Wentfest as it really reflects what our event is about, a truly local festival for the people of Rotherham. Not only do we bring the biggest stars of music and comedy to our doorstep, we’re also very passionate about offering a platform for up-and-coming talent to showcase their skills – whether that be performing, working behind the scenes or even helping us plan the event in advance.

"As a former Rotherham College student myself this feels like a full-circle moment for me and both Steve and myself, as well as the extended Wentfest team, can’t wait to work with both staff and students.”

WentFest website

Images: WentFest